Out Now! Liftoff and Adjust’s Japan Mobile App Trends 2022

By Ruoji Tang | October 27, 2022

Like the global app market, Japan’s mobile app market saw a burst of growth in the past two years, driven by changing habits spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic. The country’s mobile users turned to apps to make essential purchases, reorganize their finances, entertain themselves, or simply pass the time. Yet as the pandemic largely winds down, user habits continue to evolve.

 

For app marketers looking to grow their share in Japan, the market brings both unique challenges and significant rewards. Japan’s median age is relatively high (49.2), and despite being a nation known to develop cutting-edge technologies, Japan has been slow to adopt mobile technology on a population-wide scale.

 

That said, in the past few years, the number of mobile users in Japan has grown steadily. Smartphone ownership among internet users aged 16 to 64 passed 90%, according to a survey by Insider Intelligence. A report by social media agency We Are Social also found that 98% of social media users access platforms via mobile and that 59% of Smartphone users play games on mobile.

 

With usage climbing, entrants and incumbents alike have an opportunity to capitalize on the nation’s app market. Drawing on data from Japan from 2020 to 2022, Adjust and Liftoff’s Japan mobile app trends report provides mobile marketers across industries with an essential overview of new trends, benchmarks, and insights into the island nation. Our report examines installs, sessions, and ROAS across four key verticals—gaming, e-commerce, fintech, and dating.

 

According to Adjust data, Japan’s mobile app market—despite fluctuations from global changes—continues to keep pace with global growth. Year-over-year growth for app installs across all verticals in Japan increased by 19% from 2020 to 2021. To take full advantage of emerging opportunities, marketers must adapt and develop marketing strategies to fit regional trends and user preferences and habits. To assist, this report offers perspectives from marketers with extensive experience driving app growth in the country.

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Read the report in Japanese or in English.

Report highlights include:

  • Overview of app trends in Japan in the past 2 years
  • Installs and sessions across gaming, e-commerce, fintech, and dating verticals
  • Costs and ROAS breakdowns by platform
  • Top tips from region experts