What is a Good App Engagement Rate Benchmark in 2023?

Engagement rate is one of the most important metrics for measuring the success of mobile apps. It refers to the level of user interaction and retention within an app. By considering engagement benchmarks, developers and marketers can confidently optimize their apps and improve the efficiency of the mobile app development process. So what is considered a good app engagement rate in 2023? Let’s dig into the key factors that impact engagement and look at benchmarks across major app categories.

What Impacts Your App’s Engagement Rates?

Many factors influence the engagement rates for an app, including:

• Type of app — Games, social media, utility apps, content apps, etc. all have varying user expectations and behaviors. Games and social media apps generally aim for higher engagement.
• User demographics — Age, interests, location and other attributes impact how different users engage with apps. Knowing your target users is key.
• Marketing and user acquisition — How users arrive at an app plays a role in their initial engagement. Organic users may have higher intent than those from ads.
• Onboarding and tutorials — A smooth onboarding sequence is crucial for teaching new users how to engage with an app and its core features.
• User experience and design — The overall UX and UI design impact how easy and enjoyable an app is to use. Friction hurts engagement.
• New feature releases — Major updates with new features help re-engage existing users.
• Push notifications and reminders — Promptly reminding users to return boosts ongoing engagement.
• Content Quality — Providing valuable and relevant content keeps users engaged. Regularly update your app with fresh content to maintain interest.
• Personalization — Tailoring the app experience to individual user preferences increases engagement. Implement user profiles and personalized recommendations.
• Performance Optimization — A slow or buggy app can deter users. Regularly optimize your app’s performance to keep users satisfied.

Optimizing these factors is key to improving engagement rates over time. But what rates can developers and marketers benchmark against?

Benchmarks by App Category

Engagement benchmarks vary significantly across app categories based on typical usage patterns.

Games

For gaming apps, benchmarks include:

• Casual games — 25–30% D1 retention, 2–3 min per session
• Hardcore games — 40–60% D1 retention, 5–10+ min per session

Gameplay duration and retention rate after installing are key metrics. Hardcore gamers will engage for longer sessions and return more predictably than casual gameplay.

Social Media

Typical benchmarks for social media apps include:

• DAU/MAU ratio — 40–60%
• Like/comment/share rate — 5–15% of users
• Chat/messaging rate — 15–40% of DAU

Aim for high daily and monthly active users (DAU and MAU), and decent percentages taking key actions like liking, commenting, and chatting.

Shopping

For shopping apps, measure:

• Cart addition rate — 25–40% of users
• Purchase conversion rate — 1–5% of users
• Retention rate — 20–40% after 30 days

The percent of visitors that add items to their cart and make purchases indicates engagement. Loyalty is also key for shopping apps.

Utility Apps

Benchmark engagement for utility apps by:

• Core action frequency — How often users complete key tasks
• Churn and retention — Over 30, 90, and 180 days
• Notification tapping — 15–40% tap rate

Utility apps aim to build habit around core features, with notifications driving ongoing usage.

News and Content Apps

Content apps track metrics like:

• Articles/videos read per session — 2–7
• Scroll depth — 50–80% of each article/video
• Loyalty and retention — 35–55% after 90 days

The depth of consumption and repeat readership demonstrate engagement.

Tips to Improve Engagement Rates

Here are some proven ways to optimize metrics across app categories:

• Onboard users smoothly — Guide new users through key workflows
• Send targeted push notifications — Re-engage inactive users
• Analyze user cohorts — Optimize features for target personas
• Improve UX continuously — Reduce friction and churn
• Release fresh content and features — Give users reasons to return
• Retarget lapsed users — Win back lost users through ads
• Reward loyal users — VIP status, prizes, etc. for power users

Conclusion

Engagement rate benchmarks vary widely, but focusing on improving retention, session depth, and frequency of use is key across all app categories. Optimizing your onboarding, UX, notifications, features, and marketing to drive habit-forming usage is crucial. Continuously monitoring user behavior and testing improvements will help maximize engagement over time.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a good retention rate benchmark for apps?

30–60% after 30 days and 20–40% after 90 days are solid app retention benchmarks for most categories. Games and social media apps target closer to 60%.

How do you calculate an app’s engagement rate?

Engagement rate = (Daily or monthly active users / total installed users) x 100

What is a good page view per session benchmark?

5–10 pageviews per session indicates strong engagement for content and shopping apps. Higher is better.

What is a good benchmark for time in app?

Aim for 5–15 minutes for games, 2–7 minutes for utility apps, and 7–10 minutes for social and content apps.

How do app engagement rates vary by category?

Games have the highest engagement, followed by social media and shopping apps. Utility apps have lower averages.

How often should I measure app engagement?

Track daily and monthly to spot trends. Set up dashboards to monitor key engagement metrics continuously.