App Store analytics explained: impressions, downloads and conversion rate

01Read it as a journey

Apple groups its metrics by the stage of a customer’s journey. Knowing which group a number belongs to tells you what question it answers.

02Impressions, page views and conversion rate

• Impressions: the number of times your app was seen on the Today, Games, Apps and Search tabs for more than one second. They include product page views.
• Product page views: visits to your App Store page, including when another app opens it with StoreKit.
• Conversion rate: total downloads and pre-orders divided by unique device impressions.

Each of the first two comes in a total and a unique devices version. If total impressions are far higher than unique ones, the same people are seeing your app again and again, which often happens with a strong search position.

Because conversion rate divides by unique devices, it isn’t the same as downloads divided by the impressions number you see first. Check which version a screen shows before comparing.

03First-time downloads, redownloads and total

• First-time downloads: someone getting your app for the first time. This is your best count of new customers.
• Redownloads: someone getting it again, counted when they tap the redownload button. Automatic updates and device restores don’t count.
• Total downloads: the two added together.

Installations are different again. They sit in the usage group, include the same person installing on several devices and Family Sharing, and only count people who share analytics. That’s why installations and downloads rarely match. Why your download numbers don’t match walks through every case.

04Sales, proceeds and paying users

Sales is what customers were billed. Proceeds is Apple’s estimate of what you’ll receive after its commission and applicable taxes. Paying users counts unique Apple Accounts that paid for your app or an in-app purchase.

Refunds get their own metrics, including a refund rate for sales, proceeds and purchases. A rising refund rate after an update is worth a look. For when the money actually arrives, see App Store proceeds, sales and payments explained.

05Sessions, active devices and deletions

• Sessions: each time the app is used for at least two seconds. Coming back from the background counts as a new one.
• Active devices: devices with at least one session in the period.
• Active in last 30 days: devices with a session in the previous 30 days.
• Deletions: removals from the Home Screen or through storage settings.

All of these only include people who agreed to share analytics with developers. They show trends well, but they undercount your real audience, so don’t compare them one for one with downloads.

06Why some numbers are missing

Apple holds back metrics until there’s enough data to show without identifying anyone:

• App Store and download metrics appear once you have at least five first-time downloads or pre-orders.
• Usage metrics need at least five active devices in the date range.
• In-app event metrics need five first-time downloads from an event.
• Subscription metrics need at least one subscription sold.

For a brand new app, a blank chart usually means it hasn’t crossed the threshold yet, not that something is broken.

07What’s a good conversion rate?

There’s no single good number. It changes with your category, your price and where people find you: someone who searched your app’s name converts far more often than someone scrolling past it.

The fairest comparison is Apple’s own peer group benchmarks. They place your conversion rate, crash rate and retention against apps in the same category with the same business model, at the 25th, 50th and 75th percentiles. Below the 25th means your page is losing people other apps keep. Start with the first screenshot and the subtitle.

08Keep the daily numbers close

Analytics is where you go to study discovery. For the daily questions (did people download it, did they pay, what are they saying, where is it charting), Perch brings installs, proceeds, refunds, reviews and rankings together on your Mac menu bar and iPhone. Impressions and conversion rate still live in App Store Connect’s analytics.