State of Mobile Gaming 2025

Sensor Tower’s State of Mobile Gaming breaks down how the market evolved in 2024, who the winners were, and what opportunities lie ahead for 2025.

With the Q1 2025 drawing to a close, we can state at least one thing for certain – mobile gaming is back on track. Though downloads plateaued through 2024, IAP revenue, time spent, and sessions are all on the rise.

The illustrated and interactive 50+ page report includes: 

✅ A data-driven overview of the most important trends in the industry, including downloads, revenue, and engagement.

✅ A detailed exploration of the winners of 2024 and what drove their success

✅ A deep dive into mobile game marketing, including which ad networks saw the most impression share growth in 2024 and the three creative trends of 2024 you need to know

But don’t take our word for it. Here are some of the key highlights:

Casual vs. Hybridcasual: The Surprising Shifts in Mobile Gaming

📈 Mobile gaming in-app purchase revenue grew 4% year over year in 2024, with time spent up 8% and number of sessions up 12%. This growth occurred in spite of the continuing download decline, with developers refocusing on live ops in existing titles.

💸 Players spent $82 billion in mobile game in-app purchases in 2024; growth was mostly seen on iOS, with Android in-app purchase revenue falling flat year over year. Casual games saw the most absolute growth, though Hybridcasual games soared to a  37% increase in in-app purchase revenue year over year.

📲 Mobile games were downloaded 49 billion times, a 7% decline from 2023. Interestingly, this decline was mostly felt by casual games: the same category that saw the most in-app purchase revenue growth.

Where Gamers Are Spending: Regional Trends & Market Growth

🌎 The most in-app purchase growth was seen in Western markets, with North America seeing a 9% increase and Europe seeing a 14% increase. However, secondary markets also saw significant growth, with Latin America up 13%, the Middle East up 18%, and Oceania up 8%. The only major region to see a decline was Asia, which declined 3% year over year. However, some of this is attributable to the fact that this analysis is in US dollars, which has exhibited notable strength vs several Asian currencies recently.

The Biggest Winners of 2024: Who Dominated the Charts?

🏆 MONOPOLY GO! was the big winner of 2024, bringing in the most in-app purchase revenue worldwide. Scopely’s breakout hit, which launched in 2023, combines the beloved MONOPOLY intellectual property with proven coin looter gameplay. Honor of Kings came in at #2, remaining the largest mid-core title in the world. 

🎮 Honorable mentions for  2024 include Roblox, Last War: Survival, and Whiteout Survival. Last War: Survival and Whiteout Survival are 4x strategy games launched in 2023 that streamlines the gameplay of 4x strategy games while retaining the genre’s strong progression and monetization. Perhaps most notably, these games are very ad-creative-friendly with a universal style that supported success in both the East and West. Developers would do well to take these two examples of success to heart: Last War: Survival saw the most year-over-year in-app purchase revenue growth of any mobile game in 2024.

Casual Games saw the biggest download decline but also the largest absolute IAP revenue gain.

📈 Mobile Gaming Is Back on Track

• In-app purchase (IAP) revenue hit $82 billion in 2024 (+4% YoY).
• Time spent gaming rose 8%, and sessions increased by 12%, despite a 7% decline in downloads.
• Casual games saw the biggest revenue growth, while Hybridcasual titles surged by 37% in IAP revenue.

🌎 Regional Market Trends

• North America (+9%) and Europe (+14%) led the IAP revenue growth.
• Latin America (+13%) & Middle East (+18%) are emerging as key markets.
• Asia saw a 3% decline, partly due to currency fluctuations.

🏆 Top Games of 2024

• MONOPOLY GO! was the year’s biggest revenue driver.
• Honor of Kings remained the world’s top mid-core title.
• Whiteout Survival & Last War: Survival dominated in the 4X strategy genre, thriving on ad-friendly creative strategies.

📲 Monetization & Platform Shifts

• iOS dominated IAP revenue, while Google Play excelled in ad-driven monetization.
• Hybridcasual games saw the fastest revenue growth.

🎯 Marketing & Player Engagement Trends

• Live services are now essential for success, keeping players engaged.
• TikTok & Applovin reshaped mobile game advertising, driving impressions and player acquisition.
• Strategy games led in time spent, with Brawl Stars seeing a massive engagement boost.

🔹 Bottom Line: While downloads have plateaued, player spending and engagement are stronger than ever. To win in 2025, Devs must focus on retention, live ops, and hybrid monetization models.