Most Popular Apps and Games in 2022

Oriane Inezaby 
Content Marketing Specialist

10 min read

The app stores are a bustling landscape with hundreds of apps launched every day. Among this multitude of apps and games, users are quick to download the most popular ones. In this blog, we take a look at the top 10 most downloaded apps and games across 7 of the largest app markets (United States, France, United Kingdom, Germany, India, Japan, and South Korea) between January 2022 and June 2022.

Read on to learn:

  1. Which apps and games are the most downloaded in your (or your competitors’) market?
  2. Which mobile iOS games do users prefer? Which Android games are players hooked on?
  3. Which app categories do different countries favor?
  4. What are the most popular categories among apps and games on the app stores?
  5. Are the top charts similar or different across these countries?

USA France UK Germany India Japan South Korea
Subway Surfers Subway Surfers Subway Surfers Subway Surfers Garena Free Fire MAX カウントマスターズ:群衆クラッシュ&棒人間ランニングゲーム。(Count Masters Stickman Clash) 냥코 대전쟁 (The Battle Cats)
Roblox Clash Royale Count Masters: Running Games Count Masters: Laufen Krieg Carrom Pool: Disc Game SortPuz: ウォーターソートパズル (SortPuz: Water Sort Puzzle) 테일드 데몬 슬레이어 – 방치형 RPG (TailedDemonSlayer: Idle RPG)
Count Masters: Stickman Games Count Masters・(Jeux de Bonhomme) Pull the Pin Fishdom Merge Master: Dinosaur Monster Blockudoku – ブロック·パズル·ゲーム Blockudoku – block puzzle game 솔라 리바이벌 (Solar Revival)
Race Master 3D: Car Racing Stumble Guys Text or Die Race Master 3D: Rennspiele Candy Crush Saga LINE:ディズニー ツムツム (LINE: Disney Tsum Tsum) 더프레이 MMORPG (Prey)
Pull the Pin Twerk Race 3D – jeux de course Fill The Fridge! Zen Match Indian Truck Driving Games 3D 放置少女 – 百花繚乱の萌姫たち (Hōchi Shōjo: Hyakka Ryōran no Moehime-tachi) 소시지맨 (Sausage Man)
Money Rush Merge Master: Dinosaur Fusion Merge Master: Dinosaur Monster Merge Master: Dinosaur Fusion DOP 4: Draw One Part 面白いゲームパズルIQ脳トレ stop the flow! (brain training stop the flow) 던전앤파이터 모바일 (Dungeon & Fighter Mobile)
Merge Master: Dinosaur Monster Airport Security Twerk Race 3D – Running Game Twerk Race 3D – Laufspiele बबल शूट (Shoot Bubble) フィッシュダム (Fishdom) 로드 모바일: 타워 디펜스 (Lords Mobile)
Twerk Race 3D: Running Game Blockudoku: Block Puzzle Airport Security Blockudoku: Block Puzzle Hunter Assassin パーキングジャム 3D: Parking Jam 3D 달리기왕 키우기 (Tap Tap Run)
Woodoku Fishdom Paper Fold Match Masters Bridge Race トゥーンブラスト (Toon Blast) 타임 프린세스 (Time Princess: Story Traveler)
Parking Jam 3D Fill The Fridge! Draw Bridge Airport Security Oil Tanker Truck Driving Games ウマ娘 プリティーダービー (Uma Musume Pretty Derby) 2X

Google Play games in the top charts

Among the most popular games on Google Play, Subway Surfers (SYBO Games) generated the most downloads in 2022, achieving the first position in the US, France, UK, and Germany. Count Masters: Stickman Games (Freeplay Inc) and Merge Master: Dinosaur Monster (HOMA GAMES) are also among the top 10 mobile games in 5 of the 7 markets we studied. Merge Master succeeded in entering the Indian market, while others like Count Masters: Stickman Games and Subway Surfers did not.

Leading game categories & developers on Google Play

In the Games category, arcade, action, and puzzle games are the most popular in many of the studied markets. Subway Surfers, Merge Master – Dinosaur Monster, and Twerk Race 3D – Running Game reigned in the Arcade category, while Count Masters: Stickman Games, Garena Free Fire MAX, Stumble Guys, and Sausage Man top the list in the Action category. On the other hand, the Puzzle category sees popular games like Blockudocku, Fishdom, Fill The Fridge!, Pull the Pin, and Zen Match dominating the top charts.

Interestingly enough, the game developer Rollic Games managed to get 3 (Fill The Fridge!, Text or Die, and Money Rush) of its games in the top 10 of several markets. Freeplay Inc’s games (Count Masters: Stickman Games and Twerk Race 3D – Running Game) also reached the top charts in most of the markets we looked at.

Check out the most popular game launches in 2022

Did the top charts differ across countries?

