All You Need to Know to Get Started on the AppLovin Product Suite
Applovin's product suite creates opportunities for advertisers beyond gaming, and the platform's e-commerce focus makes it appealing to a wider range of advertisers.
TL;DR:
- AppLovin Ads – benefits, use cases, considerations
- MAX – benefits, use cases, considerations
- Wurl – benefits, use cases, considerations
- FAQ
In the first Applovin blog, we went into why AppLovin offers advertisers the opportunity to reach millions of customers. In this piece, we will cover the various aspects of the product suite, which consists of:
- AppLovin Ads Platform (previously Axon and AppDiscovery) an AI-powered machine learning algorithm that analyzes billions of behavioral signals to enable highly targeted advertising and enable UA at scale.
- MAX: MAX is AppLovin’s ad mediation platform that runs auctions to maximize ad revenue
- Wurl: CTV solution that enables content publishers and streaming services to distribute their channels, maximize ad revenue, and connect with audiences
1. AppLovin Ads: User Acquisition at Scale
AppLovin Ads is AppLovin’s UA buying platform, powered by the AXON 2.0 algorithm, which continuously learns from signals such as:
- User behaviour
- Creative engagement
- Post-install events
- Monetisation signals
AppLovin Ads is now available on web as well as app and works in a similar way, using inventory and the algorithm to promote website conversions & events that are aligned with advertisers’ objectives
Benefits:
- Scales beyond saturated social channels
- Optimizes toward CPI, ROAS, or hybrid goals
- Excels at finding incremental users rather than cannibalizing existing demand
- Predictive outcome-based optimization for LTV and ROAS.
- Real-time optimization and continual performance improvement
- Billions of data signals to train according to goals
- Privacy-safe targeting
Typical use cases:
- Scaling growth-efficient installs
- Geoexpansion strategies
- Efficient incremental UA
- Scaling beyond paid social
- Creative‑led performance growth
- Acquiring new users at scale for app-first advertisers, for example, gaming, finance, DTC, etc.
- E-commerce growth
Key Considerations
- Correct structural setup and learning phase requirements
- Geoexpansion strategies
- Creative volume & testing discipline
- Management of pricing models
- Preventing channel cannibalization
- High-quality data is vital for performance
- E-commerce apps have different requirements and challenges than gaming, with different attribution, buying behaviors, etc.
- A large volume of rapidly produced creative is required to drive effective results
2. MAX: In-App Monetization
MAX is AppLovin’s ad mediation platform that helps developers and publishers maximize ad revenue through real‑time auctions across multiple networks.
Benefits:
- Higher yield through competitive bidding
- Granular control over ad formats and floor pricing
- Clear visibility into monetization performance
Use Cases
- In-app ad revenue optimization
- Network mediation & auction dynamics
Key Considerations
- Balancing the network mix
- Auction pressure and floor pricing
- UX vs revenue balance
- Aligning monetization with UA economics
- Ensuring MAX data feeds into growth planning
3. Wurl: Connected TV Performance
Wurl enables brands to extend AppLovin’s AI‑driven buying into CTV environments, helping performance marketers test TV‑scale reach without sacrificing accountability.
Key benefits:
- Scaling reach via CTV
- Performance-driven CTV activation
- Cross-screen reach
- Measurable CTV campaigns
- Incrementality testing
Typical Use Cases
- Connecting CTV exposure to downstream performance signals
- Testing CTV without compromising short-term efficiency goals
- Access to FAST and AVOD inventory at scale
Key Consideration:
- The newest part of the portfolio, and still under development
Key Takeaways to get Started on Applovin Today
Applovin’s product suite creates opportunities for advertisers beyond gaming, and the platform’s e-commerce focus makes it appealing to a wider range of advertisers. Subscription apps and direct-to-consumer advertisers could also credibly test as part of the channel mix. As the platform expands beyond gaming, most recently into commerce media, the door is opening to advertisers that have historically focused on web-based campaigns. Advertisers interested in running during the intense Q4 shopping season should begin testing several months in advance to allow learnings to bed in and achieve optimal results.
Contact us for more informationFrequently Asked Questions
AccordAxon (AXON 2.0 or Axon AI) is a proprietary machine learning AI-powered algorithm that analyzes billions of behavioral signals to enable highly targeted advertising. AXON is the technology that drives the system.
Advertisers that are mobile-first or app-led, that want to diversify their channel mix, that have a strong creative studio capability to develop multiple creative iterations at scale, and optimize to LTV or ROAS KPIs will benefit teh most from Applovin platfrom.
The general recommendation is $500 a day to get started on the platform.
Experience in troubleshooting and setting up accounts, avoiding trial and error, and preventing issues such as cannibalization.
