Singular released the 2025 return on investment (ROI) Index, a comprehensive data-driven ranking of mobile advertising performance across the globe. This year’s report show that Reddit and Moloco have joined Google, Meta, TikTok and Apple in mobile ad leadership, Singular said.
This year’s report reflects tens of billions of dollars in ad spend, billions of app installs, and trillions of in-app and web ad impressions across millions of advertising campaigns. With all that data, it offers marketers a roadmap to the best ad partners for return on ad spend (ROAS). (We last covered it in 2023).
“The dominance of Google and Meta remains but names like TikTok, Apple Search Ads, and Moloco are firmly in the global growth conversation,” said John Koetsier, vice president of Insights at Singular, in a statement. “And our new Singular ROI Quadrant reveals that it’s often smaller ad networks that deliver outsized ROI for advertisers.”
Also interesting, given Applovin’s massive valuation surge over the past year: rival Moloco significantly surpasses Applovin in ad spend by Singular customers.
Key findings from the 2025 Index:
- The golden 9Nine massive ad platforms hit every regional leaderboard, including AppLovin, Google Ads, ironSource from Unity, Liftoff, Meta Ads, Mintegral, Moloco, TikTok for Business, and Unity Ads.
- Apple Search Ads dominanceDespite not being available on Android, Apple ranks third in total ad spend and seventh overall in ROI.
- X is still relevant, but there’s a caveat …The former Twitter is still a player, hitting 18 top lists, despite having lost some steam as X. The caveat: ads on X perform best in porn and gambling verticals.
- Moloco’s riseAppLovin gets all the news, but this under-the-radar ad network is fifth in global ROI and fifth in spend. Also, Moloco made every regional/vertical list it qualified for the second year in a row.
- Reddit’s ascentWith 47% year-over-year user growth and its first profitable year, Reddit Ads now ranks on 18 top lists, with standout performance in gaming and fintech.
- Rewarded ad networks’ massive surgeA third of top growth ad networks—including KashKick, Adjoe, and MAF—now operate in the rewarded or incentivized ad space. Some are so big they had to be classified with the large ad networks.
- Snap’s resurgenceWith innovations like SKOverlay formats, value-based optimization, and a 7/0 delivery window, Snap Ads is driving profitable app installs and growth.
New in 2025
This year introduces the Singular ROI Quadrant, highlighting four classes of ad partners by contrasting ad cost to campaign ROI. Marketers can now identify high-ROI but low-cost ad networks in the Quadrant of Growth, with networks like Reddit, Rokt, and Digital Turbine leading in specific regions.
Additionally, the ROI Index now includes a searchable view by geo and vertical, enabling marketers to find top-performing ad partners tailored to their unique growth needs.
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