Temu, Shein and AliExpress Rival, Tops America’s Most Popular Shopping Apps

Temu, Shein and AliExpress Rival, Tops America’s Most Popular Shopping Apps

News by Marge Serrano
Published: February 19, 2023

A new online shopping platform debuted during the Super Bowl last Sunday, unveiling a commercial during the sports event that encouraged consumers to “shop like a billionaire.” 

Temu, a Boston-based online retailer, has quickly become the most downloaded app in the United States—surpassing even Amazon and Walmart.  

Owned by Chinese social eCommerce giant Pinduoduo, Temu offers a wide range of products—from clothing to home supplies—at meager prices. Similar online retailers that count as Temu’s competitors are Shein, AliExpress, and the US-based discount retailer, Wish. 

Since Temu’s app rollout last September, the application has been downloaded more than 24 million times and is estimated to have more than 11 million monthly active users, according to  

Since its rollout in September, the application has been downloaded 24 million times, racking up more than 11 million monthly active users, according to analytics firm Sensor Tower. 

Abe Yousef, a senior insights analyst at Sensor Tower, says that US app installations for Temu exceeded those for Amazon, Walmart, and Target.  

“Temu soared to the top of both US app store charts in November, where the app still holds the top position now,” he said, referring to both iOS and Android mobile app stores. Yousef states that the app had attracted new users successfully through its extremely low prices and in-app flash deals, which often went up to 89% off on specific items. 

In fact, Temu has had such success that the company is already eyeing new territory. In a Twitter post this month, the online retail store stated its plans to expand to Canada. 

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