What's the Right Budget Split for My App Marketing?

Most apps fail within the first year—not because they're poorly built, but because nobody knows they exist. I've watched brilliant apps with genuinely useful features disappear into obscurity whilst mediocre ones with massive marketing budgets thrive. Its a harsh reality of the mobile world; building the app is actually the easy part compared to getting it in front of the right people. And thats exactly why figuring out your app marketing budget split is so bloody important—mess this up and you're essentially throwing money into a black hole hoping something sticks.

Here's what I've learned after years of launching apps; there isn't a magic formula that works for everyone. Sure, some agencies will tell you to spend 60% on user acquisition and 40% on everything else, but that's nonsense really. Your budget split depends on dozens of factors—your apps purpose, your target audience, whether you're pre-launch or three years in, what your competitors are doing, and honestly? How much money you've actually got to spend in the first place. A fintech startup trying to attract high-value users will allocate their marketing spend completely differently than a casual gaming app going after teenagers.

The worst mistake you can make is spreading your marketing budget too thin across every possible channel—you end up doing everything poorly instead of anything well.

What I want to do in this guide is break down the different areas where you should be thinking about investing your app marketing budget. We'll look at paid acquisition, organic growth, retention spending, and all the bits in between that most people forget about. No fluff, no theoretical nonsense—just practical advice based on what actually works when you're trying to get people to download and keep using your app. Because getting the budget split right means the difference between an app that grows and one that drains your bank account whilst going nowhere.

Understanding Your Total Marketing Budget

Before we even talk about splitting your budget, you need to figure out what your total marketing budget actually is—and I mean really figure it out, not just pluck a number from thin air. I've seen too many app founders spend £50k building their app and then suddenly realise they've got £2k left for marketing. That's backwards, honestly.

Here's the thing—your marketing budget should be treated as seriously as your development budget. Actually, in many cases it should be bigger. I know that sounds mad when you're investing so much in building the app itself, but what's the point of a brilliantly built app that nobody downloads? You need people to use it, and getting those people costs money.

How Much Should You Actually Budget?

There's no magic formula here, but I can give you some rough guidelines based on what I've seen work. For consumer apps, you're typically looking at spending 1.5 to 2 times your development cost on marketing in the first year. So if you spent £50k building your app, you should have £75k-£100k ready for marketing. For enterprise or B2B apps, it's often even more because your sales cycles are longer and your acquisition costs are higher.

But here's where people mess up—they think about marketing budget as a one-off expense. Its not. Marketing is ongoing, and you need to factor in monthly spending that continues well beyond launch. Your budget should cover:

• Pre-launch marketing activities (building awareness, creating content, setting up your app store presence)
• Launch period spending (your big push to get initial downloads and create momentum)
• Post-launch acquisition (ongoing user growth campaigns)
• Retention and re-engagement (keeping users active once they've downloaded)
• Testing and optimisation (trying new channels, refining your messaging)

If you're bootstrapping or working with limited funds, you'll need to be more strategic about where every pound goes. That means focusing heavily on organic channels early on and only spending on paid acquisition once you've proven your app has strong retention metrics; there's no point paying to acquire users who'll just uninstall after a week.

Pre-Launch vs Post-Launch Spending

Right, lets talk about one of the biggest mistakes I see clients make—they spend everything getting their app launched and then wonder why nobody downloads it after the first week. Or worse, they launch with no budget at all and expect it to magically take off. Neither approach works, trust me.

The way I usually advise splitting your app marketing budget is roughly 30-40% pre-launch and 60-70% post-launch. I know that might feel counterintuitive? Many people think the launch is the big moment where you need all your firepower. But here's the thing—launch day is just one day. What happens in the months after matters so much more for your apps long-term success.

Pre-launch spending is about building anticipation and ensuring you have a solid foundation. This includes your app store assets (screenshots, videos, descriptions), setting up your tracking and analytics properly, creating your initial content, and building an audience before you even launch. Maybe you're running a landing page to collect emails or creating buzz on social media. You want people ready to download on day one.

Post-launch is where the real work begins—paid user acquisition campaigns, ongoing content creation, A/B testing your app store presence, re-engagement campaigns for users who've gone quiet. This is where you learn what actually works for your specific app and audience. Its not as glamorous as launch day but its where sustainable growth happens.

