Metrics analysis of search results ads
Search results ads are designed to reach users at the exact moment they’re actively looking for an app on the App Store. Because the ad appears directly within search results, performance is closely tied to how well your keyword targeting and ad relevance match real, in-the-moment intent.
Search is one of the most consistent discovery behaviors on the App Store, but it also comes with inherent competition. Users often compare multiple options before installing, which makes search results ads a foundational placement for influencing consideration, capturing demand, and supporting acquisition ability across an Apple Ads strategy.
This is also why search results ads typically act as the performance backbone of multi-placement Apple Ads programs. Many advertisers start here first because it provides the clearest feedback loop between query intent, ad engagement, and post-tap outcomes. In practical terms, stronger search results fundamentals often translate into better learnings, cleaner targeting, and more scalable growth across other placements.
In this section, we focus on the core metrics that shape search results performance:
- Tap-through rate (TTR) helps evaluate engagement and relevance at the moment of search, showing how often impressions turn into taps.
- Conversion rate (CR) reflects post-tap efficiency, indicating how effectively the App Store product page experience turns taps into downloads.
- Cost-per-tap (CPT) represents auction pricing for engagement and helps benchmark how competitive it is to earn a tap within search results.
- Cost-per-acquisition (CPA) captures the full cost of a download and is most useful for understanding overall effect as bids, conversion, and seasonality shift.
Together, these benchmarks provide a consistent way to compare performance over time and across categories and regions. They also help advertisers identify where shifts are being driven by engagement (relevance and competition), conversion (post-tap experience), or pricing dynamics in the auction.
The data in this report has been gathered using MobileAction and SearchAds.com tools.*
