Domestic Travel Apps Surge in the First Half of the Year... 10 Million New Users Each

Yanolja and Yogi-otdae, Dual Leaders in Installations and Users
Estimated Payment Amount for Major Apps in May: 877.3 Billion KRW
147% Increase Compared to Pre-COVID-19 Levels

As the travel industry enjoys a boom in the endemic (periodic outbreak of infectious diseases) era, domestic online travel agencies (OTAs) such as Yanolja and Yeo-gi-eottae have made significant progress in acquiring new app members.

Number of New Installers and Users of Major Domestic and International Travel Apps in the First Half of the Year
[Photo by WiseApp, Retail, Goods]

According to the "2023 First Half Travel Market Status Analysis" by app and retail analysis services WiseApp, Retail, and Goods on the 21st, the number of new installs of major domestic and international travel apps in the first half of the year showed that Yanolja had 10.15 million new installs and Yeo-gi-eottae had 10.41 million, both surpassing 10 million and establishing a two-strong system. During the same period, the number of app users was recorded at 3.22 million for Yanolja and 3.05 million for Yeo-gi-eottae, ranking first and second respectively.

The number of app installers and users for Yanolja and Yeo-gi-eottae is about three times higher compared to global platforms such as Agoda (3.41 million installs, 1.24 million users) and Airbnb (3.8 million installs, 920,000 users). By gender, Yanolja had a higher proportion of male users at 54.4% compared to females at 45.6%, while Yeo-gi-eottae showed a similar ratio between males (50.5%) and females (49.5%).

By age group, Yanolja and Airbnb had the highest user proportions in their 20s at 34.5% and 40.7% respectively, while Yeo-gi-eottae and Agoda had the highest usage among users in their 40s at 33.3% and 35.8%, indicating that these apps are most used by this age group across all age ranges.

The estimated payment amount for five major travel apps?Yanolja, Yeo-gi-eottae, Agoda, Airbnb, and Trip.com?as of May was 877.3 billion KRW. This estimate is based on a sample of payments made by domestic adults aged 20 and over using check cards, credit cards, and bank transfers from January 2019 to May this year. The estimated payment amount increased by 147% compared to 355.4 billion KRW in May 2019, before the outbreak of COVID-19, and rose 33% compared to the same period last year.

Additionally, the number of users of major travel apps in May was 10.09 million, marking the third-highest level since January 2019. The only times user numbers were higher were in July and August of last year, with 10.5 million and 10.13 million users respectively.

A representative from WiseApp, Retail, and Goods explained, "The payment amount for major travel apps sharply declined immediately after the outbreak of COVID-19 but has rapidly increased since last year," adding, "It took about 1 year and 7 months to recover to pre-COVID-19 levels."