While mobile app users in Japan prefer more puzzle games, role-playing games like TailedDemonSlayer – Idle RPG and Solar Revival gained popularity in South Korea. Game preferences in India are also different from other markets, with top-ranking ones including Garena Free Fire MAX, Carrom Pool: Disc Game, and Candy Crush, games that do not feature in the top charts of any other market.

USA France UK Germany India Japan South Korea
Subway Surfers Clash Royale Wordle! Subway Surfers Ludo King プロジェクトセカイ カラフルステージ! feat. 初音ミク (Hatsune Miku: Colorful Stage!) 텐텐 (TenTen)
Wordle! Subway Surfers Subway Surfers Coloring Match Subway Surfers LINE:ディズニー ツムツム (LINE: Disney Tsum Tsum) Goose Goose Duck
Roblox Stumble Guys Coloring Match Hay Day Candy Crush Saga カウントマスターズ:ランニングゲーム、面白いレース3D (Count Masters – Stickman Clash) Rummikub
Coloring Match Magic Tiles 3: Piano Game Fill The Fridge! Fishdom WinZO Games 雀魂 -じゃんたま- (MahjongSoul) Pokémon GO
Call of Duty®: Mobile Fishdom 8 Ball Pool™ Count Masters: Lauf-Spiele 3D 8 Ball Pool™ ウマ娘 プリティーダービー (Uma Musume: Pretty Derby) Blockudoku – 블록퍼즐게임
Fill The Fridge! Roblox Roblox Fill The Fridge! Bridge Race 暇つぶしゲームパズルIQ脳トレ-stop the flow! (brain training stop the flow!) 배틀그라운드 (Playerunknown’s Battlegrounds)
Count Masters: Crowd Runner 3D Fill The Fridge! Text or Die Roblox Going Balls フラッシュパーティー (Flash Party) 전략적 팀 전투: 리그 오브 레전드 전략 게임 (Teamfight Tactics)
Fishdom Coloring Match Coin Master Quizduell! 1945 – Airplane shooting games 原神 (Genshin Impact) 던전앤파이터 모바일 (Dungeon & Fighter)
Among Us! Count Masters: Jeux de Course Word Guess – Word Games Clash Royale Evony モンスターストライク (Monster Strike) Roblox
Clash Royale Blockudoku: Jeu de bloc & cube Count Masters: Crowd Runner 3D Clash of Clans Dr. Driving フィッシュダム (Fishdom) 카트라이더 러쉬플러스 (Kartrider Rush)

App Store games in the top charts

Once again, Subway Surfers occupies the iOS top charts in 4 of the biggest markets – the US, UK, Germany, and India – indicating its widespread popularity among both iOS and Android users. Incidentally, the game dominates the top charts on the App Store in India but does not rank among the top 10 on Google Play (the market’s preferred store) in the same country.

As on Google Play, the games Count Masters: Crowd Runner 3D, Fishdom, and Fill the Fridge! trend on the App Store. In the list of popular games, Coloring Match is very strong on the App Store, gaining traction in multiple markets, but does not rank in the top 10 on Google Play.

On a similar note, Roblox widely dominates major markets – the US, UK, Germany, France, and South Korea – on iOS. On the other hand, the app is almost non-existent among the top games on Google Play, with the exception of the US.

Leading App Store games categories & developers

In 2022, word games like Wordle! and Word Guess – Word Games boomed on the App Store. Other categories like Strategy and Action are trending at the top in South Korea, with 3 games (Goose Goose Duck, Playerunknown’s Battlegrounds, and Teamfight Tactics) featuring simultaneously in both categories. On the other hand, Action games like Count Masters – Crowd Runner 3D are less popular on iOS than on Google Play.

In terms of the biggest game developers on the App Store, SYBO Games (Subway Surfers), Lion Studios (Wordle!), Supercell (Clash Royale), Supersonic Studios (Coloring Match), Gametion (Ludo King), Sega Corporation (Hatsune Miku: Colorful Stage), and AppteenPlanet (TenTen) deserve a mention.

USA France UK Germany India Japan Korea
TikTok TikTok: Vidéos, LIVE, Musique TikTok: Videos, Music & LIVE TikTok: Videos, Lives & Musik Instagram Instagram 당근마켓 (Karrot)
Instagram WhatsApp Messenger WhatsApp Messenger Instagram mAst: Music Status Video Maker LINE 싸이월드 cyworld
WhatsApp Messenger Instagram Instagram eBay Kleinanzeigen: Marktplatz Snapchat TikTok TikTok 틱톡
Cash App Lidl Plus Vinted: Buy & sell preloved PayPal Meesho: Online Shopping App Yahoo! JAPAN 쿠팡 (Coupang)
Snapchat Telegram Tesco Grocery & Clubcard VR SecureGo plus MX Player: Videos, OTT & Games SmartNews ZOOM Cloud Meetings
McDonald’s Snapchat Snapchat Telegram Facebook Twitter 오늘의집 – 라이프스타일 슈퍼앱 (Bucketplace)
DoorDash – Food Delivery SHEIN-Achats de mode en ligne McDonald’s UK OTTO – Shopping und Möbel Truecaller: Caller ID & Block d Point 정부24(구 민원24) (Government24)
SHEIN-Fashion Shopping Online Vinted – vêtements vintage Telegram WhatsApp Messenger Shopsy Shopping App – Flipkart SHEIN 그립 Grip – 전국민 라이브 大장터 (Grip)
Messenger Spotify: musique et podcasts Trainline: Buy train tickets Disney+ Chingari – Watch and Earn Gari TVer 배달의민족 (Baemin)
Facebook leboncoin, petites annonces Google Wallet Amazon Shopping PhonePe UPI, Payment, Recharge PayPay 쿠팡플레이 (Coupang Play)

