Top 10 Worldwide Mobile Games By Revenue and Downloads in January 2025

According to Sensor Tower's App Performance Insights, Tencent’s Honor of Kings was the top-grossing global mobile game in January 2025, driven by high-profile skin releases, IP collaborations, and Lunar New Year events. The year-end launch of the Asian Games Gold Medal Commemorative Skin and QQ Speed crossover set the stage, followed by the Frozen collaboration  on January 9. As Lunar New Year approached, the Year of the Snake Limited Skins and festive events boosted spending with exclusive offers, lucky draws, and in-game bonuses. These well-timed releases and strong incentives nearly doubled revenue from the previous month, marking the game's second-highest monthly earnings.

For the full ranking of the top 10 mobile games by revenue, please see the chart above. *Please note that data from third-party Android markets is excluded.

Royal Match, climbed to #2 in worldwide revenue, up two spots from the previous period. Since its July 2020 launch, the match-swap game has generated over 337 million downloads, with top markets including the U.S., India, and Brazil. The revenue surge in January 2025 was driven by well-timed in-app events, featuring new levels, collectible rewards, and limited-time challenges like Ocean Odyssey and Arctic Research. With its engaging 2D cartoon art style and historical-themed puzzles, Royal Match continues to captivate casual players and sustain strong monetization growth.

FirstFun’s Last War:Survival Game ranked third, Whiteout Survival came in fourth and MONOPOLY GO! took the fifth spot respectively.

In January 2025, global consumer spending on mobile games through the iOS App Store and Google Play reached an estimated $7.27 billion, reflecting a 4% growth compared to the previous month. The U.S. remained the highest revenue market for mobile games worldwide, recording approximately $2.16 billion, equivalent to 29.8% of worldwide revenue. The Chinese iOS market came second with 20% of the revenue, followed by the Japanese market at 14.8%.

Tencent dominated mobile game revenue growth in January 2025, claiming four of the top five spots with Honor of Kings ,Game For Peace, CrossFire , and Teamfight Tactics. All the games saw exceptional revenue growth during the holiday season, fueled by major updates and in-game events in Mainland China, the world's largest iOS gaming market by revenue. Game For Peace saw a surge in spending, driven by a high-profile crossover with a popular local drama, a Lunar New Year update introducing a new map, and exclusive mythological-themed skins. CrossFire experienced significant growth following a major content expansion featuring a new PvE mode, limited-edition weapons, and seasonal ranked rewards. Teamfight Tactics capitalized on the Lunar New Year Festival with exclusive skins, new mechanics, and festive rewards. Meanwhile, Genshin Impact, the only non-Tencent title in the top five, saw strong revenue growth thanks to highly anticipated limited-time 5-star character banners and its annual Lantern Rite festival, packed with exclusive rewards and seasonal content. These well-timed events and premium offerings drove record player engagement and spending, making January a peak month for mobile game revenue growth, particularly in Mainland China.

Top 10 Worldwide Mobile Game Download Rankings for January 2025

Garena Free Fire held its position as the most downloaded mobile game globally. Roblox ranked second, followed by Block Blast!, Subway Surfers and Cat Chaos: Prankster  which completed the top five by downloads.

According to Sensor Tower's App Performance Insights, Garena Free Fire remained the most downloaded mobile game globally in January 2025, adding over 37.1 million downloads and pushing its lifetime total to an impressive 1.86 billion. India accounted for 34.8% of these new downloads, followed by Indonesia at 22.2% and Brazil at 6.4%. The game's success was fueled by a combination of engaging seasonal events and high-profile collaborations, such as the Free Fire x NARUTO SHIPPUDEN collaboration launched on January 10, bringing new content and exclusive themed bundles. This mix of fresh content, popular crossovers, and regional appeal helped Garena Free Fire maintain its dominance in global downloads.

ROBLOX, a popular sandbox game by Roblox Corporation, climbed to the #2 spot for worldwide downloads in January 2025, moving up one position from the previous period. Since its global launch in January 2012, the game has amassed approximately 1.32 billion downloads, with its largest markets being the United States, Brazil, Indonesia, Mexico, and Russia. Beyond its impressive downloads, ROBLOX keeps players engaged with fresh content. In January, the Hell’s Kitchen event challenged players to cook under pressure while avoiding Gordon Ramsay’s wrath. This fun, interactive experience resonated with the community, boosting engagement and reinforcing the game’s ongoing success.

For the full ranking of the top 10 mobile games by downloads, please see the chart above. *Please note that data from third-party Android markets is excluded.

The remaining titles in the top 5 by downloads are Block Blast!, Subway Surfers  and Cat Chaos: Prankster respectively.

In January 2025, there were over 4.41 billion mobile game downloads worldwide from the App Store and Google Play, representing a 5.4% increase compared to the previous month. India ranked first among markets, recording 682 million downloads, accounting for 15.5% of global downloads. The United States was second with 8.0%, and Brazil was third with 7.8%.

Cat Chaos: Prankster, a fast-rising simulator by Mirai Studio, claimed the #1 spot for worldwide download growth in January 2025, soaring 182 positions to rank #5 in absolute downloads. Since its December 2024 launch, the game has amassed 22.4 million downloads, with top markets including Indonesia, Brazil, Mexico, Russia, and France. Featuring a third-person perspective and a hypercasual art style, the game’s charm lies in its lighthearted gameplay, where players control mischievous cats causing chaos. Its simple mechanics, short sessions, and humor-driven interactions make it highly shareable on social media, fueling organic growth. 

In January 2025, three hypercasual survival-themed games—Prison Survival: Tap Challenge, Survival Game: 456 Challenge and 456 Cat Survival Master 3D —saw rapid download growth, climbing the rankings with strong appeal in emerging markets. All three share a hypercasual art style, fast-paced survival mechanics, and high-stakes challenges that keep players engaged. Their action-driven gameplay, dynamic camera perspectives, and accessible controls have made them popular choices among mobile gamers, reinforcing the strong demand for thrilling, quick-session survival experiences. Their surge in popularity aligns with the ongoing success of Squid Game: Unleashed,  Netflix’s mobile adaptation of the hit series, which remains at #7 in downloads growth. The game’s strong performance may have reignited interest in survival-themed mobile titles, reflecting the lasting cultural impact of the Squid Game IP.

Where Winds Meet, a wuxia-themed MMORPG by NetEase, ranked #9 in global download growth, gaining strong traction since its launch in China. With a third-person perspective, high-fantasy setting, and realistic 3D art, it appeals to mid-core players seeking immersive open-world experiences. Its success highlights the growing demand for AAA MMORPGs on mobile with console-quality storytelling and combat. 

Explore more data and insights for the above game titles with Sensor Tower’s App Performance Insights. You can set up a meeting with our team through the "Request Demo" button on the link provided.

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