The age of online gaming has arrived. In fact, with four billion smartphone users worldwide plus companies like Amazon and Netflix launching game streaming services, online gaming is replacing the more traditional and expensive gaming consoles. With this shift comes more opportunities for affiliate marketers.

In the United States alone, online gaming revenues are expected to reach $5.3 billion in 2022. These figures appeal to advertisers looking to increase sales and profits. Casual gaming continues to attract the most advertisers, with more than 18 thousand advertisers promoting their products and services in 2021. As more advertisers dabble in online gaming, they are not however compromising on their ability to measure performance and avoid fraud. This is where affiliate marketing’s potential to drive growth through a profitable and measurable approach wins.

Let’s dive into the online gaming statistics fueling the industry’s growth and the opportunity for affiliate marketing:

Online gaming statistics – Ad spend

• The global video game advertising industry is expected to increase from four billion in 2020 to $4.8 billion by 2024. (Statista)
• $153.6 million was allocated towards online gambling ad spend for television in Q1 2021, which equals a 1,339.3 percent increase from $10.7 million spent the prior year. (Gaming and Media News)
• The global advertising spend on mobile gaming is expected to increase from $46.7 million in 2021 to $130.9 million in 2025. (Statista)

Online gaming statistics – Industry valuation, revenue, and consumer spend

Industry valuation

• In 2021, the gaming industry was valued at $173.70 billion and it is expected to reach $314.40 billion by 2027. (Mordor Intelligence)
• In 2021, the U.S. video game market size surpassed $85.86 billion, a 12.75 percent increase from the record setting high of $76.15 billion in 2020. (Statista)
• The online gambling industry is expected to reach a valuation of more than $92.9 billion by 2023. Currently, the market is valued at $59 billion. (Statista)
• Globally, the cloud gaming market size estimates show $47 billion in 2020, with projections extending to a market size of $68 billion in 2021. (Grand View Research)
• In 2020, the PC online gaming market was worth $42.2 billion globally and is expected to reach $46.7 billion U.S. dollars in 2025. (Statista)

Revenue opportunity

• The average revenue per user in online gaming is estimated to amount to $22.48 in 2022. (Statista)
• By 2023, 40 percent of online gaming revenue is expected to come from China and the United States, followed by Japan ($4.6 billion), the United Kingdom ($1.7 billion), and South Korea ($1.6 billion). (Fintech Times)
• Mobile gaming generates more than half of all gaming revenue worldwide. (Statista)

Consumer spend

• In 2021, global consumer spend on mobile gaming reached $116 billion (a 16 percent year over year increase). In the U.S., consumer spend totaled $27.3 billion. (App Annie)
• In the U.S., total consumer spend on video games reached $60.4 billion in 2021, an 8 percent increase from 2020. (Cision)

Online gaming statistics – Consumer behavior

Socialization

• 77 percent of individuals surveyed play games online or with others throughout the week. This is a 65 percent increase from 2020. (The esa)
• The social aspect of online gaming is very important. 53 percent of gamers say they made new friends, and 36 percent agree that interacting with other players is important. (Limelight)
• For individuals aged 18-35, watching gamers play online has become more popular than watching sports on television. (Limelight)

Usage

• 76 percent of gamers say that online gaming has taken on a larger part of their overall gaming in the past year. (Statista)
• Free mobile games that have ads attract 82 percent of mobile gamers as opposed to paid games that do not have ads. (eMarketer)
• On a global scale, gamers spend on average eight and a half hours gaming per week, a 14 percent increase from 2020 to 2021. (Limelight)
• 233 mobile apps exceeded the $100 million mark in worldwide annual consumer spend, slightly under 75 percent of the apps were mobile games. (eMarketer)
• A global survey from 2020 found that six in ten gamers increased the cadence at which they participated in online multiplayer games during COVID-19 lockdowns. (Statista)
• Globally, Gen Z and Millenials had a 39 percent increase in time spent gaming during the pandemic. (Statista)

Audience

• 75 percent of Gen Z and 71 percent of Millennial gamers watch game-related videos and streams. (Newzoo)
• The bulk of online gaming revenue will come from China in 2022. (Statista)
• In the United States, 17 percent of men and 10 percent of women ages 18-35 are gamers. (Gamify)
• Globally, the average male gamer is 33 years old. (Gamify)
• Globally, the average female gamer is 37 years old. (Gamify)
• The online gaming audience is projected to extend beyond 1.3 billion individuals by 2025. (Statista)

Devices

• Mobile phones, followed by computers are the most popular devices for online gaming among all age groups. (Limelight)
• 29 percent of U.S. gamers used a desktop or laptop to play video games. (Insider intelligence)
• PC gaming amounted to more than $36 billion in 2021. (Newzoo)

Other content you might be interested in:

• Blog: Digital marketing stats that will shape 2022
• Blog: Affiliate marketing trends 2022: A look forward
• Checklist: Choosing the right affiliate software