Don't blow your entire budget in the first month after launch. Plan for at least 6-12 months of consistent spending to give your app a fair chance at finding its audience and proving its value.

How to Allocate Your Pre-Launch Budget

Your pre-launch budget should focus on these key areas, and I've seen this split work well across different types of apps:

• App store assets and creative development (40-50% of pre-launch budget)
• Beta testing and user research (20-25% of pre-launch budget)
• Pre-launch buzz building and audience creation (20-25% of pre-launch budget)
• Analytics setup and marketing infrastructure (10-15% of pre-launch budget)

Post-Launch Budget Priorities

Once you're live, your spending needs shift dramatically. You're no longer preparing—you're fighting for attention in a crowded marketplace. The apps that succeed are the ones that keep investing consistently, month after month, refining their approach based on real data. I mean, you cant just launch and hope for the best.

Post-launch, you'll want to focus on paid acquisition channels that actually deliver users who stick around, ongoing optimisation of your app store presence based on what you learn, content that keeps people engaged, and retention campaigns for existing users. The balance between these will shift as your app matures but the key is maintaining steady investment rather than sporadic bursts of spending.

Paid User Acquisition Channels

Right, lets talk about where you should actually spend money to get people downloading your app—because this is where most of your budget will go if you're serious about growth. I've seen companies burn through £50,000 in a month on Facebook ads that brought in users who deleted the app within 24 hours, and I've seen others spend £5,000 strategically and build a solid user base that actually sticks around.

The main channels you need to know about are fairly straightforward. Facebook and Instagram ads are the biggest players (they're the same platform really since Meta owns both) and they work well if you've got strong visual content and a clear target audience. Google App Campaigns are brilliant for capturing intent—people searching for solutions your app provides. TikTok ads are the new kid on the block but bloody hell, they can be effective if your audience skews younger. Apple Search Ads are probably the most underrated channel I see; they're not cheap but the conversion rates are typically much higher because people are actively searching for apps like yours.

Here's what most people get wrong though—they spread their budget too thin across every channel at once. Start with one, maybe two channels max. Test them properly with at least £3,000-5,000 each (less than that and you won't get enough data to make informed decisions). Look at your cost per install, but more importantly your cost per engaged user or cost per subscription if that's your model. An install means nothing if the person never opens your app again, you know? Once you've found a channel that works, double down on it before expanding to others. Its not sexy advice but it works.

App Store Optimisation Investment

Right, let's talk about ASO—because honestly, this is where I see people make the biggest mistakes with their app marketing budget. They'll throw thousands at paid ads but spend nothing on the one thing that actually converts people who are actively searching for solutions like theirs. It's a bit mad really.

Here's the thing; ASO is probably the best value investment you'll make in your entire marketing budget. I'm talking about 5-10% of your total spend, maybe £500-2000 per month depending on your budget size and competition level. That might sound like a lot for "just optimising your app store listing" but trust me, the return is worth it. A well-optimised listing can increase your conversion rate from visitors to installs by 30-50%. And unlike paid ads where you stop getting results the moment you stop paying, good ASO keeps working for you.

The apps that rank organically for their target keywords get a steady stream of high-intent users without paying per install—and those users typically have better retention rates because they found you, not the other way around.

What does that budget actually cover? Professional keyword research (because guessing doesn't work anymore), A/B testing your screenshots and app preview videos, localisation for different markets, and ongoing monitoring of your rankings. You'll also want to invest in regular updates to your metadata based on what's working and what isn't. The app stores change their algorithms constantly, so ASO isn't a one-and-done thing—its an ongoing process that needs consistent attention. Some clients try to DIY this part to save money but end up wasting months targeting the wrong keywords or using screenshots that dont convert. Been there, seen that happen too many times!

Content Marketing and Organic Growth

Right, let's talk about content marketing—because honestly, this is where a lot of app developers miss a massive opportunity. I've seen companies throw thousands at paid ads whilst completely ignoring content, and its such a shame because content is one of the few things that actually builds value over time. Your paid ads stop working the moment you stop paying; your content keeps bringing people in months or even years later.

