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The trends we’re seeing in 2026 suggest a massive shift for gaming studios and their mobile app portfolio. According to Evelin Herrera from EHVM Capital, founder of the app mergers and acquisitions (M&A) firm, there’s already a strong redefinition that’s affecting app portfolios around the world.
“My prediction for 2026 is that capital is going to shift from games to apps,” Evelin states. “That’s a really bold prediction, but it has many components.”
In this episode of Tenjin ROI 101, Evelin shares her M&A expertise and offers insights into app economics. The bold change from mobile games to apps will redefine who builds, funds, and buys these mobile app businesses. There are implications ranging from mobile app strategy and growth, to app valuation and strategic acquisition, and opportunities for your app portfolio.
What Is A Mobile App Portfolio?
A mobile app portfolio is a curated collection of different app assets. These are usually apps you design, develop, or manage. Not only do they demonstrate your technical expertise and skill, but they also showcase your creativity, reliability and success. A good portfolio demonstrates products with growth, traction, and measurable impact.
The Economics Driving Mobile App Strategy
More Efficiency in Non-Gaming
The main reason why non-gaming app investment is accelerating compared to gaming apps is clear: profit margins are dramatically higher. According to Evelin, “apps are running profit margins of 55% to 70%.”
That’s not a typo. It’s just the realistic comparison next to what most mobile gaming apps can achieve. And nowadays, “you can run a six-figure MRR (monthly recurring revenue) app business with just five people on a payroll,” she emphasizes.
In general, utility apps, lifestyle apps, or single purpose apps are cheaper to maintain compared to mobile gaming. For example, the maintenance of just one game title may require creative teams for content and ad creatives, QA assurance and constant updates to stay fresh and keep players interested.
For app investors, or those wanting to expand their app portfolio, why would you allocate capital to a gaming app that requires a larger team, when there are alternatives that generate comparable or even better revenue? Having lower app production costs means that there’s more room for the profit margins to grow.
“For a small app, it’s way easier to understand the mechanics, the potential conversion, and the costs,” Evelin notes. This operation simplicity and transparency is directly related to the overall opportunities and efficiency of your app portfolio.
Lower App Production Costs, More Volume
Think about app production costs a few years ago. How about a decade. The barrier to entry shifts in app development are creating unprecedented opportunities and capital for those interested in app acquisition.
“Anyone can launch an app with a $10/month AI tool subscription. However, the quality isn’t guaranteed just because it’s easier to get started. Still, the barrier for entry is lower than before,” shares Evelin.
Building a functional app used to require serious technical skill, or at least a nice budget for contracted engineers. Today we just need motivation, effort, a lot of patience, and access to open-source AI tools.
While the democratization of app development concerns some developers or investors due to the high volume of entry-level apps, it has actually created a portfolio advantage.
“Out of 100 new entrepreneurs, you might get 2-3 good ones. Compare this to maybe 1 out of 10 entrepreneurs in gaming, where perhaps there’s no success at all.”
For app investment strategies focused on app acquisition, this high volume instantly creates more numbers and more opportunity. More product launches inevitably mean more potential acquisition targets. More exits equate to increased liquidity for your portfolio balance.
Why Investing Transforms Your Mobile App Portfolio
Apps Have Shorter Runways
We’re seeing this play out in real time on the UA side. “I see apps reaching success with AI ad creatives sooner than games,” notes Roman, Marketing Director from Tenjin. The iteration cycles are tighter, the learning curves shorter.
This timeline advantage fundamentally transforms your app portfolio strategy. “Developing and launching a game from scratch takes at the minimum 9 months, even if you’re extremely good,” Evelin explains.
In contrast, “it takes 4 to 5 weeks to finalize the process of acquiring a proven app with existing metrics, revenue, and users.”
The stark difference in speed allows app portfolios to iterate faster and faster. That means testing various verticals and being able to pivot when market conditions start to shift. In the time a game studio launches one title, an app-focused portfolio could have gone through over 20 acquisitions.
Risk-Adjusted Returns: Increasingly Organic-First
In 2026, a successful portfolio increasingly factors assets with proven organic traction before dipping into paid UA spend. That equals profitable growth before switching on ads.
“We’re seeing a strong trend of apps scaling to $100K-$150K MRR just from organic UGC (TikTok, Instagram), then starting to spend on paid UA,” Evelin explains. “This is extremely smart because they’re already profitable with cash reserves before spending on paid UA.”
For more background context, most game studios burn through VC cash during soft launch, hoping to find product-market fit before the runway ends. App developers following this mobile app strategy? They’re building audiences organically, identifying what resonates, then amplifying winners with paid spend.
“For gaming, even in soft launch, the first step is spending money on UA. For apps, it’s the complete opposite: launch videos for free, see what works, then spend money.”
The risk profile is completely different. You’re not betting the farm on paid acquisition working. You’re scaling what’s already working.
