Google and Apple 'crush' competition with default apps: Study

The study's findings show twelve out of the top 20 apps on Android were made by Google.

What you need to know

• A new Comscore study claims Google and Apple's preinstalled apps dominate their respective mobile platforms.
• Google Play is apparently the most popular app on Android, with 87 million monthly active users.
• The report was commissioned by social media giant Facebook.

According to a new study from Comscore, the vast majority of the "most-used" mobile apps in the U.S. actually come preinstalled by either Google or Apple. The study was commissioned by Facebook and shared exclusively with The Verge.

The report highlights how preinstalled apps heavily dominate basics such as weather, photos, and clocks. Google Photos is the only photo app in the list of the top 20 most-used Android apps, while Apple Photos is the third most popular iOS app overall.

However, as can be seen in the list above, not all default apps are supremely popular. Apple Maps and Apple Music are both nowhere to be seen on the iOS list. Similarly, YouTube Music isn't the most popular music streaming app on the best Android phones.

Comscore says it prepared the report in December 2020 using data from apps and websites, along with a survey of approximately 4,000 people. The results of the study reveal that 60% of the most popular apps on Android in the U.S. were made by Google, while Apple made 75% of the top 20 apps on iOS. The only third-party apps on the iOS list were YouTube, Facebook, Amazon, Instagram, and Gmail. It is also worth noting that the top four apps on both lists were made by either Google or Apple.

Facebook says it commissioned the study to call attention to the "impact of preinstalled apps on the competitive app ecosystem." Apple, however, has dismissed the findings of the study and called it "seriously flawed." A company spokesperson told The Verge that the study was "narrowly tailored to give the false impression that there's little competition on the App Store."

Android Central reached out to Google, but the company declined to comment.