Apple's Internal Data Shows Many iOS 15 Users Turn Off Personalized Ads With Minimal Impact on App Store Search Ads

Starting with iOS 15 and iPadOS 15, Apple introduced a new "Personalized Ads" toggle during the setup process that makes it easier for users to turn off personalized ads in Apple apps such as the App Store, Apple News, and Stocks.

apple search ads app store
In a presentation shared with advertisers, obtained by MacRumors, Apple cited internal data showing that, in the first quarter of 2022, 78% of iOS 15 and iPadOS 15 search volume on the App Store was from devices with Personalized Ads turned off across all countries and regions where Apple's Search Ads business is available.

Apple's presentation emphasizes that advertisers can reach interested users without applying audience targeting to their search results campaign. In the first quarter of 2022, Apple's internal data shows that Search Ads had a 62.1% average conversion rate for iOS 15 users with Personalized Ads turned on versus 62.5% for iOS 15 users with Personalized Ads turned off across all countries and regions where Search Ads are available.

Apple said search terms are a direct signal of intent, with the presentation stating that 70% of App Store visitors use search to find their next app.

Apple's personalized ads rely solely on first-party data. In the App Store and Apple News, for example, Apple says a user's search and download history may be used to serve them relevant search ads. In Apple News and Stocks, ads are served based partly on what a user reads or follows, including publishers they have enabled notifications for.

It's worth noting that this data is unrelated to the App Tracking Transparency privacy feature, which only applies to apps using third-party data to track users.

Top Rated Comments

LeadingHeat Avatar
14 months ago
Huh. Almost like search terms should be the only way ads are served. Almost like the old tv commercial days where the “ads” would be targeted towards what shows were playing and on what channels.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
contacos Avatar
14 months ago
I love how my ad blocker blocked this article ?

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Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
brofkand Avatar
14 months ago
I would prefer that there be NO ads in the app store, TYVM.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
zarmanto Avatar
14 months ago

I used to get so tired of personal care product ads.
Do I want them back? :oops:
I dunno... at least they're easy to ignore. The ads which most annoy me are the ones for a product which I just bought. I mean, seriously... Amazon knows exactly what I just ordered from them; why would they think that ads for five more products exactly like it -- including the one I actually bought -- would somehow entice me to order another one? Do they seriously have that little faith in the longevity of the products that they sell?

(I mean... okay: that last note is actually plausible. But still!)
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
zarmanto Avatar
14 months ago
I feel a bit like this is Apple poking a finger at Google, Amazon and Facebook, and saying, "SEE! You don't really need all that user data that you're hoovering up, after all!"
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Nuno Lopes Avatar
14 months ago
Wouldn’t this imply that Apple algorithm is extremely inefficient or that the default has non spoken degree of personalization?

I mean, personalized Ads have been found far more efficient than random Ads everywhere else.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)

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