Using its own platform for app monitoring, ASO and user review management, AppFollow has analysed shopping app charts and identified the leaders.

The study looked at the performance of shopping apps with the highest average ratings for 2020 as well as separately for January and February 2021; the sample included apps which remained visible in the rating for the majority of the year or month. The data were used to identify the most popular shopping platforms in Russia, the USA and the UK.

Russia

The past few months in Russia have seen the emergence of several new leaders compared with 2020, with OZON: 20 000 Prodavtsov Tovarov topping the free iPhone app charts in January 2021 and Yandex.Market overtaking it in February. WILDBERRIES held the top position in the same category for iPad in January and February 2021 as well as in 2020. The OZON app retained headship in January–February among free shopping apps in Google Play, ousting the 2020 leader Avito: Auto, Apartments, Services, Work.

The Grossing category has seen a few interesting changes. Like in 2020, Knigi Khity 2017 emerged as a winner among iPad apps in January, but lost its top position the next month to Psikhologia i Treningi - Knigi, Kursy i Audioknigi. Car ad aggregator Haraba remained the most popular Grossing app for iPhone in January and February 2021. The situation is stable in the Paid category for iPad, with SMS Smileys making itself comfortable in the top position over January and February; in the Paid category for iPhone, however, it had to cede its leadership in February to Smart Closet - Fashion Style, which showed a better chart visibility and average rating. Other newcomers making it to the top in Google Play were Skidochnaya Karta – Lenta (Grossing / January), Shopping List Voice Input PRO (Paid / January and February) and GiveAway — buy nothing (Grossing / February).

AppFollow analysts say: “Wildberries and Ozon have witnessed some interesting dynamic. Wildberries is showing a growth both in the chart positions and the number of reviews (ca. 36,000 new reviews per month on average); its average rating, however, has been sliding since March 2020. Ozon displays a different picture, with its number of reviews, rating and chart positions climbing in both App Store and Google Play. Although its rating dipped at times (in Apple Store in March – August 2020 and in Google Play in March – June 2020), the outlook for Ozon is quite good. The app has been averaging 75 000 new reviews per month in App Store and ca. 30,000 in Google Play since September 2020. The app’s rating in App Store hit a low at 4.834 in August but recovered in February 2021, reaching 4.891 – fairly impressive for an app with over 900 000 reviews. Despite the strong fluctuations, the chart positions had stabilized by the end of the year”.

UK

The key players on the British shopping app market included some “old guns” and the apps which have recently ousted 2020 chart leaders. Shop: package & order tracker for iPad enjoyed the winning position in the Free category for both iPhone and Google Play in January and February. Among free apps for iPad, Amazon has lead the way throughout 2020 and in the first two months of 2021. Online retail platform Shpock - The Joy of Selling has retained its top position in the Grossing (iPhone, iPad, Google Play) category, while Shopping list voice input PRO became the winning app in the Paid category (Google Play) in both 2020 and January–February 2021.

AppFollow analysts say: “Shop: package & order tracker has shown the most impressive dynamic among shopping apps in the UK, displaying a growth in both App Store and Google Play. The application achieved an increase in the star rating, the number of reviews and the average rating (from 2.8 to 4.7) in the iOS category, soaring from the 150^th position in the chart to the very top. An equally striking rise occurred in Google Play, the only difference being the absence of any marked rating falls”.

USA

On the US market, the top chart positions among shopping apps over 2020 and January–February 2021 have been held by real leaders. Indeed, neither Amazon Shopping (Free / iPhone / iPad), OfferUp - Buy. Sell. Letgo (Grossing / iPhone / iPad / Google Play), nor Dragons Mod for Minecraft PC - Ender Dragon with Game of Thrones Edition Skins (Paid / iPad) or QSeer Coupon Reader (Paid / Google Play) are going to give up their positions without a fight. The “newcomers” include Shop: Package & Order Tracker (Google Play / Free) and Penny Finder (iPad / Paid / January).

AppFollow analysts say: “Amazon has enjoyed a robust growth since July 2020, both in terms of its star ratings and its ranking positions. Amazon customers are willing to share their experience using the app. Another leader, OfferUp, shows a stable growth and visibility in top charts despite a temporary dip in October 2020 (which was addressed quickly and efficiently)”.