User Acquisition Cost for Mobile Apps and Games [2026]

by Andrea Knezovic, December 5, 2025

What Is User Acquisition Cost
Why User Acquisition Cost Matters
UAC vs CPA vs CPI: What’s the Difference
Average User Acquisition Cost for Mobile Apps and Games
What Impacts User Acquisition Cost
How to Reduce User Acquisition Cost
How to Track and Measure User Acquisition Cost
When to Spend More on User Acquisition
Final Thoughts on User Acquisition Cost
Data Sources

Understanding user acquisition cost for mobile apps and games is one of the biggest advantages you can give your marketing strategy. Every install you bring in has a real price attached to it, and that price keeps rising as competition grows and tracking gets harder. If you want to scale without wasting money, you need a clear picture of what it actually costs to win a new user and why those costs change from one channel, region, or category to another.

This guide breaks everything down in a simple way.

You’ll learn how user acquisition cost works, how to calculate it, the latest CPI benchmarks, what affects your numbers, and how to bring them down while keeping quality high. By the end, you’ll have a solid foundation that helps you plan smarter campaigns, judge performance faster, and make better decisions for long-term growth.

What Is User Acquisition Cost

User acquisition cost, often called UAC, is the amount of money you spend to get one new user into your app or game.

It gives you a simple way to understand how much your growth efforts actually cost. When you know this number, it becomes easier to compare channels, set budgets, and see if your campaigns are moving in the right direction.

How to Calculate User Acquisition Cost

The formula is simple. You divide your total spend by the number of new users you gained.

UAC = Total Spend / New Users

Total spend includes everything you put into running your campaign. This usually means ad spend, software tools, creative production, and any fees from agencies or platforms. Some teams also include internal salaries when they want a full picture of their costs.

Here is a quick example. If you spent ten thousand dollars in a month and gained four thousand new users, your user acquisition cost would be $2.50 per user. That number becomes your main point of reference when judging performance and planning future campaigns.

Why User Acquisition Cost Matters

User acquisition cost matters because it tells you how sustainable your growth really is.

If you pay more to bring in a user than that user is worth over time, your campaigns will lose money no matter how strong everything else looks. When you understand this number, you can see if you’re scaling in a healthy way or if costs are rising faster than your returns.

UAC also connects directly to your core business metrics.

It affects your ROI, your LTV targets, your ROAS goals, and the budget decisions you make each quarter. If your user acquisition cost climbs even a small amount, it can change the entire performance of your funnel. This is especially true for mobile games, where heavy competition and fast creative fatigue can push costs up quickly.

Knowing your UAC also helps you compare channels with real accuracy.

You can see which networks bring higher quality users, which regions offer better value, and where you should shift spend when market conditions change. In short, a clear view of your user acquisition cost makes every part of your marketing plan more predictable and more efficient.

UAC vs CPA vs CPI: What’s the Difference

UAC, CPA, and CPI sound similar, but each one measures a different stage of the funnel. When you understand how they relate to each other, it becomes much easier to judge performance and pick the right goals for your campaigns.

User Acquisition Cost (UAC)

UAC measures the total cost to bring in one new user. It includes ad spend plus any other costs tied to running the campaign. UAC gives you the full picture of how expensive your growth efforts really are.

Cost Per Acquisition (CPA)

CPA tracks how much you pay for a specific action after the install. This could be a registration, a purchase, a subscription start, or any event that matters for your business.

CPA helps you understand user quality, not just install volume.

Cost Per Install (CPI)

CPI is the price you pay for each new install. It is one of the most common metrics in mobile marketing. CPI is usually cheaper than CPA because it measures a simpler action.

It is useful for early testing, creative comparisons, and quick benchmarking.

How They Work Together

CPI tells you how expensive it is to get the install.
CPA tells you how expensive it is to turn that user into a real customer.
UAC tells you the full cost of your acquisition efforts.

You need all three to understand if your campaigns are profitable and if your funnel is working as intended.

Average User Acquisition Cost for Mobile Apps and Games

User acquisition costs have climbed steadily over the past few years. iOS costs are rising faster than Android, and 2024 is the most expensive year so far.

Average CPI by Platform (2020 to 2024)

Source: Business of Apps, 2024

iOS CPI: $4.63
Android CPI: $3.38

For context, here is the year by year trend.
2020 started at $3.74 on iOS and $2.67 on Android, and each year increased slightly.
By 2023, costs jumped to $4.40 on iOS and $3.13 on Android.
2024 continues this climb, driven by higher competition and privacy restrictions. We expect to see a similar climb

Average CPI by Region (2024)

Source: Business of Apps, 2024

North America: iOS $5.28, Android $5.00
Latin America: iOS $0.34, Android $0.32
APAC: iOS $0.93, Android $0.83
EMEA: iOS $1.03, Android $0.98

North America is the most expensive region by a wide margin because of higher competition and stronger purchasing power. Latin America remains one of the cheapest regions for app installs.

