Global App Uninstallation Report: Android Uninstallation Rate is 2 Times Higher than iOS

The decrease in retention has led to rapid changes in the app market, which is dominated by free apps: the way apps are ranked is measured in addition to the number of installs, and user engagement is becoming increasingly important.

Retention rate and app ranking

Google Play and Apple's app stores have over 2 million apps, each facing a multitude of competitors.

If an app does not deliver on its promise to provide the appropriate features in a timely manner, the app may not be used or may be at risk of being uninstalled. And without constant user engagement, it becomes very difficult to profit from the app.

Global app uninstallation

App uninstallation rate is one of the key statistics affecting user engagement and is an increasingly important factor in app store ranking algorithms.

Therefore, it is crucial to keep the uninstall rate as low as possible for the natural amount of apps displayed.

This article provides uninstallation by platform, category, and country, as well as suggestions on how to reduce uninstallation rates, and also includes iOS data (information about Apple devices has become especially important since the App Store stopped providing data).

Android game uninstallation rate

Games as one of the largest categories in the app store provide users with a wide variety of choices and therefore brand loyalty is not high.

Games are essentially casual apps that easily get installed by most users, but are equally easy to uninstall.

And for games, there are other reasons for being quickly uninstalled, including the impact of induced installs and the fact that players can lose interest in the game after a while.

Shopping apps enjoy better brand affinity

The relatively low uninstallation rate of shopping apps on Android and iOS (especially on iOS) is greatly related to the shopping brands.

The existence of the brand effect brings a large number of more loyal users to shopping apps, and there are many shopping brands and categories to meet the needs of most people, so the brand affinity of shopping apps is higher and the uninstallation rate is lower compared to other categories of apps.

Travel apps have seasonality

Travel apps have a relatively high uninstall rate across different platforms.

Because travel apps are seasonal and not used often for most people, users will only install such apps when they are about to go on vacation and may not use it again for a short time after purchasing tickets.

Uninstallation by country/region

U.S. iOS and Android apps have the lowest uninstallation rates

High-quality phones with more storage space are more common in the U.S. because their prices are within everyone's reach.

And with an iOS app uninstallation rate of just 12% and a user loyalty rate of 87% in that country, Apple phones have a strong brand affinity for Americans, who will carefully consider whether to install and uninstall apps.

50% of Asian users rarely uninstall apps

Developing markets, including Asia, Latin America and Russia, have a higher share of lower-storage phone usage, but their Android app uninstallation rates are very different, probably because Asia is a priority region for cell phone users.

Asians' daily life is more closely related to their cell phones, so nearly 50% of users rarely uninstall applications.

Compare uninstallation rates by platform, category, and country/region of the app

Compare the uninstallation rates of apps in different platforms and countries/regions of app stores, focusing on the platforms and countries/regions with higher uninstallation rates and the categories of these apps, to judge the apps and suggest areas for improvement.

Rationalize budget based on uninstallation data

Summarize which platforms, media, ads, developers, countries/regions bring loyal users and which bring high uninstall rates based on historical placement data and adjust the budget accordingly.

Also consider ROI (return on investment). Low quality installs may bring high uninstall rates but also lower prices, while higher uninstall rates will lower app rankings in the app store, so use reward installs wisely.

Both Android and iOS users need to pay attention

The data shows that Android apps are uninstalled at a much higher rate than iOS.

While Apple users generate higher revenue, it is still important to invest in Android apps because they are more likely to uninstall apps, especially for Android users in those countries/regions with limited storage space on their phones.

Use various channels to drive user engagement

The best strategy to prevent uninstallation is to ensure continuous user engagement.

Higher user engagement is driven by many factors, including frequency and relevance of engagement, and fundamental to this strategy is the ability of the product/application itself to meet the needs of the user.

But for operations staff, this means using all available channels (push, email, social, etc.) to drive consistent use of their app by users.

Every channel matters: 86% of mobile devices have email turned on; a personalized push message can lead to double the retention rate and reduce the likelihood of uninstallation by 15%.

Understand when users are losing

Understand usage and in-app progress (e.g. tutorial completion, registration, successful level 5, successful level 10, in-app purchases, etc. in games, categories, products, add to cart, purchases, etc. in e-commerce).

It is important to know at which stage active users suddenly become inactive so that you can stimulate them to continue using the app through promotions, discounts, etc.

Enrich app content to increase relevance

In-app activity will help understand exactly what each user is doing, add them to a specific category, and target relevant, personalized ads via email, push messages, and other channels based on user behavior.

For example, instead of simply knowing what was added to the cart, it could be based on relevant data about which users added them to the cart after browsing sneakers that cost more than $100.
Provide real value to users
If you want to get users back to using apps that they have stopped using and uninstalled, you need to offer value that is attractive enough.

The best way to spark their interest and use is to offer discounts and exclusive content.

According to Think With Google, 30% of users believe they would return to an app they had previously uninstalled or stopped using if they were offered discounts and coupons on their next purchase, while 26% believe exclusive content would drive them to do so.

Ensure the correct use of deep chains

A connected mobile network and a secure application environment is a must if you want to optimize the user experience. If there is

Any malfunction or inconvenience in use risks losing users.

For example, if a user clicks on a promotion in an email and it opens the app store instead of the associated app, or if clicking on a promotional link opens the main screen of the app instead of the associated promotional page, neither will meet the user's expectations.

Use video ads to acquire users

Some studies have shown that video ads are a way to acquire loyal users because they showcase much of the content offered within the app and help users better understand if the app meets their needs.

Without enough information, users will quickly uninstall an app after installing it and finding out it's not the app they were expecting.

Take suggestions from users

Discussions about the app on social networks and communities, ratings and reviews in the app store, etc. provide feedback, and the app features should be optimized and corrected based on relevant feedback or suggestions.

Conclusion

The fundamental thing for an app to gain loyal users is to focus on the app itself. If the app is of good quality and meets the needs of most people, it is not difficult to get more users.

Of course, based on the fact that "more than 30% of the world's apps are eventually uninstalled after installation", having users and retaining them are obviously two completely different concepts.

In such a competitive app market, it is more difficult for developers to get new users than to keep the existing ones, so it is important to reduce the uninstall rate and increase user engagement. The uninstall rate and user engagement of their apps in different platforms, categories and countries/regions should be focused on, summarize the characteristics and take reasonable measures accordingly.