With over 50 million registered users, Match Group’s Tinder is a great example of an app that is a tidy money earner due to in-app purchases. The Tinder dating app is free to download, but makes money by charging users for bonus features like unlimited swipes, which give users endless opportunities to match. Tinder’s „Passport“ add-on allows users to match with users in other locations, while „Boost“ allows users to bump their profile to the top of the pile of users in their area. In Q1 of 2018, Match Group reported generating over $407.4 million in revenue. Tinder charges $9.99 a month for a Plus subscription and $ for a Tinder Gold upgrade.
Bumble is a close competitor with 50 million users and an impressive growth rate of 135%. The app was estimated to make $172 per minute in 2018 thanks to its monthly $9.99 subscription option and premium features like Bumble Boost and SuperSwipe.
Pandora, Tencent Video, and iQiyi are also high up on the list of top-grossing apps. Subscriptions generate the majority of these apps‘ revenue. Video-streaming apps like Hulu and Netflix operate on subscription-based method as well.
AnchorFree’s Hotspot Shield is an app that has proven to be useful on a number of globally important issues. The app allows users worldwide to access a virtual private network (VPN). This technology was crucial during the Arab Spring, as it allowed users to bypass government censorship. Subscriptions cost users $5.99 a month for a year of service, or $ on a month-to-month basis. Hotspot Shield reached 650 million installs as of 2019, and remains one of the top-grossing apps on the iTunes App Store.
On a smaller scale, privately owned apps are also generating a significant amount of revenue. The Telepathic, Inc. app Hooked is relatively simple, and yet it rarely strays from the App Store’s top-grossing books category.Continue reading