The shopping app insights report: 2026 edition is out now | Adjust

Summary

E-commerce and shopping apps are experiencing a strong year, according to Adjust's 2026 edition of its shopping app insights report. The report reveals that installs and sessions are up globally, with North America delivering the strongest regional growth. Meanwhile, the seasonal peaks that drive Q4 are getting even larger, indicating that retail events like Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and Prime Day are becoming increasingly critical for app-based revenue.

At the same time, the paths shoppers take into apps are multiplying, while acquisition costs continue to rise. This creates a challenging environment for user acquisition teams, who must now choose from a growing array of channels while managing tighter budgets. The report offers a deep dive into the metrics that matter most for ad ops decision-makers: installs, sessions, retention, revenue, and UA costs.

It also breaks down performance by subvertical — shopping, marketplace & classifieds, and deal discovery — and provides regional and country-level analysis across APAC, Europe, LATAM, MENA, and North America, covering 21 countries in total. Additionally, the report includes performance data from the year's biggest retail events and lists the top 10 shopping apps by downloads in H1 2026 by region. Actionable takeaways for marketers include using the data to benchmark retention against industry peers, refining UA strategies based on which channels and subverticals are driving the strongest ROI, and prioritizing investment in regions like North America where growth is accelerating.

Insights from partners such as Google, Snap, TikTok, Sensor Tower, Roku, Pinterest, Reddit, and RZR add further context on the evolving shopping ecosystem. For anyone looking to convert browsers into buyers, the report is a comprehensive resource for making data-backed decisions in a competitive landscape.

Analyst Note

With e-commerce installs and sessions climbing globally while acquisition costs rise, this year's shopping app report lands at a critical juncture for UA teams. The headline growth numbers matter less than the compounding complexity of user acquisition. As the routes into apps multiply across paid social, search, CTV, and deal discovery, measurement strategies must evolve from channel-specific attribution to a holistic view that accounts for cross-platform influence.

What's notable here is the range of partners contributing to the report—Google, Snap, TikTok, Roku, Pinterest, Reddit, and RZR—reflecting a fragmented ecosystem where no single network can provide a complete picture. The inclusion of Sensor Tower download rankings alongside performance data signals an industry shift toward triangulating owned metrics with third-party benchmarks. For ad ops professionals, the regional and subvertical breakdowns across 21 countries offer a useful baseline, but the deeper implication is that global averages often obscure local dynamics, demanding more localized UA calibration.

Worth watching is whether Q4's growing peaks will continue to concentrate spend during a narrow shopping window, especially as fraud and privacy constraints complicate performance visibility. The report's emphasis on retail events like Black Friday and Prime Day underscores the seasonality pressure that UA teams face. In a market where budgets are increasingly scrutinized, cross-platform, event-level data becomes essential for navigating efficiency without relying on granular device IDs.