Overall UA Cost Ranges in 2024

Source: Statista

Mobile app CPI can range from $0.80 to $5.00 depending on the category and channel.
Mobile game CPI sits higher, usually between $2.00 and $6.00.
Some genres reach even higher numbers, which you will see in the breakdown below.

User Acquisition Costs by Channel (2024)

Facebook Ads

CPI range: $2.00 to $5.50
Install-focused campaigns on Facebook usually fall between $0.87 and $4.73
Conversion-focused campaigns tend to be more expensive, from $10.23 to $19.32

Facebook remains the only social platform that can reach almost 3 billion users, which adds both scale and cost.

Google Ads

CPI range: $1.50 to $4.50
Average CPC: $0.88
Average CPA: $5.42

Google’s costs depend heavily on whether you use Search or Display. Search tends to be more efficient because the user shows intent.

TikTok Ads

CPI range: $1.75 to $4.00
CPC ranges from $0.05 to $1.00
CPM ranges from $1 to $6.06
Engagement rate: 3 percent to 16 percent, depending on format

TikTok performs best when creatives feel native to the platform, especially for games.

Apple Search Ads

CPA Search Results: $2.04
CPA Search Tab: $4.02
CPT Search Results: $1.34
CPT Search Tab: $2.18

ASA continues to be one of the most predictable channels for iOS teams.

In App Advertising (Global Averages)

Global iOS CPI: $3.60
Global Google Play CPI: $1.22
North America CPI: $5.28
Latin America CPI: $0.34
APAC CPI: $0.93
EMEA CPI: $1.03

Average CPI for Mobile Games by Genre

Casual: iOS $2.50, Android $1.50
Midcore: iOS $4.50, Android $3.25
Hardcore: iOS $6.00, Android $4.50
Puzzle: iOS $3.00, Android $2.00
Strategy: iOS $5.50, Android $4.00
Action: iOS $4.50, Android $3.00
RPG: iOS $6.00, Android $4.50
Sports: iOS $3.50, Android $2.50
Simulation: iOS $3.75, Android $2.50
Arcade: iOS $3.00, Android $2.00

Hardcore and RPG titles remain the most expensive genres to acquire users for. Casual and hyper-casual stay at the lower end.

What Impacts User Acquisition Cost

User acquisition cost can swing up or down based on several factors. Some are in your control, others change with the market. When you understand what drives these changes, you can adjust faster and protect your budget.

Ad Quality

Better ad creatives lower user acquisition cost because they get more attention and produce stronger click through rates. When your ads perform well, platforms reward you with cheaper impressions, which means you pay less for each install.

Targeting

Your audience settings have a direct effect on UAC.

Broad targeting can bring cheaper traffic, but quality often drops.

Narrow targeting can raise costs, especially if you focus on high-value users and gamers in competitive markets. The right balance depends on your app or game, your LTV, and your goals.

Market Competition

Your user acquisition cost rises when more advertisers compete for the same audiences. This happens often during holidays, major game releases, or when a category suddenly becomes popular. Higher competition drives up CPMs, which pushes UAC higher across most channels.

Platform Algorithm Changes

When platforms adjust their algorithms or tracking rules, performance can shift overnight. These changes affect how ads are served, how conversions are counted, and how much you pay to reach users. Privacy rules also play a big role here, especially on iOS.

Seasonality

Costs are not consistent throughout the year.

Q4 is known for higher CPMs because retail brands flood the market. Early Q1 usually brings a drop in prices. Understanding these cycles helps you plan spend around cheaper windows.

Creative Production

Your creative pipeline influences cost more than most teams expect. If you refresh ads often, you avoid fatigue and keep your performance stable. If you run the same ads for too long, your numbers slip and your user acquisition cost climbs quickly.

How to Reduce User Acquisition Cost

There are many ways to bring your user acquisition cost down without hurting user quality. The key is to improve the parts of your funnel that have the biggest impact on performance. These strategies are simple to apply and work well across apps and mobile games.

Improve Your Creatives

Creatives have the biggest influence on user acquisition cost.

Test new concepts every week, not just new variations. Use fast hooks, clear value, and strong visual contrast to catch attention in the first second. When you find a winning idea, build multiple versions to extend its life and slow down fatigue.