Looking at the top charts of the most popular apps on Google Play, social networking apps like TikTok and Instagram came on top in most of the markets analyzed. The local shopping app Karrot tops the Korean market, becoming the only market with a non-social app at its top.

WhatsApp Messenger is the most popular communication app in the UK, USA, France, and Germany, outranking apps like Messenger and Telegram. In Japan, Google Play users prefer the messaging app LINE. Besides social apps, apps in the News and Magazines categories are also popular in Japan (Yahoo Japan and SmartNews).

Shopping & mobile payment apps among top categories

A closer look at the top charts reveals the dominance of shopping apps among the 7 markets: SHEIN, Vinted, Amazon Shopping, Meesho: Online Shopping App, and Grip. Mobile payment apps are also well-liked in the US (Cash App), UK (Google Wallet), Germany (VR SecureGo plus), India (PhonePe UPI), and Japan (PayPay).

On another note, the online meeting app Zoom Cloud Meeting leads the Korean market while being absent from all other Google Play markets.

USA France UK Germany India Japan South Korea
Google TikTok: Ça commence avec toi TikTok – Videos, Music & LIVE PayPal Google Pay: Save, Pay, Manage PayPay-ペイペイ(電子マネーでスマートにお支払い) 싸이월드 cyworld
Uber Eats: Food Delivery Instagram WhatsApp Messenger Instagram WhatsApp Messenger LINE 부산 동백전 (Busan Bank)
ZOOM Cloud Meetings WhatsApp Messenger Instagram TikTok: Videos, Lives & Musik Google TikTok ティックトック 쿠팡플레이 (Coupang Play)
Disney+ Google Google WhatsApp Messenger YouTube: Watch, Listen, Stream Instagram 당근마켓 (Karrot)
Netflix YouTube Vinted: Buy and sell preloved Google Gmail – Email by Google Google アプリ 서울Pay+ (서울페이,서울페이플러스,서울사랑상품권) (SeoulPay+)
SHEIN – Online Fashion Telegram YouTube: Watch, Listen, Stream eBay Kleinanzeigen: Marktplatz Google Chrome YouTube 현대해상 모바일 앱 (Hyundai Marine Engineering)
TikTok TAC Verif BeReal. Your friends for real. YouTube Instagram TVer (ティーバー) 民放公式テレビ配信サービス Instagram
Hulu: Stream shows & movies Gmail – la messagerie Google Microsoft Teams CovPass Facebook SHEIN – オンラインファッション YouTube
Vrbo Vacation Rentals Snapchat Snapchat Corona-Warn-App MX Player マイナポータル 카카오뱅크 (KakaoTalk)
DoorDash – Food Delivery Netflix Spotify – Music and Podcasts VR SecureGo plus ZOOM Cloud Meetings Amazon Prime Video 토스 (Toss Bank)

Which apps & categories ranked high on the App Store?

Interestingly, Google services such as Google, Gmail, Google Pay, Google Chrome, and YouTube apps rank high in most of the given markets on the App Store, especially in India.

Several streaming apps also dominate the top charts with Disney+, Netflix, and Hulu among the top in the US, while French and Japanese users prefer Netflix and Amazon Prime Video respectively. Social apps such as TikTok and Instagram still perform well, but payment services like PayPal and PayPay surpass their popularity in Germany and India respectively.

Also noteworthy is that South Korean App Store users embrace more banking apps (Busan Bank, Toss Bank) than in any other market. Unlike other markets, the top charts in the US include food delivery (DoorDash – Food Delivery, Uber Eats: Food Delivery) and vacation rental apps (Vrbo Vacation Rentals).

Compare your favorite top charts across different countries and categories

Covid-19 apps rank in the top charts in France & Germany

Government apps also received plenty of downloads in some countries. For instance, the Korean finance app SeoulPay+ is very popular on the mobile platform, as are COVID-19 apps in Germany (CovPass and Corona-Warn-App) and France (TAC Verif). Furthermore, many App Store users in India, the UK, and the US still rely on online meeting apps like Zoom Cloud Meetings and Microsoft Teams.


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Oriane Ineza
by , Content Marketing Specialist
Oriane is a Content Marketing Specialist at AppTweak, creating content for app marketers. She enjoys exploring the world through books, movies, and food.