App success

Key factors

This chapter explores the difference between app adoption and app success, revealing that popularity alone does not guarantee lasting value. Using the App Pulse Score, it uncovers what truly sets successful apps apart.Two key drivers—“makes life easier” and “delivers great content”—emerge as essential for high user satisfaction. Apps like Swish, Spotify, and ChatGPT excel by mastering these factors. As digitalization accelerates, apps that blend usability, relevance, and impact will thrive.

Beyond popularity: What makes an app truly successful?

In the previous chapter, we identified the most widely used apps. However, true excellence extends beyond popularity. Our App Pulse score cuts through the noise, capturing the essence of app success based on satisfaction, value, relevance, and industry leadership. While high install rates and frequent usage may indicate popularity, they do not always reflect true appreciation. As our data shows, what we widely install and what we truly value can be two very different things.

In Denmark and Sweden, peer-to-peer payment solutions rank among the top-rated apps. In Denmark, this category claims the highest App Pulse score, while in Sweden, Swish performs exceptionally well, surpassed only by BankID and GoWish. Financial services tend to be highly valued in both countries, with numerous banking and investment services achieving strong App Pulse Scores. In Denmark, notable mentions include Nordnet, AL-Bank, Spar Nord, and the insurance and pension platform PensionDenmark. In Sweden, this primarily consists of Swish, Swedbank, and Länsförsäkringar. In the Netherlands, fewer banking apps make the list, but ING stands out as a top-performing bank service provider.

Lastly, it is hard to overlook the prominent role that ChatGPT has gained within a short period of time. In the Netherlands, the app holds the highest App Pulse Score, a sentiment largely shared by Swedish consumers. In Denmark, it ranks 19th overall. Regardless, there is no doubt that ChatGPT has been well received—its advanced interaction model enables a deeper understanding of context and intent, allowing it to deliver detailed insights, refine ideas, and optimize workflows with minimal effort.

It is clear that value-driven apps lead the charts, but the true question is how they achieve that impact. In the next section, we unravel the key forces behind their success, exploring the different ways an app can excel.

The recipe for app success

To understand what truly defines a successful app, we compare the App Pulse score against app-specific value drivers—the core elements that shape user perception and satisfaction. These drivers serve as the building blocks of an app’s overall value proposition, each contributing to the broader user experience.

The App Pulse model structures these drivers into nine key areas, capturing various aspects of app performance, including ease of use, smart features, relevant notifications, and more. By analyzing these drivers, we can determine which factors have the greatest influence on the App Pulse score. Among all factors, two stand out as the strongest predictors of high App Pulse scores.

Given their relative importance, these two drivers can be considered hygiene factors. Failing to deliver on them may cause an app to underperform against competitors, even if it excels in other areas. These factors are not optional but critical to perceived performance, as they align with an app’s core value proposition, directly impacting user expectations and satisfaction. This does not mean that the remaining drivers are insignificant; rather, they serve to enable or enhance an app’s offering, potentially leading to a differentiated experience. With this in mind, the key question becomes: What defines “making life easier” and “great content,” and how do they translate into strong performance?

Hygiene driver 1: “Makes life easier”

A high score on “makes life easier” reflects an app’s ability to help users efficiently complete tasks while minimizing friction and effort. Apps can achieve this by optimizing existing workflows or integrating multiple tasks into a single platform, reducing strain on the user. Key approaches include:

Timesaving

Enabling users to complete actions or achieve results more quickly.

Effort reduction

Minimizing the physical or cognitive effort required to complete tasks.

Access

Ensuring ease of use and availability anytime, anywhere.

To maximize an app’s impact in simplifying life tasks, it is essential to first understand and prioritize the real needs and pain points users encounter. This involves identifying processes where users face barriers that could be reduced or eliminated. Equally important is ensuring seamless access to a company’s product or service when users need it most. By addressing these challenges, apps can enhance usability, streamline workflows, and drive overall user satisfaction.

