Bytedance’s CapCut – Video Editor was the most downloaded Photo & Video app in 2025, securing 509.2M downloads, according to data from AppTweak’s Market Intelligence. This performance underscores the dominance of accessible, powerful video editing tools in the current market. The app’s leadership position persists even with an 18.2% year-over-year decline in downloads.
The top 500 apps in the Photo & Video category generated approximately 5.95B app downloads in 2025, though the category saw an overall download decline of 3.8%. While established editing apps command the largest volume, the most significant growth came from platform-specific creation tools. For instance, TikTok Studio achieved a remarkable 139.5% growth in downloads, indicating a strong demand for apps that streamline content creation for major social platforms.
Key takeaways
- Video editor dominance: CapCut – Video Editor leads the market by a significant margin with 509.2M downloads, capturing an 8.6% share of all app downloads among the top 500 apps. This volume is nearly four times that of the #2 app, Remini – AI Photo Enhancer (132.6M).
- AI integration is now expected, but it is not a guaranteed growth driver. Among the top 10 Photo & Video apps, only two explicitly position themselves around AI: Remini – AI Photo Enhancer and Picsart AI Photo Editor, Video—and both recorded year-over-year download declines in 2025 (-24.5% and -2.6%).
- Explosive growth from new platform tools: New apps tied to major social ecosystems showed the most dynamic growth. TikTok Studio grew by 139.5%, while newcomer Edits, an Instagram App generated 76.8M downloads in its debut year.
- Publisher concentration from the U.S. and Singapore: Publishers headquartered in the United States and Singapore dominate the top 10, accounting for five and three of the leading apps, respectively. This points to a geographic concentration of market power in these two hubs.
- Creation flows are shifting: Market trends indicate a product shift toward one-tap, template-driven creation experiences. This aligns with the success of apps that help users produce share-ready content quickly, rather than offering complex, open-ended editing suites.
About the data set
This data was derived from AppTweak’s Market Intelligence. The dataset covers January to December 2025 and reflects worldwide performance across both the App Store & Google Play for the top 500 Photo & Video apps. The ranking is created by combining each app’s estimated downloads from the App Store and Google Play and ordering them from highest to lowest.
- Data source: AppTweak Market Intelligence
- Coverage: App Store and Google Play
- Metric: App downloads
- Time period: January 2025 – December 2025
- Category: Photo & Video defined by AppTweak’s AppDNA taxonomy
- Geography: Global
- Last updated: January 2026
Category definition of Photo & Video apps (AppTweak AppDNA taxonomy):
AppTweak defines the Photo & Video category as apps that assist in capturing, editing, managing, storing, or sharing photos and videos. This includes, for example, capture, editing, special effects, sharing, imaging, printing, greeting card creation, and manuals.
Segment definitions:
- photo & video editors: Apps that allow users to edit their photos (collage, background, colors, etc.), create and edit videos.
- movie & tv streaming: Apps where you can stream TV shows, movies, series, comedy specials, and live television online or offline.
- video player: Apps to play, manage, and/or stream videos.
- social media tools: Apps that provide social media tools such as story makers, followers counters, and trackers.
- graphic design creator: Apps that help you create your own graphic designs like labels, flyers, logos, apps, webpages, photos, videos, and social media posts.
Feel free to dig into your app category’s download and revenue estimates now in AppTweak’s Market Intelligence.
What are the top 10 most downloaded Photo & Video apps of 2025?
The top of the Photo & Video category is dominated by powerful editing tools and major streaming platforms. Here is a detailed look at the leading apps by download volume.
This table lists the top 10 Photo & Video apps ordered by total downloads, including app name, publisher, HQ, app downloads, and year-over-year growth.
| Rank | App Name | Publisher | Publisher HQ | Downloads | YoY Growth % (relative) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CapCut – Video Editor | Bytedance Pte. Ltd. | Singapore | 509.2M | \-18.2% |
| 2 | Remini – AI Photo Enhancer | Bending Spoons | Italy | 132.6M | \-24.5% |
| 3 | MX Player: Video Player & OTT | Amazon Mobile LLC | United States | 116.0M | 23.1% |
| 4 | Picsart AI Photo Editor, Video | PicsArt, Inc. | United States | 104.3M | \-2.6% |
| 5 | YouTube | United States | 104.2M | \-28.2% | |
| 6 | PLAYit-All in One Video Player | PLAYIT TECHNOLOGY PTE. LTD. | Singapore | 99.3M | \-18.6% |
| 7 | Video Editor & Maker – InShot | InShot Video Editor | Singapore | 93.0M | 3.0% |
| 8 | TikTok Studio | TikTok Pte. Ltd. | Singapore | 80.6M | 139.5% |
| 9 | Edits, an Instagram App | United States | 76.8M | Infinity | |
| 10 | Google Photos | United States | 71.8M | \-17.3% |
Source: AppTweak Market Intelligence | App Store & Google Play | January 2025 – December 2025 | Global.
