What Types of Apps Do People Actually Pay For?

Ranked: Types of Mobile Apps, by Revenue in 2023

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A lot of the digital sphere is technically free if one has an internet connection. After all, many useful apps—email, messaging, social media—can be accessed for the grand sum of zero dollars and zero cents.

But many people choose to pay for apps anyway, either to get rid of ads, access content locked behind paywalls, or to opt in for a more exclusive form of service.

So what are these apps? And how much money are we talking about?

This chart tracks the amount of money spent on apps by mobile users around the world using data from SensorTower’s State of Mobile 2024 report.

Importantly, it does not include spending on mobile games.

Entertainment, Dating, Are Big Wins

The top category of apps people pay for is Digital Entertainment, earning more than $8 billion in revenue for various providers (Netflix, Disney+, HBO).

And media access is a big theme in the app economy: from live sports and music to comics and books.

Aside from that, mobile users around the world are also dropping big bucks on dating apps which pulled in close to $6 billion in revenue in 2024.

In fact, according to SensorTower, Tinder was the first non-game mobile app to reach $1 billion in user spending in 2020. It also remains the only dating app to do so.

By employing the paywall model, dating apps can either restrict access to new profiles, usually by setting a specific number of “likes” or “matches,” or offer to boost a user’s profile, both for a small fee.

Meanwhile, people theorise (currently without evidence) that dating apps cripple prospects for non-paying members, which may lead into a feedback loop towards paying for matches.

As of 2024, about 11% of Tinder’s user base are paying members, accounting for about 60% of its revenue.

With the World Health Organization warning that loneliness could soon become a global public health concern, one imagines dating apps are only going to see revenue gains.

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