Worldwide app downloads totaled 36.1 billion in 4Q21, a 2.7 percent year-over-year increase. Full year downloads grew 0.9 percent to 144.2, including 32.8B on the App Store and 111.4B on Google Play. 

Garena Free Fire was the top mobile game by downloads in Q4 2021 and in the full year. This was the first year that Free Fire led all games by installs after finishing runner-up in 2019 and 2020. 

Instagram had its best quarter for downloads since at least 2014, and Q4 2021 was the first time Meta had the top app since Q4 2019. TikTok retained the top spot overall in 2021.

Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) have started to make their way to mobile. Some top apps such as OpenSea and VeVe gained traction in 2021, while other cryptocurrency apps have added NFT support.