Notable apps at a glance
- CapCut – Video Editor – Rank #1, 509.2M downloads, photo & video editors
- Remini – AI Photo Enhancer – Rank #2, 132.6M downloads, photo & video editors
- MX Player: Video Player & OTT – Rank #3, 116.0M downloads, movie & tv streaming
- YouTube – Rank #5, 104.2M downloads, movie & tv streaming
- TikTok Studio – Rank #8, 80.6M downloads, social media tools
- Edits, an Instagram App – Rank #9, 76.8M downloads, photo & video editors
- Google Photos – Rank #10, 71.8M downloads, photo & video editors
3 key learnings from the top 10 Photo & Video apps
The download data for 2025 reveals a market shaped by powerful editing tools, the rise of AI, and the influence of major social platforms. Here are three key patterns observed in the top 10 rankings.
1. Video editors solidify their dominance at the top
The rankings confirm that photo & video editors are the most in-demand segment within the category. Six of the top 10 most downloaded apps belong to this segment, led by CapCut – Video Editor with an impressive 509.2M downloads. CapCut’s downloads alone exceed the combined total of the three apps immediately following it in the ranking—highlighting a significant concentration of demand at the top. This suggests that despite a crowded market, users gravitate toward a few dominant players that offer comprehensive and accessible editing features.
2. AI-branded apps are prevalent but show signs of market saturation
AI positioning is present among leading Photo & Video apps, but it is not universal. Two of the top 10 apps explicitly reference AI in their names—Remini – AI Photo Enhancer (#2) and Picsart AI Photo Editor, Video (#4)—indicating continued demand for AI-assisted editing. However, both apps experienced year-over-year declines in downloads in 2025 (-24.5% and -2.6%, respectively), suggesting that AI branding alone is no longer sufficient to drive growth in a maturing market.
3. New platform-specific tools are driving explosive growth
The most dramatic growth in 2025 came from tools designed to integrate seamlessly with major social ecosystems. TikTok Studio, a dedicated app for TikTok creators, saw its downloads surge by 139.5% to reach 80.6M. Similarly, Edits, an Instagram App, a new entrant from Instagram, immediately secured the #9 spot with 76.8M downloads. This pattern highlights a significant market opportunity for apps that simplify the content creation workflow for specific social platforms, tapping directly into their massive user bases.
Key facts about the top 10 Photo & Video apps
- The top of the ranking is highly concentrated, with #1 app CapCut – Video Editor (509.2M downloads) securing nearly four times the downloads of the #2 app, Remini – AI Photo Enhancer (132.6M).
- Despite high download volumes, a majority of the top 10 apps (7 out of 10) experienced negative year-over-year growth, including legacy players like YouTube (-28.2%) and CapCut (-18.2%). This reflects a mature and highly competitive landscape where maintaining growth is a challenge even for the largest apps.
- Publishers headquartered in the United States account for half of the top 10 apps, including those from Google, Amazon, Instagram, and PicsArt, Inc., signaling strong market leadership from US-based companies.
- Singapore-based publishers also have a significant presence, holding three spots in the top 10 with apps from Bytedance, PLAYIT TECHNOLOGY, and TikTok.
2025 Market trends for Photo & Video apps
The 2025 download data reflects a Photo & Video category undergoing significant shifts in user behavior and product strategy. While the overall market saw a slight contraction of 3.8% in downloads, key trends around AI, user experience, and content creation are reshaping what it takes to succeed.
1. AI shifts from pro tools to casual, one-tap transformations
The integration of AI in Photo & Video apps is evolving. Instead of complex, open-ended editing suites, the most successful features are now packaged as simple, one-tap creative outcomes. This trend is visible in the popularity of apps that can animate a still photo, re-style an image into a predefined look, or generate a shareable clip with minimal user input.
