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ASOGrade Guide

Apple Search Ads Popularity Score, Explained

What the Apple Search Ads popularity score is, how it's generated, what the 0–100 scale means, and how to use it for organic keyword research.

Where the popularity score comes from

When developers set up Apple Search Ads campaigns, Apple shows them a popularity score for each keyword they're considering bidding on. This score represents the relative search demand for that term in the target App Store market — the more frequently users search the term, the higher the score.

Apple does not publish absolute query counts. Instead, it exposes a 0–100 relative index, where 100 represents the highest-demand terms in the category and 0 represents terms with essentially no search activity. The index is relative to the category and market, not to all App Store searches globally.

This demand signal is what ASOGrade surfaces as its popularity score. The same 0–100 scale, the same underlying data — presented without requiring you to set up an ad campaign to access it. For organic keyword research, this is the clearest demand indicator available without reverse-engineering download estimates from chart positions.

How to interpret the 0–100 scale

The scale is relative, not absolute. A popularity score of 67 doesn't mean a specific number of monthly searches — it means that term is searched more than keywords scoring 50, in that storefront, at the time the data was collected.

Practical thresholds that work for most app categories: Below 15 — essentially no meaningful search volume; don't target unless the term is essential for relevance. 15-25 — light demand, perhaps worth including in the keyword field if it fits, but don't give it a title or subtitle slot. 25-50 — solid demand, worth targeting in the keyword field and potentially in the subtitle for the right term. 50-65 — high demand, worth the highest-weight positions you can give them if the difficulty is manageable. Above 65 — very high demand, expect significant competition; worth targeting if your app's authority can compete.

The practical minimum for most apps is 25. Below that, even a top-1 ranking generates marginal installs. The goal is meaningful volume at an accessible difficulty — the combination, not either number alone.

Why popularity scores vary by storefront

Apple calculates popularity separately for each storefront using the search behavior of users in that market. A keyword that is heavily searched in the US might have almost no searches in a smaller market, or might be searched primarily in the local language rather than English.

This storefront-by-storefront variation is essential information for localization decisions. Running the same keyword in US, UK, Germany, Japan, and Brazil reveals where real demand exists and in which language users are searching for it. A popularity score of 40 in Germany for the German-language equivalent of your core keyword is a clear signal that German localization is worth the investment.

Popularity scores can also reveal that some of your English keywords have non-zero demand in non-English markets — meaning some international users are searching in English, and you can capture that demand without a full local-language localization. This doesn't replace localization but it helps prioritize which partial steps to take first.

Popularity vs. other demand signals

Before Apple's ASA popularity signal was widely accessible, ASO researchers estimated keyword demand from chart positions, category ranks, and download estimates derived from review velocity. These estimates are indirect and noisy — a keyword that generates downloads from paid campaigns looks identical to one that generates organic downloads in download-based estimates.

The Apple Search Ads popularity score is a direct demand measurement: how many users are actually typing this term into the App Store search bar. It doesn't include downloads that came from browsing, editorial features, or external links — only search-driven behavior. This makes it a cleaner signal for organic keyword research than any download-based estimate.

The signal is specific to the App Store, not web search. Google Keyword Planner data does not map reliably to App Store search behavior — users search differently in app stores than in web browsers, and the overlap depends heavily on category.

Frequently asked questions

Does a high popularity score guarantee I'll get installs if I rank for it?
High popularity means high search volume, which means ranking at the top generates exposure. But conversion from impression to install depends on your app's icon, screenshots, rating, and how well the app matches the search intent. Popularity drives the traffic ceiling; conversion determines how much of that ceiling you capture.
Why does the same keyword have different popularity in different countries?
Search behavior is market-specific. Users in Brazil may search 'rastreador de hábitos' (habit tracker in Portuguese) rather than the English version. Users in Germany search in German. Each storefront's popularity score reflects what local users are actually typing — which is why you need to check the local-language equivalent, not just translate English scores.
Can I access the Apple Search Ads popularity scores without running ads?
Yes — tools like ASOGrade pull this signal and present it as a keyword score without requiring you to set up an ad campaign. You get the benefit of the ASA demand data (the most accurate search demand signal available for the App Store) without the campaign management overhead.

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