ASO tools for indie developers: how to choose, and what each one focuses on

Most lists of "the best ASO tools" are written for marketing teams with a budget, a portfolio of apps and a weekly reporting meeting. If you build and ship one or two apps yourself, your needs are smaller and more specific, and a tool that is excellent for a game studio can be the wrong choice for you.

This guide starts with what an indie developer actually needs, then describes what each of eleven tools focuses on, with one strength and one limitation for each. We have left prices out on purpose: they change often, they differ by plan and region, and several of these tools quote prices only on request. Check each tool's site before you decide.

We build Indevaro, which is one of the tools below. Its profile has the same length and the same kind of limitations as the others.

What you actually need with one or two apps

Before comparing tools, write down which of these you will really use in a normal month.

1. Your own store numbers in one place. App Store Connect and Play Console already hold your impressions, product page views, store listing visitors and downloads. A tool that reads them saves you two logins and makes week-on-week comparison easier. It does not give you better data than the consoles.
2. Keyword rank tracking. Knowing where you rank for twenty to fifty terms in your main countries is useful. Tracking thousands is not, unless you act on them.
3. Keyword research. Finding which words people use for apps like yours, before you fill the keyword field or rewrite a description.
4. Competitor watching. Seeing when a direct competitor changes its screenshots, price or text.
5. Reviews. Reading what users say, replying, and spotting recurring problems.
6. Market estimates. Download and revenue estimates for other apps. These are modelled, not measured, and are mostly useful for market research, investors and larger publishers.

Most indie developers need the first three or four. If a tool's main value is the sixth, you may be paying for something you will rarely open.

Two more questions are worth asking of any tool: which stores does it cover (some focus on the App Store), and where does a number come from (your own console, the store's public search results, or the vendor's model). A tool that labels its sources makes your decisions safer.

The tools

Sensor Tower

Sensor Tower is a market intelligence platform: download and revenue estimates, advertising intelligence, audience data and ASO features across the App Store and Google Play. It is best for publishers, investors and larger teams that need to size markets and track many competitors. Its strength is breadth: it covers a very wide range of apps and markets in one place. The limitation for an indie developer is the same breadth; most of the product answers questions a one-app developer does not have, and its estimates are models, not your measured data. sensortower.com

AppTweak

AppTweak is an ASO and market intelligence tool with keyword research, rank tracking, competitor monitoring and Apple Ads features. It suits teams that do ASO as a regular, structured job, including agencies and mid-size publishers. Its strength is the depth of its keyword research tooling across both stores. The limitation is that it is built for people who spend serious time on ASO each week; if you will open it once a month, much of it will go unused. apptweak.com

Appfigures

Appfigures combines reporting on your own apps (downloads, revenue, reviews, ranks) with ASO tools and app intelligence. It is a common choice for small studios and indie developers who want their store data from both stores in one dashboard. Its strength is that it starts from your own connected store accounts, so the numbers you look at first are your own. The limitation is that its intelligence features on other apps are estimates, like every tool in this category, and should be read as such. appfigures.com

data.ai

data.ai, formerly App Annie, has long been one of the reference sources for app market estimates. It is best for market research at the level of categories and countries. Its strength has been historical market data over many years. The limitation for an indie developer is the same as for Sensor Tower: it answers market questions, not "what should I change on my listing this week". Check its site for how the product is offered today. data.ai

AppFollow

AppFollow focuses on reviews and ratings: collecting reviews from both stores, replying to them, tagging them and automating replies, with ASO features alongside. It suits teams that receive a steady flow of reviews and want support and product people to work on them together. Its strength is review management at volume. The limitation is that if your app receives a handful of reviews a week, the consoles may be enough, and a review tool will not tell you much about search. appfollow.io

Apptopia

Apptopia is a competitive intelligence platform with estimates of downloads, revenue, usage and the SDKs apps use. It is aimed at brands, investors and analysts who study markets and companies. Its strength is the range of estimated signals about other apps. The limitation is that it is not an ASO workflow tool for your own listing, and an indie developer rarely needs this level of market data. apptopia.com

MobileAction

MobileAction offers ASO tools, market intelligence and a strong focus on Apple Ads (formerly Apple Search Ads) management and intelligence. It suits developers and teams who run Apple Ads campaigns and want keyword data and campaign tooling together. Its strength is the connection between organic keyword research and paid search on the App Store. The limitation is that much of its value assumes you spend on Apple Ads; for a purely organic app, part of the product is not for you. mobileaction.co

App Radar

App Radar, now part of SplitMetrics, focuses on the ASO workflow: keyword research and daily rank tracking next to your listing's metadata, with review replies as an option. It suits developers who want a guided ASO process rather than a market data platform. Its strength is that workflow focus, including a live view of the store's results for a keyword. The limitation is that its plans are built for regular ASO work, and an occasional user may not need most of it; check its site for current features. appradar.com

Appbot

Appbot analyses app reviews and ratings: sentiment, topics, trends and alerts, with integrations into tools such as Slack and help desks. It suits product and support teams who want to understand what users complain about and how that changes over time. Its strength is turning a large number of reviews into readable themes. The limitation is that it is not a keyword or listing tool, so it covers one part of ASO (ratings and reviews) rather than search. appbot.co

Astro

Astro is an ASO app built around App Store keyword research and rank tracking, made for indie developers. It suits a developer who wants to find and track keywords for their own App Store apps without a large platform. Its strength is that it is focused and simple. The limitation is that it is a keyword tool, not a reporting or review tool; check its site for its current Google Play support. tryastro.app

Indevaro

Indevaro is an app growth workspace: it reads App Store Connect, Google Play, RevenueCat, Apple Ads, Google Ads and product analytics, tracks keyword ranks per country and language, watches competitors' listings, and helps you choose one next change and prepare it with AI. It suits an indie developer with one or a few apps who wants their store, revenue and keyword data read together and a record of what they changed and why. Its strength is keeping the decision, the evidence and the follow-up in one place. Its limitations: it does not estimate other apps' downloads or revenue, does not manage ad campaigns, does not automate review replies, never publishes to the stores for you, and its Google Play ranks come from Google Play's web search results and cover only the top 50. indevaro.com

How to pick

Use this checklist before you sign up for anything.

1. List the questions you have this month. "Where do my visitors come from?", "Which keywords do I rank for?", "What changed on my competitor's page?" Pick the tool that answers those, not the one with the longest feature list.
2. Check store coverage. If you ship on both stores, confirm that rank tracking and reporting cover Google Play as well as the App Store, and for the countries you care about.
3. Ask where each number comes from. Your console, the store's public results or a model. Treat modelled numbers as estimates.
4. Count the keywords you will really track. Plans are often priced by keywords or apps; twenty well-chosen terms beat a thousand you never read.
5. Try it on your own app first. Most of these tools have a free plan or a trial. Connect your app and see whether the first screen answers one of your questions.
6. Check what it changes for you. Some tools only report; some can edit listings or send replies. Know which actions it takes on your behalf.
7. Prefer fewer tools. One tool you open every week is worth more than three you open once a month.

If you are new to ASO itself, start with what App Store Optimization is before choosing a tool.

Where Indevaro fits

Indevaro is a fit if you want your store, revenue, ads and keyword data read together and one next change prepared from it, on the App Store and Google Play. It is not a market intelligence platform: it does not estimate other apps' downloads or revenue. It does not manage Apple Ads or Google Ads campaigns, does not automate replies to reviews, and never publishes listing changes for you. Its Google Play keyword ranks cover the top 50 results only. If your main need is market estimates or review management at volume, one of the tools above will serve you better.