This shift is reflected in the high rankings of apps like Remini – AI Photo Enhancer and Picsart AI Photo Editor, Video. The emphasis is on delivering a believable and shareable result quickly, without a steep learning curve. This approach makes advanced editing accessible to a broader, more casual audience.
2. Creation flows reorganize around post-ready formats
App navigation and user experience are increasingly optimized for “create-to-post” intent. Many leading apps now feature dedicated creation hubs that cluster templates, remixes, and quick video formats in one place. This design choice acknowledges that users often open these apps with a specific output in mind, such as a vertical video for TikTok or a carousel for Instagram.
The explosive growth of TikTok Studio (+139.5%) and the strong debut of Edits, an Instagram App (76.8M downloads) are direct evidence of this trend. By prioritizing the output format first, these apps streamline the process of turning raw assets into polished, platform-ready content.
3. Trust and authenticity emerge as key product pillars
As AI-generated media becomes commonplace, a dual trend is emerging. On one hand, apps are incorporating provenance signals like watermarks and content labels to provide transparency when AI is used. This helps build user trust and reduce ambiguity in a world of synthetic media.
On the other hand, there is a clear demand for intentional imperfection. Apps are adding in-app capture modes and presets that mimic the aesthetics of film, disposable cameras, and VHS tapes. This focus on “authentic-feeling” visuals has become a mainstream creative path, offering an alternative to hyper-polished, AI-enhanced imagery.
Key facts about Photo & Video app market trends in 2025
- The fastest-growing experiences prioritize pre-shaped, share-ready outcomes (animate/restyle/remix) over deep manual editing.
- App navigation increasingly starts from content formats and templates, reflecting a user intent focused on creating content for specific social platforms.
- Premium access is often split between always-on subscriptions and usage-gated AI actions, treating “creative compute” as a consumable.
- Apps are simultaneously adding AI transparency cues (like watermarks) and promoting retro/analog capture aesthetics as a mainstream creative style.
Conclusion
The Photo & Video app market in 2025 is a landscape of contrasts. While the top 500 apps generated a massive 5.95B downloads, the category experienced a slight overall decline of 3.8%, signaling a mature and competitive environment. Leadership is concentrated, with CapCut – Video Editor dominating the app download charts, yet even top players are seeing growth slow down.
The most dynamic opportunities are emerging from two key areas: the simplification of AI into accessible, one-tap creative tools and the rise of platform-specific apps like TikTok Studio that streamline content creation for social media. For marketers and developers, success in this category now requires a focus on delivering immediate value, whether through powerful editing features, seamless creator workflows, or authentic aesthetic experiences.
For deeper insights into these trends and to benchmark your own app’s performance, explore AppTweak’s Market Intelligence platform. You can start analyzing the data today with a Free Starter plan.
FAQs
Below we answer the top questions about the most downloaded Photo & Video apps.
Which Photo & Video app had the most downloads in 2025?
The Photo & Video app with the most downloads in 2025 was CapCut – Video Editor, which recorded 509.2M downloads globally, according to AppTweak’s Market Intelligence data.
What was the total number of downloads for Photo & Video apps in 2025?
The top 500 Photo & Video apps generated approximately 5.95B downloads in 2025. This figure represents a year-over-year decline of 3.8% for this cohort of apps.
Which Photo & Video app in the top 10 grew the fastest in 2025?
The fastest-growing Photo & Video app in the top 10 was TikTok Studio, which saw its downloads increase by 139.5% year-over-year.
Which countries dominate the Photo & Video apps market?
Five of the top 10 most downloaded Photo & Video apps are from publishers headquartered in the United States, including apps from Amazon, PicsArt, Inc., Google, and Instagram.
What is the most downloaded Photo & Video app’s download share?
CapCut – Video Editor accounted for 8.6% of all downloads among the top 500 Photo & Video apps in 2025, according to data from AppTweak’s Market Intelligence.
Are AI-powered Photo & Video apps growing?
While AI-powered apps are highly ranked, some of the top players saw download declines in 2025. Remini – AI Photo Enhancer recorded a 24.5% decrease in downloads, suggesting the market for AI editing tools is becoming more competitive.
Are there any new Photo & Video apps in the top 10?
Yes, Edits, an Instagram App launched in 2025 and entered the rankings at #9 with 76.8M downloads, showing strong initial performance for a new app from a major publisher.
