SocialPeta analyzed the top global mobile apps by downloads, advertising activity, and revenue performance across both the App Store and Google Play.
Overview: Global Mobile Apps Performance in December 2025
Several clear trends shaped the mobile app landscape at the end of 2025:
- Temu launched over 600,000 deduplicated ad creatives on a single platform, reinforcing its aggressive global expansion strategy.
- Short drama apps, along with reading and e-commerce platforms, dominated mobile app advertising rankings, highlighting the growing role of content-driven growth.
- Story TV, a rising short drama app, quietly gained momentum, surpassing several established competitors and climbing both App Store and Google Play download rankings.
Top 20 Mobile Apps by Advertising Activity
FlickReels Short Drama Ads: Creative Trends and Insights
Among leading short drama apps, FlickReels continued to attract global attention with its distinctive silver-haired short drama content.
Although FlickReels’ ad volume declined month-over-month, it still launched over 100,000 ad creatives in December, ranking among the top mobile advertisers. Ahead of the Christmas season, the platform updated its app icon with a festive Santa hat—an example of a localization-driven advertising strategy.
Advertising Strategy Behind FlickReels：
- After deduplication, approximately 173,000 ads were delivered across platforms in December
- New creatives accounted for 85.5%, showing rapid iteration
- Ads were distributed across 81 countries and regions, with top markets including the United States, Japan, Canada, and South Korea
- Android and iOS traffic was split roughly 53:47
- More than 500 short dramas were promoted, with 36.8% new titles
- The most promoted title, He Is Not Your Husband, followed a classic revenge-driven short drama narrative
- The highest-impression creative (6 minutes 46 seconds) featured a private jet confrontation and cliffhanger ending, reaching an estimated 270,000 impressions
These patterns highlight how short drama advertising relies heavily on narrative tension, localization, and high creative volume.
Temu Advertising Trends: Campaigns and Local Seller Program Insights
In December, Temu expanded its ecosystem by launching a Shopify App Store integration, enabling independent sellers to join its Local Seller Program, now active in over 30 countries including the US, Canada, and the UK.
Key Advertising Insights：
- Around 600,000 deduplicated ads were delivered, with 88.3% new creatives
- Ads reached 81 countries and regions, led by the US, Australia, and Canada
- English dominated ad copy (50.16%), followed by Indonesian and German
- Video ads were the primary format, while display ads supported low-cost products
- The most successful creatives emphasized price-focused branding, using visuals like “X.99” pricing and limited-time offers
MadMuscles Ad Trends: AI-Generated Videos and Fitness Campaigns
MadMuscles continued scaling performance through creative automation:
- Approximately 38,000 deduplicated ads in December
- 89.5% new creatives, reflecting high testing velocity
- Top markets: United States, France, Germany
- Video ads accounted for over 80% of total creatives
A notable shift was the increased use of AI-generated videos, featuring scripted conversations between reporters and fitness influencers—significantly improving production efficiency and engagement.
Top 20 Mobile Apps by Revenue
App Store Revenue Highlights
- Despite controversy around automatic charges, Duolingo increased revenue through its collaboration with Genshin Impact, leveraging anime-style culture to attract younger users.
- HBO Max boosted revenue by introducing Curated Channels and expanding partnerships across European markets.
Google Play Revenue Highlights
- ReelShort, a major short drama app, promoted over 2,000 short dramas in December.
- The male-targeted series AMERICAN SNIPER: THE LAST ROUND delivered strong conversion results, with YouTube videos surpassing 1 million views
Top 20 Mobile Apps with the Maximum Downloads
App Store Download Leaders
- CapCut saw a 19% download surge, driven by Christmas marketing and TikTok virality.
- AI tools remained competitive, with ChatGPT and Google Gemini holding top positions, while Grok climbed into the Top 18.
Google Play Download Leaders
India-based micro video and short drama app Story TV leveraged population scale and IAA monetization to surpass DramaBox and ReelShort, ranking 17th on Google Play.
Conclusion
The global mobile apps with the maximum downloads in December 2025 highlight the growing impact of high-volume ad creatives, targeted advertising strategies, and content-driven engagement. Across categories including entertainment, AI tools, and short-form content platforms, advertisers that rapidly iterate creatives and align campaigns with seasonal and localized trends continue to gain a competitive edge.
These trends underscore the importance of ad creative optimization and download-driven growth strategies for achieving visibility, sustained user acquisition, and long-term revenue performance across the App Store and Google Play.
For more mobile app marketing data, advertising insights, and download trend analysis, you can visit SocialPeta’s website here.
