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Here’s further evidence that 2020 was the year we Zoomed.
Apple AAPL, -0.00% has revealed its most-downloaded apps and games of the year, and it should come as zero surprise that Zoom Cloud Meetings was the most downloaded free app in the U.S. While the videoconferencing app didn’t even make the top 20 last year, the societal shift to working and schooling from home amid the COVID-19 pandemic has made Zoom ZM, +2.38% an essential tool for many people connecting with colleagues and clients, teachers and students, as well as friends and family.
Indeed, Zoom shares have grown by more than 580% this year, and the company reported Monday that revenue jumped more than 350% for a second consecutive quarter. Americans have also been using Apple’s FaceTime, Alphabet’s GOOG, +1.89% Google Meet and Microsoft’s MSFT, -0.84% Teams to video chat with each other this year.
Read:Zoom sales more than quadruple again, but stock still drops
Escapist apps also placed high on Apple’s year-end list, with TikTok taking the second spot, and Disney’s DIS, +1.86% streaming service Disney+ landing at No. 3. YouTube and FB, +1.60% Instagram rounded out the top five free apps.
The top paid app was the photo-retouching tool TouchRetouch, followed by the Procreate Pocket drawing app and the Dark Sky weather app, which Apple acquired earlier this year.
On the gaming side, the two-year-old online multiplayer game “Among Us” was a pandemic sleeper hit, becoming Apple’s most-downloaded free game this year — and even reeling in Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in October, when she drew more than 400,000 Twitch viewers while playing it with potential voters. It was followed by “Call of Duty: Mobile” and “Roblox” in second and third place, respectively.
Read: AOC drew more than 400,000 Twitch viewers while playing ‘Among Us’ — here’s how the game works
As for paid games, Minecraft was No. 1, followed by Plague Inc., which has players “bring about the end of human history by evolving a deadly, global plague,” and became a bestseller in January before COVID-19 was even declared a pandemic. Turns out, the eight-year-old pandemic simulator tends to see a spike in players during disease outbreaks, according to the game’s U.K.-based developer, Ndemic Creations.
Spotify SPOT, +14.57% also dropped its 2020 Wrapped list this week, spotlighting the artists, albums, songs and playlists that its 320 million active users streamed the most this year. Puerto Rican rapper and producer Bad Bunny was the most-streamed artist and also boasted the most-streamed album on the music platform this year, while “The Joe Rogan Experience” dominated the most popular podcasts.
Spotify also noted a spike in the number of Black Lives Matter-themed playlists this year, as well as playlists for working from home, gardening — and even haircuts.
Read:These were the Spotify playlists and podcasts that got us through 2020
Meanwhile, over at TikTok, the most viral video of the year was a clip of TikToker Bella Poarch lip-syncing singer Millie B’s “M to the B,” which has been liked more than 43 million times. This was followed by a social media influencer known as 20doggface208, real name Nathan Apodaca, who uploaded a TikTok video of himself skateboarding while sipping cran-raspberry juice as Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams” plays in the background.
Check out some of Apple’s winners for the most downloaded apps and games of 2020.
Top 10 Free iPhone Apps in 2020
- ZOOM Cloud Meetings
- TikTok
- Disney+
- YouTube
- Snapchat
- Messenger
- Gmail
- Cash App
Top 10 paid iPhone apps in 2020
- TouchRetouch
- Procreate Pocket
- Dark Sky Weather
- Facetune
- HotSchedules
- AutoSleep Track Sleep
- The Wonder Weeks
- SkyView
- Shadowrocket
- Sky Guide
Top 10 free iPhone games in 2020
- Among Us
- Call of Duty: Mobile
- Roblox
- Subway Surfers
- Ink Inc.
- Magic Tiles 3: Piano Game
- Brain Test: Tricky Puzzles
- Brain Out
- Coin Master
- Cube Surfer
Top 10 paid iPhone games in 2020
- Minecraft
- Plague Inc.
- Heads Up
- Monopoly
- Bloons TD6
- Geometry Dash
- NBA 2K20
- Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
- The Game of Life
- True Skate
And here’s the list of Apple’s overall winners for 2020:
iPhone App of the Year: Wakeout
iPhone Game of the Year: Genshin Impact
iPad App of the Year: Zoom
iPad Game of the Year: Legends of Runeterra
Mac App of the Year: Fantastical
Mac Game of the Year: Disco Elysium
Apple TV App of the Year: Disney+
Apple TV Game of the Year: Dandara: Trials of Fear
Apple Watch App of the Year: Endel
Apple Arcade Game of the Year: Sneaky Sasquatch
App Trend of the Year: Shine for helping users practice self care
App Trend of the Year: Explain Everything Whiteboard for helping bring remote classrooms to life
App Trend of the Year: Caribu for connecting families to loved ones
App Trend of the Year: Pokémon Go for reinventing the way we play
App Trend of the Year: ShareTheMeal for helping users make a difference
