Only 12% of Top App Store Apps Use a Preview Video, Admiral Media Study Finds

State of App Store Listings 2026 analyzes 1,000 top US apps: most get the basics right but leave In-App Events, title space and localization unused.

ZURICH, SWITZERLAND, September 29, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — Admiral Media, a mobile growth agency for subscription apps and games, today published State of App Store Listings 2026, an analysis of the top 50 free apps in 20 US App Store categories: 1,000 listings in total, collected on 29 September 2026.

The study found that most top apps are well maintained. 88% had updated in the last 30 days and 85% hold a rating of 4.5 or higher. Far fewer use the features Apple has added to help apps get found and chosen:

– Only 12.2% have an app preview video. Games lead at 28%; in Finance and Books it is 4%.
– Only 24% run an In-App Event, which can appear in App Store search and on the Today, Games and Apps tabs. Among games it is 52%.
– 41.8% use fewer than 22 of the 30 characters Apple allows in the app title, and 10.5% have no subtitle at all.
– 36.1% list only one language.
– 34% of iPad-compatible apps show no iPad screenshots.

By category, Photo & Video listings scored highest with a median of 88 out of 100 on the ASO Checker, and Medical listings scored lowest with 74. Games use the store’s live features most, but have the shortest titles: a median of 16 characters, and 42% repeat words between title and subtitle.

The data was collected with Admiral Media’s free ASO Checker, which scores any App Store or Google Play listing on title and subtitle use, screenshots, preview video, ratings, update recency, localization and In-App Events. The study describes what top listings do and does not claim that any feature causes higher rankings. Top-chart apps are larger than the typical app, so the wider market is likely to score lower.

The full study, with results by category and the methodology, is available at https://admiral.media/state-of-app-store-listings-2026/ and the ASO Checker at https://admiral.media/aso-checker/

About Admiral Media
Admiral Media is a creative performance agency for mobile apps and games, founded in 2019 by Andre Kempe. The team runs App Store Optimization, user acquisition, creative and paid social for subscription apps and mobile game studios, and has managed more than EUR 500 million in ad spend. Admiral Media is rated 4.9 on Clutch from 48 reviews.

Viveik Mishra
Admiral Media
viveik@admiral.media

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