Profiling Internet Users in Africa: Insights from the Google Play Store

When comparing & contrasting the top Google Play apps across South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, and Tanzania, several overarching and country-specific themes emerge.

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According to World Bank data, sub-Saharan Africa’s population was just over 1 billion in 2016. Coupled with the region’s current smartphone adoption rate (28%) and the current internet penetration rate (19%), it’s clear that the potential represented by Africans coming online and participating in the digital economy is significant.

That said, across various cities and countries, segments of the population are already actively participating. Today, these participants access the internet via mobile by and large, and with Android’s close to 50% market share on the continent, ~1 in 2 do so from a device linked to the Google Play store.