Formula
Day-N retention = users active on day N after install ÷ users who installed on day 0 × 100
For example, if 1,000 people install on Monday and 250 open the app again a week later, day-7 retention is 25%.
Why it matters
Retention shows whether people find lasting value. It drives lifetime value, makes paid user acquisition profitable or not, and is a quality signal in app store ranking, especially on Google Play.
Benchmarks vary widely by category: games and social apps behave very differently from finance or utilities. Compare your own cohorts over time rather than chasing an industry number.
How to improve it
- A faster path to the first success in onboarding.
- Well-timed push notifications — not too many.
- Fixing what users complain about. App reviews often name the exact reason people leave.
Related
The opposite of retention is churn rate. Daily engagement is captured by DAU/MAU.