Here is an analysis of the global non-gaming App user acquisition marketing trends for March 2025, based on ad data from 50 countries/regions and 28 global media platforms, according to AppGrowing's report.
In March 2025, Shopping, Tools, and Finance remained the top three app categories by share of active ad campaigns in global markets, mirroring the trends observed in February.
Notably, Tools reclaimed the top spot in terms of new app launches, accounting for 13.55% of all new entries, while Entertainment also saw strong momentum, surpassing the 10% mark.
In terms of advertising volume, Shopping apps continued to dominate, with their total ad impressions increasing further. They were followed by Entertainment, Tools, Travel, and Life apps—suggesting a broader surge in ad investment across daily-utility verticals such as food, clothing, housing, and transportation.
When it comes to creative formats, static images remained the dominant type of ad asset in the non-gaming app space, accounting for 57.04% of total creatives, while video ads made up 41.32%.
Among video creatives, those shorter than 15 seconds were the most commonly used, making up 36.17% of all video ads. Meanwhile, the share of videos longer than 60 seconds continued to grow, rising to 21.53%.
01.Top Non-gaming App Developers & Apps
According to AppGrowing data, the top three developers by ad volume in March were TEMU, TikTok, and NewLeaf Publishing. Notably, Carrefour and UAPROM made their first appearance in the top 30 this month, both of which are promoting shopping-related apps.
Short drama apps continued to scale up their ad investments. Beyond NewLeaf Publishing, two other short drama publishers ranked fourth and fifth—SHORTTV and NEW READING TECHNOLOGY. In total, nine short drama-focused developers made it into the top 30, all of which were Chinese companies.
Looking at the Top 30 apps by ad volume, the leading three were Temu, ReelShort, and ShortMax, while Shopee and TikTok moved down to the fourth and fifth spots.
Short drama apps showed particularly aggressive growth: both ReelShort and ShortMax saw their ad volumes surge over 40% month-over-month, with similar upward trends seen among other short drama apps in the rankings.
There were also some new faces among the top Shopping apps. For example, Carrefour France, a shopping app from the global retailer, saw ad volume skyrocket by 171.19% MoM, debuting at No. 11.
02.Top Apps in Selected Catagories
This issue, AppGrowing spotlighted four verticals: Social-Voice Chat room, Short Drama, Travel, and AI Music.
Among the top six apps in the Social-Voice Chat room category, the top spot went to BAND, developed by South Korea's NAVER. Four Chinese-developed apps also made it to the top: SUGO, Litmatch, Xena, and YoHo.
Notably, SUGO and YoHo both come from Newborn Town（赤子诚科技）. SUGO, which began scaling up in 2023, remains one of the top-grossing apps in the Middle East.
In the Short Drama category, most of the top six apps were established names. NetShort ramped up ad spending and rose to the No. 1 position.
For Travel apps, Trip—the global version of 携程—topped the charts, continuing its steady ad presence across international markets.
In the AI Music vertical, the top three apps by ad volume were VivaVideo, MusicLab, and MyTunes.
03.Ad Creative Case：YoHo
YoHo is a voice-based social app developed by Newborn Town, primarily targeting the Middle Eastern market. According to AppGrowing data, YoHo maintained consistent ad delivery throughout March, with daily ad volumes exceeding 1,200 creatives and peaking above 1,600 on certain days.
From a creative perspective, YoHo's advertising focuses on showcasing its core feature of voice-based social interaction, while integrating trending mechanics such as live streaming and PK battles to boost engagement.
For example, one ad opens with a simulated chat app interface, immediately creating a sense of familiarity and intimacy. It quickly cycles through various streamer personalities, then cuts to their live sessions, highlighting flashy avatar frames and virtual gifts—implicitly suggesting the app’s rich, entertaining content. The video concludes with a female streamer delivering a call-to-action, reinforcing product features and nudging viewers toward downloading the app.
