Long term user retention rates are on the up, as developers shift their attention from app downloads to “more mature customer acquisition and retention models,” according to analytics firm Localytics.

The company said that 31 percent of users acquired in the third quarter of 2011 used an app 11 or more times, compared with 26 percent in Q3 2010. In addition, the number of users opening an app only once fell to 22 percent from 26 percent.

But there were some pronounced differences between platforms. iOS users are “52 percent more loyal to their apps than Android users,” with 35 percent launching an app more than 10 times after downloading, compared to 23 percent for Android users.

Android app users are also more likely to launch an app only once, at 24 percent compared with 21 percent for iOS.

Localytics suggested that the improvements suggest that “many app publishers are simply building better apps, whether the app targets the mass market or a niche.” It also notes that due to increased familiarity with apps, users are “likely making more informed, discerning choices about what apps to try.”