Research

Which app categories track you most?

We analyzed 2,020 iOS apps across 11 categories, inspecting each app's compiled binary for tracking SDKs and reading its App Store privacy label. Here's what the data shows.

2,020
apps analyzed
60%
track you across apps
63%
contain ad SDKs
11
median SDKs per app

Cross-app tracking by category

Share of apps in each category that declare cross-app tracking in their App Store privacy label.

Entertainment apps track you most: 78% declare cross-app tracking, versus 45% for Health & Fitness. Across all 2,020 apps, 60% track you.

What permissions does each category demand?

Percentage of apps per category requesting each sensitive iOS permission. Read directly from each app's binary, not self-reported.

Category Tracking (ATT)LocationCameraMicrophonePhotosContactsBluetoothCalendarsHealth
Entertainment 351 78%54%69%62%79%19%29%23%2%
Social 97 70%76%96%86%96%56%26%40%5%
Sports 117 67%80%75%62%79%24%48%32%3%
News 82 66%63%46%46%57%17%21%24%0%
Finance 160 63%89%96%66%89%49%38%36%3%
Weather 106 61%97%52%24%64%8%25%25%5%
Education 168 58%42%70%47%80%10%13%18%0%
Lifestyle 95 54%87%88%75%86%44%49%33%8%
Travel 192 51%96%86%43%78%30%39%34%3%
Productivity 456 48%52%77%54%80%30%20%21%5%
Health & Fitness 191 45%66%88%62%82%29%29%42%55%

Finance apps demand the most. 96% request camera access, 89% want location. Health apps are the most restrained on tracking but still collect identity-linked data.

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