Pokémon GO Catches $3 Billion in Lifetime Gross Revenue

Niantic’s location-based smash hit mobile game Pokémon GO has surpassed $3 billion in lifetime gross revenue, according to Sensor Tower Store Intelligence estimates.

Since the title’s 2016 launch it has been downloaded approximately 541 million times worldwide, with an average revenue per download of nearly $5.60.

2016 remains the top grossing year to date for Pokémon GO, when it generated $832.4 million despite only launching initially in select countries.

It went on to gross $589.3 million in 2017, before picking up again in 2018 with $816.3 million in gross revenue. So far in 2019 Pokémon GO has grossed $774.3 million, putting it on track to surpass its 2016 record.

This year’s sales have been spurred on by updates such as Pokémon GO's introduction of Team Rocket. We previously estimated that the update had helped drive approximately $110 million in player spend in August 2019, while in September Pokémon GO generated $126 million in gross revenue. So far in October, user spending has hit an estimated $67.8 million.

The United States is the leader for user spending, with players forking out nearly $1.1 billion, or 36.2 percent of total lifetime revenue, so far. Japan is the second highest grossing country, with players spending $884.5 million, or 29.4 percent, while Germany accounts for $181.6 million, or 6 percent.

Google Play users have spent the most in Pokémon GO, accounting for over $1.6 billion, or 54.4 percent, of the game’s total lifetime gross revenue to date. The App Store has generated nearly $1.4 billion, or 45.6 percent, in revenue.

The U.S. also accounts for the majority of downloads, racking up 99.3 million unique installs, or 18.4 percent of all downloads. Brazil has generated the second most downloads with 58.4 million, or 10.8 percent, while Mexico comes in third with 34 million downloads, or 6.3 percent.

Android devices account for the vast majority of downloads, driving 424.6 million unique installs, or 78.5 percent of the total. The App Store has generated 116 million downloads, or 21.5 percent.