Strengthen Your Targeting

Review your audience settings often. If your costs are too high, widen your audience slightly to lower CPMs. If your quality is weak, narrow your audience to people who mirror your high-value users. Lookalike audiences built from in-app purchase events or high-engagement users often deliver some of the best results.

Use ASO to Support Paid UA

Your store page affects user acquisition cost more than most people expect. A higher conversion rate means fewer wasted clicks. Keep your icons, screenshots, and feature graphics up to date with the style of your ads. If your ad shows one thing and your store page shows something different, your conversion rate drops quickly.

Test New Channels

If your main channels are getting expensive, add one or two new sources of traffic. TikTok, ASA, and in app networks can sometimes cut your costs by a large margin. Even a small test budget can reveal a cheaper channel that you can scale later.

Optimize Onboarding

Even small changes to your onboarding flow can improve downstream performance. A smooth first session leads to stronger early retention, which helps your campaigns hit better ROAS targets. When your early numbers improve, you can afford a slightly higher CPI without hurting long-term performance.

Refresh Creatives Before They Fail

Most UA teams wait until performance drops to release new ads. It’s better to release new concepts before the old ones slow down. A steady creative pipeline keeps your UAC stable and prevents sudden cost spikes.

How to Track and Measure User Acquisition Cost

Tracking user acquisition cost starts with knowing where your installs come from and how much you spend to get them. The goal is to collect accurate data, connect it to your ad channels, and calculate UAC in a way that reflects your real costs.

Use a Mobile Measurement Partner

Analytics tools like Adjust, Appsflyer, Singular, and Kochava help you track installs, in app events, and attribution across all your channels.

They show you which campaigns bring in users and how much those users cost.

Without an MMP, your numbers will be inconsistent and hard to trust.

Monitor Spend and Installs Daily

Check your spend and install data every day. Small changes add up fast. Daily checks help you catch rising CPIs, dipping conversion rates, or broken campaigns before they drain your budget.

Measure Post iOS Privacy Changes

iOS privacy rules changed how attribution works, especially with SKAN. Make sure your MMP and channels are set up for SKAN reporting. It won’t be as detailed as pre iOS 14, but it gives a clearer picture of performance than relying on platform dashboards alone.

Look Beyond Installs

Tracking installs is only the first step. Connect your install data to early retention, purchase behavior, and other key events. When you follow the full journey, you can spot campaigns that look good on CPI but fail on quality.

Keep a Consistent Formula

Use the same UAC formula for every channel. Always include the same cost categories so your comparisons stay fair. If one channel includes creative costs and another doesn’t, the numbers won’t reflect reality.

Review Results Weekly and Monthly

Weekly reviews help you react fast. Monthly reviews help you spot patterns and understand how changes in season, creative fatigue, or competition affect your UAC. The combination of both gives you a more stable and accurate view of your growth.

When to Spend More on User Acquisition

There are moments where increasing your user acquisition spend is the right move, even if your costs rise.

The key is to spend more when the long-term value outweighs the short-term cost.

Soft Launch and Early Testing

During soft launch, you should expect higher costs. You’re testing creatives, funnels, onboarding, and gameplay. Paying more in this phase is normal because the goal is learning, not efficiency.

Strong data here helps you save money later.

Seasonal Opportunities

Some periods bring higher value users.

This happens during holidays, big platform events, or when more people download apps and games. Even if your UAC rises, these users can produce stronger engagement and better LTV, which makes the extra spend worth it.

Scaling a Winning Creative

When you find a creative that beats your benchmarks, increasing spend can help you capture more users before the concept fatigues.

A short-term jump in UAC can still lead to stronger overall results if the creative delivers quality users.

Entering New High Value Regions

Expanding into markets like North America or Western Europe usually costs more.

The users in these regions tend to have higher spending power and stronger long-term value. Even with higher UAC, the return is often better than cheaper regions with lower monetization.

Strong LTV or ROAS Performance

If your LTV rises due to better monetization, improved retention, or stronger engagement, you can afford to pay more for each user.

When the revenue per user increases, your marketing ceiling becomes higher.

Support for Major Updates or New Features

When you release a big update, new content drop, or a major feature, it’s smart to raise your spend. Fresh content boosts retention and engagement, which improves your performance metrics and strengthens your overall funnel.

Final Thoughts on User Acquisition Cost

Understanding user acquisition cost for mobile apps gives you a clear picture of how your marketing dollars perform.

When you know what drives your costs, how to measure them, and how to push them down without hurting user quality, you make smarter decisions and avoid expensive guesswork.

The teams that stay close to their numbers grow faster because they know when to scale, when to cut spend, and where their best users really come from. With the right data and a steady creative pipeline, your acquisition strategy becomes far more predictable and much easier to scale.