TikTok has surpassed the $10 billion mark for profits generated from in-app consumer spending, becoming the first non-gaming to do so.
The short-video streaming app beat out other gaming apps on Apple App Store and Google Play Store with a 61% growth from the year's start, Data.ai reported.
TikTok started 2023 with $6.2 billion in consumer spending under its belt and completed the $3.8 billion over the year. The earnings are 15% greater than the records last year of $3.3 billion.
The platform took only 15 months to reach the $10 billion mark from the $5 billion consumer spending milestone, becoming the fastest-earning app in terms of consumer spending.
It joins the likes of Candy Crush Saga, Clash of Clans, and Monster Strike that have been around the mobile gaming scene for over a decade.
Where Does TikTok Generate Its Consumer Spendings?
TikTok was able to reach the milestone at a fast rate thanks to its "coins" system, an in-app purchase token spent to gift content creators on the platform.
The app's best seller is the 1,321 coins bundle for $19.99, making up a quarter of its revenues on consumer spending.
To better imagine the scope of its growing market, Charli D'Amelio is the platform's top earner with an estimated income of $105,770 per post. TikTok collects 50% of the total earnings from each creator.
Current data indicate that consumers spend over $11 million each day for their favorite content creators.
Data.ai noted that consumers from the US and iOS users from China are the app's biggest spenders, contributing a combined 60% to the $10 billion earnings.
The data center expects TikTok to soon become "the highest earning mobile app ever," predicting that it will reach $15 billion in consumer spending by 2024.
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More Non-Gaming Apps to Records High Consumer Spendings
TikTok is not the only non-gaming app that has recently made its way to earn billions of dollars from consumer spending.
Dating app Tinder recorded $7.76 billion in consumer spending as of November 2023, while YouTube follows closely with $7.42 billion.
The much newer Disney+ is also about to reach the $5 billion mark with China-based Tencent Video close at hand with $3.84 billion gross from in-app purchases.