“You already have all your assets and understand your audience,” Roman confirms. “Exactly,” Evelin responds.
App Acquisition Trends: What Buyers Actually Want
When we dug into app acquisition trends and criteria, the differences became even more pronounced. For apps, due diligence is straightforward. “For a small app, it’s way easier to understand the mechanics, the potential conversion, and the costs,” Evelin notes.
Games? That’s a different beast entirely. “To monetize a game, you need to consider session length, sessions per month, DAU, MAU, D7/D30 retention, and many other metrics.”
Understanding Mobile App Valuations
By using app valuation multiples, you can determine market confidence within or across mobile app portfolios. For a reference on opportunities, a profitable app can command 3-5x multipliers on annual profit, with exceptional cases reaching 7-8x.
“We’ve seen offers go up to 7-8x multipliers, but you need something very unique and a strong focus for 5-10 years to achieve that.”
Standard app valuations typically command 3-5x annual profit multiples. For example: “Out of $100K revenue, let’s say you’re making $50K annual profit. You can probably sell it for a 3-5x multiplier on annual profit.”
That amounts to $150K-$250K for a bootstrapped asset, creating liquidity for portfolio rebalancing and reinvestment. If you’re wondering what drives higher multiples in app investment, Evelin share a few pointers:
- Profit margins above industry averages
- Low customer acquisition costs
- Strong organic keyword rankings
- Consistent growth trajectory
- Unique features or proprietary technology
Your App Portfolio Composition: Games or Apps
If you look at all the different M&A deals, the data shows where all the investment and capital is positioned. “We’re seeing gaming studios letting go of part of their portfolio in a specific genre,” Evelin explains. “Sometimes it’s just one or two games because they know they won’t work on those titles for the next 2-3 years.”
This trending strategic portfolio management is a signal that fewer and fewer games are populating app stores.
“It’s a more strategic financial decision to earn more as a company by selling titles while they still have good metrics, instead of letting them die.”
These divested game assets? They’re often being replaced with app investments that offer better operational efficiency and margin profiles, and more often than not, it signals a pivot to non-gaming categories.
Strategic App Portfolio Moves for 2026
Cross-Pollination Play
“I don’t see app studios getting into games. I just see game studios getting into apps,” Evelin stated.
This one-directional flow tells you everything about where an app investment opportunity lies. Game studios bring sophisticated expertise in:
- User acquisition and attribution
- Monetization optimization
- Retention metrics and cohort analysis
- A/Bテスト and creative iteration
They’re discovering they can apply this knowledge to businesses with superior unit economics, lower risk profiles, and faster time-to-value.
For portfolio construction, this creates a clear playbook: acquire game studio-quality operational excellence and apply it to app business models.
Founder-Led Moat
An unexpected trend is reshaping app competition and creating portfolio differentiation opportunities.
“We’re seeing trends where the most performing creatives use the founders themselves,” Evelin notes. “Nobody wants to see AI people or fake creatives. Putting your face out there gives more trust.”
She shares a compelling example:
“An app to beat jet lag, built by a former astronaut who dealt with it many times. Super interesting and effective.”
This founder authenticity—”If you don’t like the features or want your money back, here’s my face and name”—drives trust that improves retention metrics and lifetime value across your app portfolio.
Game portfolios can’t leverage this advantage. You can’t put your face on a puzzle game and suddenly improve metrics. But for lifestyle or utility apps solving real problems? Founder authenticity is a competitive moat.
Complementary Apps
“We see gaming studios letting go of part of their portfolio in a specific genre,” Evelin explains, but the inverse is also true: app portfolios are being built around complementary products that reinforce each other.
Think productivity app families where users subscribe to multiple tools. Health and wellness ecosystems where retention in one app drives discovery of others. Finance portfolios where one app captures users, then cross-sells three more.
This portfolio architecture leverages shared user bases, reduces blended CAC, and improves overall portfolio LTV.
What to Look For: Your Mobile App Portfolio
Based on her experience with over 320 assets, these are the key things to consider when it comes to investing in an app portfolio:
Red Light
- Heavy dependence on paid UA from day one
- Compressed margins below 40%
- Commodified functionality with no differentiation
- High churn rates despite optimization attempts
- Founder exit without transition plan
Green Light
- Organic traffic already generating $100K+ MRR
- 55-70% profit margins with small teams
- Clear founder story and authentic brand
- Proven retention before paid UA spend
- Complementary fit with existing portfolio assets
With these expert insights, you’ll be able to stay ahead of the curve and redefine your own app portfolio. The key takeaway from M&A expert Evelin Herrera is that investment capital trends are moving more towards general apps than investment in mobile gaming.
This is due to the general trend of non-gaming apps achieving better profit margins. In addition, declining app production costs and AI tools have created unprecedented opportunities and more competition. So, whether you’re managing an existing mobile app portfolio or considering app acquisitions, understanding these sorts of impact and change is crucial for maximizing your returns in 2026.
