Pakistan has secured a spot among the top 10 global markets for app downloads in 2024, with 3.56 billion installs, reflecting a 9.2% year-on-year increase, according to data released by IT consultancy firm Data Darbar. The growth placed Pakistan ninth worldwide in downloads and 12th in total hours spent on mobile applications.
Pakistanis logged an impressive 79.1 billion hours on apps, up 14.1% from last year, underlining the central role of smartphones in everyday activities. Average monthly mobile data usage climbed to 8.4 gigabytes per user, while broadband consumption surpassed 13,000 petabytes across 134.8 billion subscriptions.
Despite surging consumption, app development activity within the country slowed significantly. The number of active developers declined by 26% to 1,400 in 2024, while Android app releases dropped 55% to 1,700. In total, 2,500 new apps were launched during the year, including 1,053 games and 784 iOS applications.
In terms of popularity, TikTok remained the most downloaded app in Pakistan with 32.4 million installs, followed by CapCut at 27.1 million, Facebook at 24.3 million, and WhatsApp at 22.7 million.
WhatsApp Business also saw robust demand with 20.9 million downloads. For streaming platforms, Tamasha led with 10.2 million installs, ahead of Netflix with 3.7 million and Tapmad with 2.5 million.
Regionally, Pakistan’s app download growth outpaced several peers, including Indonesia (8.6%), the Philippines (1.2%), and Mexico (1.2%). In contrast, Vietnam and Egypt experienced declines of 13.6% and 1.7% respectively.
Globally, app downloads reached 136 billion, with users spending 4.2 trillion hours on mobile platforms. Mobile ad spending touched $195 billion, while in-app purchases generated $150 billion. Artificial intelligence apps also gained momentum, recording 1.49 billion downloads and contributing $1.27 billion in revenue.
