Mobile Gaming IAP Revenue Trails Non-Gaming Apps Since 2016
A new report from AppMagic reveals that mobile gaming has not led in-app purchase revenue since 2016. According to GamesIndustry.biz, non-gaming platforms like TikTok and AI chatbots have overtaken the sector, even as established titles like Honor of Kings and Free Fire continue to set record performance figures in their respective categories.
Context from Industry Pulse
The mobile landscape is bifurcating between massive reach and high-efficiency monetization. While Free Fire and Among Us demonstrate the potential for near-billion-user scale, the revenue per user varies wildly across the industry. The rise of AI chatbots like ChatGPT as top-downloaded entities and TikTok's multi-year revenue streak suggests that consumer spending is shifting toward utility and social entertainment over traditional gaming. However, the 126 percent growth of Kingshot and the consistent billion-dollar performance of Honor of Kings prove that the mobile gaming market remains lucrative for established hits that can successfully navigate the shift in consumer behavior toward non-gaming platforms.
"Mobile games last led in-app purchase (IAP) revenue in 2016, having since been outperformed by non-gaming platforms such as TikTok and AI chatbots."
Market data covering the last decade indicates a significant shift in the mobile economy. As reported by GamesIndustry.biz, non-gaming applications have consistently outperformed mobile games in terms of in-app purchase revenue for eight consecutive years. While the gaming sector remains massive, it has been eclipsed by the rise of social video platforms and artificial intelligence tools. TikTok has maintained its position as the highest-grossing application globally every year since 2020, while ChatGPT emerged as the most downloaded app of 2025.
Despite the dominance of non-gaming apps, specific mobile titles continue to show immense financial scale. Honor of Kings has been a primary driver for the gaming sector since its 2017 release. The title earned 830 million dollars in its debut year and grew to surpass 1.1 billion dollars by 2026. According to GamesIndustry.biz, this MOBA secured the top spot for revenue in six different years over the past decade, including a recent 5 percent year-on-year growth recorded between January and October.
Download charts tell a different story of success, led primarily by Garena’s Free Fire. The game entered the market in 2019 with 272 million installations and has maintained high volume, adding 269 million downloads in 2024 and 221 million in 2026. While the title generated no revenue at its initial launch, it has since accumulated 3.3 billion dollars in total earnings. This highlights a trend where high-volume downloads do not always align immediately with monetization.
The report also identifies a stark contrast in how different titles monetize their user bases. For instance, Among Us reached a massive audience with 930 million downloads but only generated 52 million dollars in revenue. In comparison, Umamusume earned 1.6 billion dollars from a significantly smaller pool of 19 million downloads. GamesIndustry.biz also notes that few top-grossing games are currently seeing growth, though Gossip Harbor and Kingshot saw revenue spikes of 95 percent and 126 percent respectively this year.
The Industry Pulse Bottom Line
The mobile market has fundamentally changed, with non-gaming apps now capturing the majority of consumer spending. Success for developers now requires competing for screen time against dominant social and AI platforms.