ARPDAU (average revenue per daily active user)
ARPDAU (average revenue per daily active user) is total revenue on a day divided by that day's daily active users. It is a high-frequency monetization signal common in mobile apps and games, where revenue from ads and in-app purchases is averaged across the active base each day. Because it is daily, it reacts fast to changes — but it depends entirely on how a 'daily active user' is defined, which is a per-product convention.
What this means
ARPDAU = total revenue on a given day ÷ daily active users (DAU) on that day. Revenue typically combines in-app purchases and ad revenue; DAU is the count of distinct users active that day. The result is the average revenue each active user produced that day. It is the daily-frequency cousin of ARPU, which is usually computed over a month or other longer period.
Why the DAU definition matters
ARPDAU is only as stable as its DAU denominator. What counts as 'active' — opened the app, fired any event, completed a session — is a product-specific choice, and changing it shifts the metric without any real change in monetization. Daily granularity also makes ARPDAU noisy: weekends, events, and content drops swing both revenue and the active base. It is best read as a trend over many days, segmented by platform or cohort, and paired with DAU itself so a rising ARPDAU on a shrinking active base is not mistaken for healthy growth.
This page is educational and not financial advice.
- Daily revenue ÷ daily active users, same day
- Daily cousin of ARPU; reacts fast but is noisy
- Depends on a product-specific 'active user' definition
How it appears in analytics and logs
A rising ARPDAU means each active user generates more revenue per day — from ads, purchases, or both. Because it is a daily mean over active users, it moves with both monetization changes and shifts in who is active that day.
Diagnostic use case
Track daily monetization per active user in a mobile app or game, to see fast how revenue per user responds to changes in content, ads, or pricing.
What WebmasterID can help detect
WebmasterID measures first-party engagement and conversion events that define daily activity and revenue actions, without third-party identifiers or cross-app tracking.
Common mistakes
- Comparing ARPDAU across apps with different DAU definitions.
- Over-reading single-day swings instead of the trend.
- Ignoring a shrinking active base behind a rising ARPDAU.
Privacy and accuracy notes
ARPDAU aggregates daily revenue over a daily active-user count and needs no personal identifiers. This page is educational and not financial advice.
Related pages
- Average revenue per user (ARPU)
Average revenue per user (ARPU) is total revenue in a period divided by the number of users in that period. It is a standard unit-economics metric for subscription and consumer products, summarizing how much revenue each user generates. ARPU depends heavily on which users are in the denominator (all users vs active vs paying) and the length of the period, and it differs from ARPPU and lifetime value.
- DAU/MAU stickiness ratio
The DAU/MAU stickiness ratio divides daily active users by monthly active users. It approximates how many days in a month a typical active user shows up, making it a habit and engagement signal for apps and products. Its value hinges entirely on how 'active' is defined and on the DAU/MAU averaging method, so the underlying definitions must travel with the number.
- Day-N retention (D1/D7/D30)
Day-N retention measures the percentage of a user cohort that returns on a specific day after first use — D1, D7, and D30 being the common checkpoints. It is a core mobile and product retention curve. The subtlety is that 'returned on day N' has three competing definitions — classic (exactly day N), range (by day N), and rolling — which produce different numbers from the same data, so the definition must always be stated.
- Event Explorer
Define daily activity and revenue events first-party.
Sources and verification notes
- Google — [GA4] User metrics and active usersBackground on active-user counts; ARPDAU is a mobile/games monetization convention.
Last reviewed 2026-06-24. Facts are checked against primary/official sources where available; uncertain specifics are marked “Data not yet verified” rather than guessed.