DramaBox Statistics 2026: Revenue, Downloads, Users and Ratings (Sourced and Dated)

DramaBox key statistics (2026)

DramaBox's headline statistics come from four kinds of sources: app-intelligence firms (Sensor Tower, Appfigures, AppBrain), analysts (Media Partners Asia, Omdia), company executives, and our own store snapshot. The table puts the most citable figure for each metric in one place.

How much does DramaBox make?

DramaBox makes roughly $140 million per quarter in app-store revenue, based on Sensor Tower's Q1 2026 estimate. On an annual basis, MPA's analyst figure for 2024 is $323 million, and 2025 estimates range from $276 million to more than $470 million depending on what is counted. None of these figures come from audited public accounts, because neither DramaBox nor its parent Dianzhong is listed.

DramaBox revenue over time

DramaBox revenue grew from about $8 million in 2023 to $323 million in 2024, per MPA figures (the 2023 number is reported second-hand by Filmustage). Quarterly app-store revenue rose from $120 million in Q1 2025 to about $140 million in Q1 2026, a gain of about 17% (TopDrama.app calculation), slightly below the category's +20%.

Why do DramaBox revenue figures differ?

DramaBox revenue figures differ because each source measures a different thing. Sensor Tower and Appfigures estimate spending in the Apple and Google stores only; MPA and 短剧自习室 include other channels; the $530 million figure covers all of Dianzhong's overseas business. Quoting them side by side without definitions creates false contradictions.

A useful sanity check is the run-rate. Four quarters at Sensor Tower's $120–140 million pace equals $480–560 million a year (TopDrama.app calculation), which sits closer to the >$470 million figure than to Appfigures' $276 million. The Appfigures number may be narrower in scope; TechCrunch does not say.

What do "IAP", "gross spend" and "net revenue" mean?

IAP (in-app purchase revenue) is money paid through Apple or Google billing. Gross consumer spend is what users pay before the stores take their cut. Net revenue is what the company keeps, and may add web payments and ads. A figure labelled "revenue" without one of these words cannot be compared with another source.

Is DramaBox profitable?

Yes, DramaBox was profitable in 2024: $10 million net profit on $323 million revenue (MPA, Sept 2025), a margin of about 3.1% (TopDrama.app calculation). ReelShort, with about $400 million in 2024 revenue, "remains loss-making due to heavy marketing costs and amortization" (Variety, citing MPA). One Gemini-sourced blog calls the profit "fully audited"; that is incorrect.

What share of the market does DramaBox have?

DramaBox took about 19% of global short-drama in-app revenue in Q1 2026: ~$140 million of ~$750 million (Sensor Tower, June 2026; TopDrama.app calculation). ReelShort took about the same share, so the top two held about 37%. A figure of ~25% that circulates online uses the wrong denominator.

How many downloads does DramaBox have?

DramaBox shows 100M+ installs on Google Play (checked 26 Sep 2026), a tier it passed in August 2025. Apple does not publish download counts. Third-party estimates of lifetime and yearly downloads vary widely, and the company's own cumulative claim is higher still.

Why do 2025 download numbers range from 150M to 374M?

DramaBox's 2025 download figures conflict by more than 2×: AppTweak says 374.1 million, Singular says 178 million, and 短剧自习室 says more than 150 million. AppTweak's number is larger than AppBrain's 290 million lifetime Android estimate, which suggests a different counting method (for example re-installs or a broader platform scope). No source is authoritative, so cite each with its name.

Is DramaBox the most downloaded drama app?

No. DramaBox leads on revenue, not downloads. Sensor Tower (June 2026) says FreeReels "became the most downloaded short drama app globally in Q1 2026", passing 100 million installs, and NetShort ranked #3 with +196% quarter-on-quarter growth. DramaBox ranked #5 among short-drama apps by H1 2026 downloads (Business of Apps). It was #3 by downloads back in Q1 2024 (Wikipedia, secondary).

How many users does DramaBox have?

DramaBox's monthly active user count is unresolved: published figures range from about 4.5 million to more than 50 million, and some come from the same executive. The table lists each figure with its origin so readers can judge. Registered users (90 million, company, Oct 2024) are not active users.

Which DramaBox user number should you cite?

For DramaBox users, cite a range with sources, not one number. The 4.5 million figure may be a mistranscription or a sub-segment; the 30–50 million figures are company or secondary. Omdia's time-spent data is the only independent engagement figure. The US microdrama audience overall was about 66 million MAU in August 2026 (Reuters).

How engaged are DramaBox users?

DramaBox users in Mexico spent 27.9 minutes a day in the app in Q4 2025, more than Amazon Prime Video (23.8) and Disney+ (22.5), according to Omdia's 23 Feb 2026 release based on Sensor Tower data. It is the only independent engagement figure published for DramaBox specifically.

Category-wide, average daily time in short-drama apps reached 25 minutes in April 2026, up 85% from January 2025, against about 35 minutes for OTT video (Sensor Tower, June 2026).

What is DramaBox's retention rate?