Here's the thing though—content marketing for apps isn't the same as content marketing for websites. You cant just write blog posts and hope for the best. You need to think about where your potential users actually spend their time and what kind of content they engage with. Are they on YouTube watching tutorials? Are they scrolling through TikTok? Are they reading Reddit threads at 2am trying to solve a problem your app fixes?

I typically recommend allocating about 15-20% of your marketing budget to content creation and distribution. Now that might sound like a lot compared to other channels, but remember this money goes further because the content you create today continues working for you tomorrow. But you need to be smart about it—creating content nobody wants is just as wasteful as burning money on poorly targeted ads.

What Actually Works in App Content Marketing

From what I've seen work time and time again, here are the content types that drive real downloads:

• Educational videos showing people how to solve specific problems (these rank brilliantly on YouTube and Google)
• User-generated content campaigns that get your existing users creating content about your app
• SEO-optimised landing pages targeting long-tail search terms related to what your app does
• Social media content that entertains first and promotes second—nobody wants to see constant "download our app" posts
• Email sequences that nurture people from interested to convinced over several touchpoints
• Comparison content that positions your app against competitors (yes, really—people search for this stuff)

The Long Game vs Quick Wins

Content marketing is fundamentally different from paid acquisition because you're playing the long game. I mean, you might spend £2,000 creating a really comprehensive video tutorial series, and in the first month it brings in maybe 50 downloads. Disappointing? Maybe. But fast forward six months and that same content has brought in 800 downloads without any additional spend. Thats the power of organic growth.

The mistake I see companies make is expecting immediate returns from content. They publish a few blog posts, see nothing happen in week one, and decide content "doesn't work" for them. Actually, content takes time to get indexed by search engines, time to build authority, and time to accumulate views and shares. You need to commit to at least 3-6 months of consistent content creation before you judge its effectiveness.

One more thing—and this is important—your content budget should include money for distribution, not just creation. Creating brilliant content that nobody sees is pointless. Set aside maybe 30-40% of your content budget for promoting that content through social ads, influencer partnerships, or even just boosting posts on platforms where your audience hangs out.

Influencer and Partnership Marketing

Right, lets talk about influencers and partnerships—because this is where a lot of app founders either waste money or miss out on some brilliant opportunities. I've seen both happen more times than I'd like to admit, and its usually down to not understanding how this channel actually works for mobile apps.

Here's the thing with influencer marketing for apps; it's not quite the same as selling a product. You're asking someone to download something, give you permissions on their device, maybe create an account...theres friction there that doesn't exist when buying a physical item. So you need influencers who can genuinely demonstrate value and show the app in action. A static post rarely cuts it—you need video, you need walkthrough content, you need someone who actually uses the app and can talk about it naturally.

For budget allocation I typically suggest 10-15% of your total marketing spend on influencer and partnership work, but this can vary massively depending on your category. Gaming apps? You might push that to 20% or more because gaming influencers have incredibly engaged audiences. B2B productivity app? Maybe 5-8% makes more sense, with more focus on strategic partnerships instead.

Finding the Right Partners

Micro-influencers (10k-100k followers) often deliver better results than big names for app marketing. Why? Because their audiences trust them more and engagement rates are higher. I mean, paying £50,000 for a single post from someone with 2 million followers sounds impressive but if only 0.5% of their audience actually engages, you're better off working with 10 smaller creators who have 50k each and 5% engagement rates.

Partnerships work differently again—think about complementary apps or services where you can do user acquisition swaps or co-marketing campaigns. These cost less in terms of actual cash outlay but require time and relationship building.

Always negotiate performance-based deals with influencers where possible; pay a base rate plus bonuses for hitting install targets. This aligns incentives and weeds out creators who cant actually drive results for your app.

Tracking What Actually Works

You absolutely must use unique tracking links or promo codes for each influencer—no exceptions. I've worked with clients who spent £30,000 on influencer campaigns and couldn't tell me which creator drove a single install because they didn't set up proper attribution. Bloody hell, that hurts to see! Use your mobile measurement partner (Appsflyer, Adjust, etc) to create custom links and you'll know exactly what your return looks like for each partnership.

