Why running ads on multiple placements simultaneously on App Store matters more than ever

Thanks to a maturing Apple Ads ecosystem—and now four distinct premium ad placements—running multiple ads across the App Store is more relevant than ever. If you’re currently relying on just one placement, our data suggests that harnessing all four (Search Results, Search Tab, Today Tab, and Product Pages) can amplify your reach, increase brand awareness, and drive more conversions overall.

Per the official Apple Ads website, running ads on multiple placements simultaneously is listed as a best practice.

“Make your mark with multiple ad placements across the App Store. Show more people what your app has to offer, helping increase searches for your brand and downloads of your app. If you’re using a single ad placement and looking for a better overall performance value, running multiple placements could be your solution.” – Apple Ads*

These words echo what MobileAction’s 2025 Apple Search Ads Benchmark Report found: each ad placement intersects with the user journey at a different stage, expanding your total audience and often lowering your cost-per-acquisition (CPA).

As the report gets wrapped up, let’s dive deep into six important reasons why leveraging multi-placement ad strategy is vital for advertisers, along with MobileAction’s key takeaways from 2025 data.

Each Placement Reaches a Different Stage of User Intent

Search results ads remain the backbone, capturing high-intent users right as they enter keywords. MobileAction’s 2025 data shows a 9.07% tap-through rate (TTR) and a 66.70% conversion rate (CR)—the highest we’ve ever recorded. Search is the way most people find and download apps on the App Store, so getting your app to the top of those results is critical.
Search tab ads are perfect for capturing pre-search attention. Here, you appear before a user types in any keyword, influencing them to consider your brand. Search tab and search results ads in parallel can help advertisers reach additional users and increase searches for their brand, often driving more downloads at a lower overall acquisition cost.
Today tab ads meet users at the very first page of the App Store, where over half a billion people land each week. It’s the most prominent ad placement on Apple Ads, and it’s optimal for big moments: new feature or content releases, seasonal promotions, rebranding campaigns, or new market launches. MobileAction clients often see a noticeable brand lift in search results after launching a Today tab campaign.
Product page ads appear in the “You Might Also Like” section and target customers actively researching apps. When users are already exploring apps like yours, advertisers can drive them to their listing instead. MobileAction’s 2025 Benchmark Report found CPA for product page ads dropped significantly to $3.88 in 2024 (from $5.89 in 2023), indicating growing efficiency and improved user intent.

These placements work so well in tandem because they reinforce each other. For instance, if a user sees your app in a Today tab ad, they may recall it the next time they type in your brand name on the Search tab—possibly boosting your overall TTR and organic awareness.

Apple Ads Performance Remains Strong

MobileAction’s 2025 Apple Ads Benchmark Report shows that Apple Search Ads consistently deliver high-value traffic:

TTR has climbed to an all-time high of 9.07% (up from 9.00% in 2023), indicating more engaged users who respond well to relevant ads.
CR is steady at 66.70%, proving that Apple Search Ads continues to attract high-intent users ready to download.
CPT (cost-per-tap) averaged $1.84, and CPA (cost-per-acquisition) stayed near $2.76, a slight uptick from 2023, but it still indicated substantial efficiency and stable competition overall.

When running multiple ads across all placements simultaneously, these metrics can shift in a positive direction. Many advertisers report a “halo effect” after launching multi-placement Apple Search Ads campaigns: brand searches rise, organic downloads trend upward, and tCPAs often dip because awareness from one placement lowers acquisition costs elsewhere.

Tapping Into the Power of Exposure with Low Costs

One key reason why a multi-placement ad strategy works is that you only pay when people tap. Therefore, you can drive a lot more exposure at little to no additional cost.

Even impressions without direct taps can lead to installs later, which is why Apple Search Ads recently introduced view-through metrics.

Addressing Budget Concerns—Positively!

It’s natural to be cautious about distributing your budget across multiple placements. While search results ads typically yield the most direct installs, the other placements add incremental value in ways you won’t see if you keep a single-placement focus:

Search Tab Ads: An excellent first step beyond search results ads if you are testing out new ad placements for the first time or if the budget is limited. Even a modest share allocated here can give you an early funnel presence, making your brand top-of-mind before users type a single keyword.
Today Tab Ads: A broader reach that helps you shape brand perception. Today tab ads are perfect for high-level branding or major announcements as it offers prime visibility. If you’re looking for a sustained brand lift, consider carving out more of your budget for Today tab ads.
Product Page Ads: A smaller share of the budget can make a big difference if you’re targeting competitor or complementary app audiences. These potential users are already exploring similar categories, so your CR can be quite strong as you get the opportunity to connect with a highly engaged audience. If you’re tight on budget but try to improve targeting as much as possible and be intentional, product page ads are the placement you’re looking for.

