Pakistan has emerged as one of the world’s fastest-growing mobile app markets, ranking ninth globally in app downloads and 12th in total hours spent using mobile applications, according to new data from IT consultancy firm Data Darbar.
The report shows Pakistan recorded 3.56 billion app installs in 2024, marking a 9.2% year-on-year increase, highlighting the country’s expanding digital footprint. Pakistanis collectively spent 79.1 billion hours on mobile apps — a 14.1% jump from last year — reflecting the growing integration of smartphones into everyday life.
Average monthly mobile data usage reached 8.4 gigabytes per user, while broadband consumption exceeded 13,000 petabytes across 134.8 million mobile broadband subscriptions.
However, the data also indicated a slowdown in domestic app development. The number of active developers dropped 26% to 1,400, and Android app releases fell 55% to 1,700. In total, 2,500 new apps were launched in 2024, including 1,053 games and 784 iOS apps.
TikTok topped Pakistan’s download charts with 32.4 million installs, followed by CapCut (27.1 million), Facebook (24.3 million), and WhatsApp (22.7 million). WhatsApp Business also saw strong growth with 20.9 million downloads.
In the streaming segment, Tamasha led with 10.2 million installs, outperforming Netflix (3.7 million) and Tapmad (2.5 million).
Regionally, Pakistan’s growth in app downloads outpaced major markets such as Indonesia (8.6%), the Philippines (1.2%), and Mexico (1.2%), while Vietnam and Egypt saw declines of 13.6% and 1.7% respectively.
Globally, the report noted 136 billion app downloads and 4.2 trillion hours spent on mobile apps, alongside $195 billion in mobile ad spending. In-app purchases generated $150 billion worldwide, while AI-based applications surged with 1.49 billion downloads, contributing $1.27 billion in revenue.