How stickiness is calculated
Stickiness = DAU / MAU × 100%
If 100,000 people use the app in a month (MAU) and 18,000 use it on an average day (DAU), stickiness is 18%. That means the typical active user opens the app on roughly 5–6 days per month.
Important: stickiness counts unique users, not sessions. Five visits in one day from the same person is still one DAU.
Benchmarks by vertical
| Vertical | Good stickiness | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Grocery / pharmacy | 25–40% | Frequent purchases, habit |
| Marketplace | 15–25% | Broad, mixed assortment |
| Fashion | 8–15% | A purchase every 1–3 months |
| Electronics | 5–12% | Rare purchases, high order value |
Comparing stickiness against competitors in a different vertical is meaningless. What is valuable is the trend: is the number growing quarter over quarter within one product?
The link with personalization
Stickiness depends directly on how relevant each visit feels. A user who sees the same screen every time they open the app has no reason to return more often.
Ways personalization raises stickiness:
- A personalized home screen with new arrivals and recommendations matched to the individual profile
- Triggered notifications based on behavioural signals (viewed items, saved items, a price drop)
- Gamification mechanics — streaks, daily quests, visible progress
When stickiness is the wrong metric
For e-commerce with rare purchases — furniture, large appliances — low stickiness is normal rather than a problem. In those verticals it is more useful to track retention over long horizons (D30/D90) and purchase frequency.