Revealed: WhatsApp is the most downloaded app over the past eight years

New research has revealed the most downloaded apps across the world over the past eight years, and WhatsApp leads the way with over 5.6 billion installations.

The study by online smartphone retailer Mobiles.co.uk analysed global download data since 2015 and found that WhatsApp has reigned supreme for 79 consecutive months since April 2016, when it overtook Facebook Messenger.

The real rising star, however, is video sharing platform TikTok. In September 2018, it surged into the all-time top 10 most-downloaded list and has since recorded some of the single biggest months of downloads of any app.

TikTok has topped the 100m monthly downloads mark four times over the last few years and now sits at number four in the all-time list with 4 billion downloads. It is also the most downloaded app of 2022 so far, at almost 744 million. TikTok’s popularity shows no signs of slowing down and is expected to continue leading the way for years to come.

Top 10 most downloaded apps in 2022: 

It’s clear that the future of apps is visual, with video and image-sharing sites, such as Instagram, Snapchat and CapCut, joining TikTok in this year’s top 10. Next year’s list could also feature another similar app, as a new social media phenomenon, BeReal has been installed almost 50 million times since June.

A noticeable omission from the top list is Twitter, which ranked 15^th across the eight years. It never featured in a monthly top 10, suggesting the app may well have been on the decline before its recent rocky patch, as detailed in the press.

The game Subway Surfers, however, has been a constant in the top 10 since 2015, even though other popular games, such as Clash of Clans and Candy Crush, have long since fallen down the rankings.

Across the years, the app with the single biggest month of downloads is Zoom, which was downloaded a staggering 146 million times in April 2020, as the first Covid lockdown hit the country.

Kyle Wilson, mobile expert at Mobiles.co.uk commented: “Looking at the data, it’s clear that social media and messaging apps have remained popular amongst the public, with an increasing desire to remain connected to loved ones. However, in recent years, there’s been an increasing trend in connecting to people you don’t know, such as TikTok or Instagram Reels, rather than maintaining contact with those you do know, on apps such as Facebook.

“App technology is forever changing, and we expect trends to come and go over the next year or two, but you can start to see certain patterns in the top 10 lists, such as the domination of image and video-led platforms, with the intent to broadcast and reach beyond your own social circle. It will be interesting to see if social media and messaging apps continue to reign as we move forwards, or if a new form of mobile application will burst onto the scene.”

To find out more about the most downloaded mobile applications, please visit Mobiles.co.uk.