US smartphone users have 27 downloaded apps on their phones on average, according to a survey from market research firm Nielsen. The figure represents an increase of five apps since December 2009 when the survey was last conducted. Broken down by the three major smartphone operating systems (Apple’s iOS, Android and BlackBerry), iPhone users were found to be the largest consumers of apps with an average of 40 downloaded to their devices, up from 37 last December. Owners of Android-powered smartphones report having 25 apps on their phones (up from 22), while BlackBerry owners report having 14 (up from 10). The survey, which was conducted last month, was based on a sample of 4,000 US mobile subscribers who reported having downloaded a mobile app in the past 30 days.

As other recent studies have suggested, games continue to be the most popular apps category, with 61 percent of smartphone owners and 52 percent of feature phone owners reporting using a games app in the past 30 days, according to Nielsen’s survey (see chart). The firm notes that gaming is also the most popular apps category for other connected devices such as touchscreen tablets, eReaders and media players, though it did not break down numbers for these segments. 

While all categories of apps are more popular on smartphones than on feature phones, Nielsen noted that the difference is more pronounced in categories such as Maps/Navigation, where “more computing power, larger screens and touch interfaces deliver a more satisfying experience.”

Meanwhile, Facebook was found to be the most popular individual app, downloaded by 50 percent of iPhone users, and by 45 percent of Android and BlackBerry users (see chart). The social networking app was the most downloaded app on the iPhone and BlackBerry platforms and second only to Google Maps on the Android platform.