Consumers who use Android and iOS devices to access travel information spend 95% of their browsing time using apps rather than on the mobile web, according to research by Nielsen.
Travel app usage dwarfs mobile web, finds survey
Consumers who use Android and iOS devices to access travel information spend 95% of their browsing time using apps against only 5% using browser-based mobile websites, according to research by Nielsen.
Nielsen looked at the usage of travel-related mobile apps and websites during June.
Neilson said the discrepancy was largely driven by Google Maps — the top travel category app and mobile website during June – which accounted for 78% of all mobile time spent on travel.
Americans’ decision on whether to open an app or their mobile web browser depended on the type of travel information they were looking for.
The cruise lines category was exclusively accessed through mobile sites, while 98% of time spent browsing map/navigation information was through an app.
The travel destinations/theme parks category seemed to have the most balanced usage among smartphone owners, as 54% time spent was through an app and 46 percent via mobile web.
“The variation in time spent across the different travel categories shows that there’s significant room for app development and growth,” said Nichole Henderson, a senior research executive at Nielsen.