An analysis of the top 20 apps with the highest App Pulse scores highlights this principle in action across various contexts. It is no surprise that payment solutions like MobilePay, Swish, and Tikkie, along with navigation apps such as Google Maps, rank highly. These apps not only achieve strong App Pulse Scores but also excel in simplifying everyday tasks.

Without them, navigating from A to B, splitting a bill in cash (requiring everyone to be physically present), or completing a complex bank transfer would demand significantly more time and effort. Their functional value is undeniable, underscoring how essential they have become in reducing everyday friction.

A less obvious example is Philips Hue, which simplifies everyday life by serving as a remote control for home lighting and electronic devices. While adjusting a lamp from the couch may seem like a small convenience, it reflects a fundamental human tendency: the desire to minimize effort in every aspect of life. The task is specific and short, yet its tangible benefit is clear and relevant to users' needs.

Daily routines are filled with countless small, repetitive actions—grocery shopping, commuting, and managing digital interactions. When considered collectively, these minor tasks consume significant time and energy. This underscores a key insight: no task is too small to benefit from optimization. Apps that focus on well-defined, narrow tasks can provide meaningful utility and convenience, as long as they offer ease and relief in users' daily lives. As such, hyper-niche solutions can easily be justified, as long as it successfully eases the completion of a relevant task. The key is to critically assess the jobs the app helps users complete and whether it offers a better way to solve these tasks. By doing so, an app positions itself as a tool that enhances daily life, rather than just a digital extension of a business.

Hygiene driver 2: “Delivers great content”

Great content is a moving target—subjective, context-dependent, and shaped by users' immediate needs. The challenge lies in ensuring that content is not only relevant but delivered precisely when it matters most. To overcome this challenge, content must align seamlessly with the expectations set by the business. The better content addresses the needs that draw users to apps, the stronger the business's position becomes. However, even when content aligns with core services, timing and user preferences remain critical.

In an era defined by information abundance, the true measure of great content lies in:

Findability

Ensuring that users can effortlessly access the right content to meet their immediate needs.

Discoverability

Presenting users with relevant new content that extends the relevance of digital products into future interactions, delivering sustained value.

A strong example of this is the integration of personalization, efficient search, and saved content or favorites, which enables users to find, discover, and save content for later. By allowing users to build extensive content libraries, apps can create compelling reasons for repeated engagement. In other words, beyond producing content itself, the most critical factor in shaping an exceptional content experience today is ensuring that the app has the right infrastructure to present users with the most relevant content.

The power of great content: A look at Spotify and beyond

The transformative potential of AI:

It is not just about offering a vast content library but making that content accessible and meaningful.

Without effective navigation and recommendation systems, even the most extensive library can overwhelm users rather than engage them.

The true value lies in a blend of breadth and precision, ensuring that discovery is not only possible but effortless and enjoyable.

However, great content is not always defined by technology or vast resources—context and purpose matter just as much. For instance, Kemiluppen (“The Chemistry Lens”) is a top performer in Denmark—not due to algorithms or a vast library, but because its content is meaningful. The app helps consumers navigate the complexities of chemicals in products, enabling them to make informed choices. This example highlights that great content takes many forms, often shaped by the meaning it holds for its audience.

Beyond the top-performing drivers

“Great content” and “Makes life easier” are pivotal to the App Pulse score. These drivers closely align with an app's core value proposition, making them essential to master. However, the remaining drivers are far from insignificant. They offer valuable opportunities to enhance the user experience and differentiate an app in a crowded market, ultimately securing a competitive advantage. In markets where apps offer similar value propositions, factors such as intuitive design and seamless usability often become the key differentiators for success. These elements enable an app’s value proposition to stand out, while neglecting them can undermine its appeal. After all, who has not experienced the frustration of clunky navigation or excessive, irrelevant notifications? While the significance of each driver varies by context and market, the most successful apps consistently deliver excellence across all dimensions—going beyond content and convenience to create an experience that is effortless, engaging, and user-centric.