Mobile App Transactions in Vietnam Surpass $100 Million in Spending

According to the Ministry of Information and Communications, Vietnamese mobile users have spent a total of over $100 million on in-app purchases within the first five months of this year. The ministry’s recent report on digital transformation reveals that the revenue generated from online transactions via mobile applications or in-app purchases on iOS devices is 1.5 times higher than that on Android devices. In the first five months of the year, the combined revenue from both platforms exceeded $100 million.

In-app purchases refer to transactions made within an app. Users often encounter the message “In-app purchases” next to the “Get” button for free apps or the app price button for paid apps. The report also highlights that the total number of app downloads from Vietnam reached 1.41 billion, with Android accounting for 75% of the downloads. Vietnam’s share of global app downloads decreased slightly from 3.4% to 2.2% compared to the same period in 2022. Additionally, the report indicates that the majority of applications used by Vietnamese people are from foreign sources, with domestic apps accounting for only 22% of downloads.

Mobile games dominate both app downloads and spending, as per the report. Germany’s Adjust, a mobile analytics company, states that Vietnam has become a thriving hub for mobile gaming enthusiasts. Their report from May reveals that most players under 24 spend an average of two to three hours daily playing mobile games and are willing to make significant in-app purchases to unlock virtual items and additional content. Mobile gaming revenue in Vietnam is projected to reach an impressive $700 million by 2023.

According to Statista, a German online platform, the average Vietnamese person spent approximately 6.5 hours per day using the internet in 2021, with at least three hours dedicated to mobile app usage. The study also highlights that consumer spending on mobile apps in Vietnam amounted to $506 million in 2022, more than three times the amount recorded in 2018.