This post has been corrected.
Next week, Apple will—most likely—be announcing new versions of the iPhone and iPad, along with releasing the newest version of its mobile operating system iOS 9. It remains to be seen whether a new operating system or new devices will affect the types of apps we download. But a new report from app-tracking firm App Annie shows that our habits on our iOS devices haven’t changed much over the years.
Facebook—first released in 2008—is the most downloaded app in the world of all time, and Candy Crush Saga, which debuted November 2012, is the most downloaded game ever.
According to App Annie, which tracks the app stores in each country daily, US iPhone users have downloaded the top 10 apps of all time the most. The US dominated revenue earned for game downloads as well, apart from two games—Puzzle & Dragon and Monster Strike—where the Japanese spent the most. App Annie also said Apple’s Pages app is the only app on the list that doesn’t have a free version or in-app purchases (meaning it made all its revenue from people buying the app). Facebook-owned apps accounted for 40% of the most downloaded apps, a week after the company announced 1 billion people accessed the social network in a single day. Facebook also happens to be the only app in the top downloads chart that’s lasted since the initial launch of the App Store in 2008.
If you’re producing a casual game, a messaging app or a dating app for the next iPhone, you can hold out some hope that your app, like some of these enduring success stories, might just make it too:
Game downloads
App downloads
Games by revenue
Apps by revenue
Correction (Sept. 4): An earlier version of this post said that Japanese users accounted for the most revenue earned for game downloads, when in fact they account for most revenue for just those two of the top ten games, Puzzle & Dragon and Monster Strike.