ChatGPT Tops U.S. App Store as Most Downloaded iPhone App of 2025 ChatGPT leads the 2025 U.S. App Store charts as the most downloaded iPhone app, outpacing social, search and messaging rivals.

ChatGPT secured the top position on Apple’s list of the most downloaded free iPhone apps in the United States for 2025, moving up from fourth place a year earlier and surpassing some of the most entrenched names in mobile software. Apple’s annual charts show that ChatGPT finished ahead of Threads, Google, TikTok, WhatsApp Messenger, Instagram, YouTube, Google Maps, Gmail and Google Gemini, marking a significant shift in how iPhone users interact with everyday digital tools. The presence of these long-standing platforms just below ChatGPT underscores how rapidly AI-driven assistants have gained ground across the broader mobile landscape.

The year’s paid-app rankings revealed a different set of behaviors among users who purchase specialized tools. HotSchedules claimed the top position, followed by Shadowrocket, Procreate Pocket, AnkiMobile Flashcards and Paprika Recipe Manager 3. Additional strong performers included SkyView, TonalEnergy Tuner & Metronome, AutoSleep Track Sleep on Watch, Forest for productivity support and the weather-focused RadarScope. Each represents a niche where dedicated utility continues to attract consistent demand despite rising momentum around AI-led solutions.

Top games for the iPhone showed a familiar mixture of mainstream titles and breakouts. Block Blast! earned the top spot among free games, ahead of Fortnite, Roblox, Township, Pokémon TCG Pocket, Royal Kingdom, Clash Royale, Vita Mahjong, Whiteout Survival and Last War: Survival. Paid games revealed continued strength for classics, with Minecraft: Dream it, Build it! leading the category, followed by Balatro, Heads Up!, Plague Inc., Geometry Dash, Bloons TD 6, Stardew Valley, Papa’s Freezeria To Go!, Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp C and Red’s First Flight rounding out the selections.

How ChatGPT Outpaced Social and Search Staples

The rise of ChatGPT to the top of the free-app chart shows how AI tools have expanded beyond novelty and into routine use. Many users now rely on ChatGPT for messaging drafts, search queries, homework review, travel recommendations, writing help or quick problem solving. This versatility contrasts with the single-purpose nature of many traditional apps, helping explain how ChatGPT surpassed platforms that have long dominated download lists across the App Store.

Apple’s iPad rankings also highlight this shift. On the iPad’s free-app list, YouTube held the top slot, but ChatGPT followed immediately after, ahead of Netflix, Disney Plus, Amazon Prime Video, TikTok, Chrome, Goodnotes, Canva and HBO Max. The paid iPad rankings pointed toward creative and professional tools, led by Procreate and Procreate Dreams, then forScore, ToonSquid, Nomad Sculpt, Shadowrocket, AnkiMobile Flashcards, Bluebeam Revu for iPad, Teach Your Monster to Read and the 3D drawing tool Feather. These trends collectively suggest that AI integration is now touching nearly every category, from entertainment to creativity to productivity.

Games on the iPad reflected similar dynamics. Roblox continued its dominance as the most downloaded free iPad game, followed by Block Blast!, Fortnite, Perfect Tidy, Magic Tiles 3, Mini Games: Calm & Chill, Goods Puzzle: Sort Challenge, hole.io, Subway Surfers and Township. Paid-game behavior on the iPad mirrored the iPhone, with Minecraft: Dream it, Build it! leading the list and followed by Geometry Dash, Stardew Valley, Balatro, Bloons TD 6, Plague Inc., Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp C, Poppy Playtime Chapter 3, Purple Place and Papa’s Sushiria To Go!.

What the 2025 Charts Reveal About Mobile Behavior

The 2025 rankings show that users increasingly gravitate toward apps that offer utility and adaptability, especially those that extend beyond the constraints of traditional categories. ChatGPT’s ascent reflects a broader trend in which AI-powered assistants begin to replace or supplement apps dedicated to singular tasks. Meanwhile, strong showings from creative tools like Procreate, productivity apps like Goodnotes and evergreen games such as Minecraft suggest that user interest continues to balance between long-standing favorites and newly emerging technologies.

These patterns also illustrate how AI now coexists with established entertainment ecosystems. While streaming apps continue to dominate the upper tiers of the iPad charts, and social platforms hold major positions on the iPhone list, the prominence of ChatGPT across devices indicates a shift toward tools that blend efficiency with conversational interaction. The growing distribution of AI features across mobile experiences suggests that the App Store in 2026 may look even more diversified as developers incorporate generative models into everyday software.

ChatGPT’s position at the top of the 2025 U.S. download charts offers a preview of a mobile environment increasingly shaped by AI, signaling broader changes in how users search, create, organize information and interact with their devices.

Top Free iPhone Apps 2025 (U.S.)

1. ChatGPT

2. Threads

3. Google

4. TikTok – Videos, Shop & LIVE

5. WhatsApp Messenger

6. Instagram

7. YouTube

8. Google Maps

9. Gmail

10. Google Gemini 

Top Paid iPhone Apps 2025

1. HotSchedules

2. Shadowrocket

3. Procreate Pocket

4. AnkiMobile Flashcards

5. Paprika Recipe Manager 3

6. SkyView®

7. TonalEnergy Tuner & Metronome

8. AutoSleep Track Sleep on Watch

9. Forest: Focus for Productivity

10. RadarScope 

Top Free iPhone Games 2025

1. Block Blast!

2. Fortnite

3. Roblox

4. Township

5. Pokémon TCG Pocket

6. Royal Kingdom

7. Clash Royale

8. Vita Mahjong

9. Whiteout Survival

10. Last War: Survival 

Top Paid iPhone Games 2025

1. Minecraft: Dream it, Build it!

2. Balatro

3. Heads Up!

4. Plague Inc.

5. Geometry Dash

6. Bloons TD 6

7. Stardew Valley

8. Papa’s Freezeria To Go!

9. Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp C

10. Red’s First Flight