Retention and Re-Engagement Spending

Here's something most people get wrong—they spend all their budget getting users through the door, then wonder why everyone leaves. Its like filling a bath with the plug out, honestly. I've seen startups burn through £50,000 on acquisition only to watch their retention rate sit at a dismal 5% after 30 days. That's not an app problem; thats a priorities problem.

Retention spending is where the real money gets made, not in acquisition. Why? Because keeping an existing user costs about 5-7 times less than getting a new one, and loyal users spend more over time. They just do. But here's the thing—most founders allocate maybe 10-15% of their marketing budget to retention when it should be closer to 30-40% once your app has a decent user base.

Push notifications are your best friend here, but only if you use them properly. I mean, nobody wants spam at 3am about a sale they dont care about. Good push notification tools cost anywhere from £200-2,000 monthly depending on your user numbers, and you need to budget for someone who actually knows how to write them. A designer mate of mine increased their apps 7-day retention by 23% just by rewriting their notification strategy—same budget, better execution.

Email campaigns work too, especially for apps with longer consideration cycles. Budget £500-1,500 monthly for a proper email platform and some decent templates. And dont forget about in-app messaging; tools like Intercom or similar platforms run about £400-1,200 monthly but they let you reach users exactly when they need help.

Then there's win-back campaigns for dormant users. Set aside 20% of your retention budget specifically for targeting people who havent opened your app in 30+ days. The conversion rates are lower than active user campaigns, sure, but bringing back a user who already knows your app is still cheaper than finding someone completely new.

Measuring and Adjusting Your Budget

Right, so you've allocated your app marketing budget across different channels—but here's where things get interesting. That initial split you planned? It's basically a starting point, not a set-in-stone strategy. I've seen too many teams stick rigidly to their original budget allocation even when the data is screaming at them to change course; it's a bit mad really.

The key is tracking the right metrics for each channel. For paid acquisition, you'll want to monitor your cost per install (CPI) and cost per acquisition (CPA), but more importantly—and this is where many people get it wrong—you need to look at lifetime value (LTV) by channel. Some channels might deliver cheaper installs but terrible long-term users, whilst others cost more upfront but bring you genuinely engaged people who stick around.

The most successful app marketing budgets aren't static documents—they're living strategies that evolve based on what's actually working in the real world

I typically recommend reviewing your spend allocation every two weeks during the first three months after launch, then monthly once things stabilise. Look for channels where your LTV to CAC ratio is above 3:1—that's where you should be putting more money. And don't be afraid to kill underperforming channels completely, even if you'd planned to spend there. I've redirected entire quarterly budgets mid-campaign when the numbers told me to, and its always been the right call.

One thing that catches people out is seasonal variations; a channel that performs poorly in January might be brilliant in November. Keep historical data so you can spot patterns. And remember, your app marketing budget isn't fixed forever—as you learn what works for your specific app and audience, your allocation should shift accordingly. That's not failure, that's smart business.

Conclusion

Look—after years of building and marketing apps, I can tell you that there's no magic formula that works for everyone. I mean, I wish there was! It would make my job a lot easier. But the truth is your marketing budget split needs to reflect where your app is in its lifecycle, what your users actually care about, and honestly, how much money you've got to work with in the first place.

What I've seen work time and time again is starting with a solid foundation in ASO (because its basically free user acquisition once you've done the initial work) then layering on paid channels once you've proven your apps worth and you understand your unit economics. You can't just throw money at Facebook ads and hope for the best—trust me, I've watched clients burn through five-figure budgets doing exactly that and having nothing to show for it.

The key thing to remember is that your budget split isn't set in stone; it should shift as your app grows and as you learn what actually drives results for your specific audience. Maybe Instagram influencers work brilliantly for you whilst paid search is a complete waste. Or maybe content marketing brings you the highest quality users even though it takes longer to see results. You won't know until you test, measure, and adjust.

And here's what really matters—retention always beats acquisition in the long run. An app that keeps 40% of its users after 30 days will always outperform one that keeps 10%, no matter how much you spend on downloads. So make sure you're allocating enough budget to keep the users you've already got engaged and coming back. Because acquiring new users is expensive, but losing the ones you already paid for? That's just throwing money away.