2020 - Mobile Year in Review
By: Ruxandra Amarei
Tags: UI, Mobile Apps, UX, iOS, Android

Habits on a mobile

Since most things moved into quarantine and remote work, we developed an obvious need of mobile use, whether it is for working, ordering food, paying utilities, education, fitness & health, entertainment or connecting with friends.

Smartphones have a clear dominance in the mobile-use statistics, almost everybody owns one nowadays. In 2019, Statista said there were 4.8 Billion people using phones, in 2020 it reached 6.95 Billion and in 2021 it’s expected to get up to 7.1 Billion worldwide. Therefore, our homes will remain the epicentre of our social and working lives, with 43% ‘At-Home’ behaviours linked to mobile use.

The rise of app-time spent “At-Home”

Next, let’s see both of Apple Store and Google Play’s 2020 habits in different App Categories such as Gaming, Education, Entertainment, Health & Fitness and Shopping.

Most popular app store categories in 2020

Is there anyone here who didn’t play anything from the Gaming category in 2020 while staying at home? I’m 99.9% sure there isn’t since it’s the most popular category by downloads. Whether it’s an adventure game, arcade, educational, sport or strategy, almost everybody relaxes their mind by engaging in some sort of online game, whether it’s on an app or in a browser. As a result, mobile playtime increased by 62% in 2020. (GameAnalytics, 2020). Top Gaming Apps Worldwide by Download are Among Us, Subway Surfers, Join Clash 3D, Garena Free Fire, Genshin Impactand others.

The Educational category is thriving this year giving the fact that we live in the informational era, where everything is accessible, convenient and mobile, straight from the comfort of our home. It’s not so unnatural anymore to be studying online, whether it is for academic purposes or personal development. Top Educational Apps Worldwide by Download are Google Classroom, YouTube Kids, Duolingo-Language Lessons, Photomath, Brainly-Homework Help App and Kahoot! Play &Create Quizzes. We might even include the most popular-by-use video conference platforms: Microsoft Teams, Google Meets and Zoom Meeting.

What did we do in 2020 with all this spare time that we had? After a good session of playing and/or studying, we amused ourselves with various choices from the Entertainment category of course. Top Entertainment Apps Worldwide seem to be: Netflix, YouTube, Spotify, Amazon Prime Video, Apple Music, Twitch, TED, Google Play Books and TuneIn.

At the opposite side of ‘motionlessness’, we find a healthy category of apps where people liked to spend their time in 2020. The Fitness & Health category. The benefits of exercises are well known, but in order to enjoy the rewards, you need to stick to a consistent and disciplined routine. This is where technology comes into help with apps where you can find a virtual personal trainer, specific exercises or a training partner to keep you motivated to work at home. This category is also known for its versatility, for its multiple subcategories such as Running, Walking, Activity Tracking, Cardio or full-on workouts. According to Forbes, Top Health & Fitness Apps Worldwide by Download are Calm, FitBit, MyFitnessPal, Headspace, Flo, Muscle Booster Workout, Better Me, Fitness Coach, Samsung Health, Home Workout.

Customers began using their mobile devices for product testing as soon as they hunkered down at home and 69% of internet users said they prefer searching for feedback on their phones rather than contacting an in-store employee. And I understand that completely! That being said because individuals like to search online, they obviously also like to shop online. Two thirds — 66% of internet users use Shopping applications on their mobile devices, 57% of them being between the ages of 25–34. Top Shopping Apps Worldwide are Wish, SHEIN, Amazon, eBay, AliExpress, Joom, Alibaba and Pinduoduo.