DramaBox kept 17% of its 2024 users at month 6 and 15% at month 12, which Sensor Tower (January 2025) called unusually strong for the category. The data is more than a year old, so treat it as a benchmark, not a current reading.

How does DramaBox acquire users?

More than 60% of DramaBox downloads in 2024 were paid installs, versus about 70% for ReelShort (Sensor Tower). DramaBox, ReelShort and ShortMax together served more than 5 billion ad impressions, mainly on Facebook and TikTok. Omdia notes discovery "is driven through platforms such as YouTube, Instagram and TikTok".

What do sentiment scores say?

DramaBox scores lower than ReelShort on viewer appetite surveys. YouGov's 2026 Appetite Score gives ReelShort 55.44, DramaBox 31.95 and ShortMax 21.18. JustUseApp counts 66.7% negative reviews, and Trustpilot shows 2.2★ from a small sample of 36 reviews. Most complaints concern billing and ads, not stories.

DramaBox ratings and store rankings

DramaBox is rated 4.76 on the US App Store from 861,503 ratings and 4.6 on Google Play from 5.46 million reviews (TopDrama.app snapshot, 26 Sep 2026). The snapshot below compares it with other leading apps using the same collection date.

How is DramaBox rated in other countries?

DramaBox's rating is high across storefronts. The Philippines App Store shows 4.8 from 169K ratings and ranks it #1 in Entertainment (free); Japan shows 4.4 from 140K ratings (25 Sep 2026). On Google Play it was #5 top-grossing entertainment app (25 Sep 2026); a Sensor Tower chart dated 14 Sep 2026 showed #16 Top Free and #10 Top Grossing in US Entertainment, a different chart and date.

How does DramaBox's rating compare with ReelShort?

DramaBox leads ReelShort on Google Play: 4.6 vs 3.8 in our 26 Sep 2026 snapshot (earlier research recorded ReelShort at 4.3★; the US Google Play listing showed 3.8★ when we re-checked on 26 Sep 2026). On iOS they are close: 4.76 vs 4.69. See the full DramaBox vs ReelShort comparison. If the ratings convince you, try DramaBox free with the opening episodes before buying anything.

How short-drama statistics are measured

Short-drama statistics pass through several filters before they reach a headline, and each step can shrink or inflate the figure. The flow below shows where the main DramaBox numbers come from.

DramaBox in the short-drama market

DramaBox operates in a category that earned $2.98 billion in in-app revenue in 2025, up 115% (Sensor Tower via Marketing Dive). In Q1 2026, category IAP grew only 20% year on year to about $750 million, while downloads jumped 140% to more than 850 million, as installs shifted to Southeast Asia (32%), Latin America (23%) and India (22%). Our short drama market 2026 guide covers the wider picture.

What are the forecasts for DramaBox?

The only DramaBox-specific forecast is Chen Ruiqing's claim that 2026 revenue will exceed $1 billion, a projection that would require more than doubling the >$470 million 2025 figure. Category forecasts: Omdia expects $14 billion global microdrama revenue in 2026; MPA expects ex-China revenue to reach $9.5 billion by 2030; Deloitte expects in-app micro-series revenue of $7.8 billion in 2026.

How big is the DramaBox catalogue?

DramaBox's catalogue size depends on who counts: 2,000+ series (company, Oct 2024), 5,058 series (FindMyRomantasy third-party count, 12 Sep 2026) and more than 6,000 original and licensed works (company via Produ, Jun 2026). It reports availability in 175 territories (Jun 2026). Genre detail is on DramaBox genres and shows.

What do DramaBox prices imply for users?

DramaBox's US App Store in-app items range from $4.99 to $19.99, and Business Insider (8 Jan 2026) says subscriptions are "usually $20 a week". At $19.99 a week, a full year of auto-renewal costs $1,039.48 (TopDrama.app calculation: $19.99 × 52). Details are on our DramaBox price page and in the weekly subscription trap guide. To see current offers yourself, open DramaBox and check the billing period on the checkout sheet.

How reliable are DramaBox statistics?

DramaBox statistics are reliable for trends but not for precise totals. Sensor Tower is the most consistent source for comparing apps with each other, but it excludes web payments and ads. Company claims (465M downloads, 6,000 works, 50M+ MAU) are unaudited. Streaming Lens's "$217M 2024 revenue" and its misattribution of $530M to Sensor Tower contradict MPA and are excluded here.

Bottom line

• Revenue: DramaBox is a top-two short-drama app by revenue, with ~$140M in Q1 2026 IAP and a profitable 2024 ($323M / $10M).
• Definitions matter: $276M, $323M, $470M and $530M are not contradictions; they measure different scopes and years.
• Weak spots: MAU figures conflict by about 11× (4.5M–50M+) and 2025 download figures by about 2.5× (150M–374M); cite ranges and sources.
• For viewers: high ratings (4.8/4.6) and strong retention suggest people like the content; the cost of weekly billing is the main risk. Read the DramaBox review before paying.
• Company context: ownership and history are covered on who owns DramaBox.