2026 State of Mobile is Live!
Abraham Yousef · August 2024
Budget Airlines Face New Challenges as Travel Trends Evolve
While Ryanair's app downloads are a strong predictor of the airline's revenue (with an R-squared of 81%) signs of a tapering post-COVID travel boom suggest that the return on investment from increasing downloads may diminish. Increased inflationary pressure on consumers has led to a surge in advertised lower fares in the UK, with top budget carriers such as easyJet adapting to a more cost-conscious consumer base.
Key Takeaways:
App downloads for leading budget airlines, including Ryanair, easyJet, and Wizz Air, reached nearly 8mn in 2Q24, reflecting a 1% YoY increase and a significant 44% rise from 2019 levels
Ryanair led in app performance, with downloads surging by 890% from 2Q20 to 2Q24. The gap between Ryanair and easyJet downloads widened to 1.8mn in 2Q24, up from 1.3mn in 2Q19
Visits to Ryanair's payment-related website pages have declined by 11% QoQ in Jun’24. This aligns with CEO Michael O'Leary's comments about underperforming sales of higher-priced last-minute tickets in recent weeks, suggesting a potential shift in consumer behavior
Midweek engagement with leading budget airline apps rose by 17% through YTD 2024 compared to 2019, while weekend engagement grew only 5%. This shift suggests increased midweek travel, likely due to cost-saving measures and greater flexibility from remote work
easyJet broadened its advertising pricing strategy, with deals in the £20-£29 range tripling to 40% YoY through YTD 2024. This shift may be a strategic response to Ryanair's aggressive fare reductions in recent months
Ryanair's app downloads emerged as a strong predictor of revenue, accounting for approximately 81% of the variations in the airline’s revenue between 2019 and the first half of 2024
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