How to Allocate Your Budget?

Based on ongoing client discussions, internal MobileAction teams noticed some approximate allocations work well.

Budgets differ from company to company and category to category. So, these should not be treated as “one-size-fits-all” but rather as a guiding framework. Your actual mix depends on your category, competition, and growth goals. For instance, we’ve observed higher CPT but more robust TTR and CR in the Games category, so balancing placements might look different than in, say, Food & Drink or Finance.

This framework divides the market into three segments: starters, mid-size apps, and enterprise / well-established brands.

Starters: What we mean by ‘Starters’ are indie developers, solopreneurs, or small teams that have very recently started their paid marketing operations for their app and/or are exploring Apple Search Ads. Undoubtedly, every dime is important for the starters, therefore, we recommend that they allocate the majority of their budget to search results ads and spare the rest to experiment with the rest of the placements and monitor the results.
- Search results ads ~70%
- Search tab ads ~15%
- Today tab ads ~10%
- Product page ads ~5%
Mid-Size Apps: In this segment, we refer to the profitable mobile app businesses that are looking to scale and need to create brand awareness or establish their names more in the market. Multi-placement ad strategy is the way to scale on Apple Search Ads, so we recommend you allocate your budget on search results ads to other ad placements and increase their weight to drive more exposure and installs.
- Search results ads ~60%
- Search tab ads ~20%
- Today tab ads ~15%
- Product page ads ~5%
Enterprise / Well-Established Brands: Assuming that such brands are already household names with enough resources, we recommend leveraging Today tab ads and Search tab ads more in cases such as amplifying important moments or launching in new markets.
- Search results ads ~45%
- Today tab ads ~25%
- Search tab ads ~20%
- Product page ads ~10%

There’s a Straightforward Gameplan that You Can Stick To

There are some best practices for applying the multi-placement ad strategy on Apple Ads, and if you stick with them, you’ll be good to go.

Run campaigns at least 4–6 weeks
In all ad placements, Apple Ads benefit from longer data-gathering windows. Short tests of only a few days often yield inconclusive results. Keep your campaigns running for at least four to six weeks (but longer, if possible) to measure the impact of campaigns and make a proper assessment.
Keep Search Results Ads Always On
You want to capture existing demand and protect your brand name from competitors. With brand searches rising after you run more awareness-focused placements, you definitely don’t want to miss those easy conversions.
Focus on Seasonal Peaks
Seasonal events—Halloween, Black Friday, Christmas, and more—are prime time for multi-placement ad strategy. Launching a Today tab ad and doubling down on Search tab ads around big holidays can give you a strong lift, especially if you’ve prepared custom product pages for that season.
Refine Custom Product Pages
Highlight seasonal offers or unique features with ad variations using custom product pages. MobileAction’s 2025 Apple Ads data shows that conversion rates for custom product pages soared to 55.87% in 2024, up from 42.13%, so there’s massive potential here, especially with the introduction of deep links that direct users to the exact place you want in your app.
Measure results by Total CPA
Don’t judge each placement in isolation. Look at the total effect—both direct conversions and spillover lifts (like branded searches, organic installs, or repeated exposures). Apple’s new view-through metrics also simplify tracking conversions that happen after an impression without a direct tap.

Stability & Continuous Growth

Despite new market expansions and small fluctuations in cost metrics, Apple Ads remains a premium platform for iOS user acquisition. MobileAction’s 2025 Apple Ads data shows consistent growth in TTR and CR—coupled with stable CPT and CPA—indicating that the quality of traffic is high and intent is strong.

With Apple Ads adding more countries and continuing to refine their tools for advertisers, we anticipate continued efficiency.

Based on MobileAction’s data, a multi-placement ad strategy isn’t just nice to have—it has become the foundation for comprehensive market coverage. By maximizing your coverage across the App Store—backed by thorough measurement and strategic targeting—you’ll capture high-intent demand and nurture brand awareness that boosts organic and branded searches.

Whether you’re new to Apple Ads or already scaling internationally, a multi-placement approach can unlock new levels of performance in 2025 and beyond. Use these insights, data points, and proven strategies to optimize your campaigns—and if you’re interested in deeper, real-time intelligence and expertise, remember that MobileAction’s all-in-one app store marketing platform and its app growth expertise can help you analyze, optimize, automate, and elevate your Apple Ads efforts every step of the way.

MobileAction’s 2025 Apple Ads benchmark report