Why Mobile Apps Performance Matters
Article Summary
Mercado Libre's mobile apps serve 4.5 billion active devices. A Galaxy A10 might take 5 seconds to load a screen—or just 1.67 seconds, depending on conditions.
Victor Oliveira from Mercado Libre's mobile performance team breaks down why app performance matters beyond just preventing crashes. The article shares research showing user expectations and reveals the team's practical optimization strategies across Android and iOS.
Key Takeaways
- 61% of users expect apps to start in 4 seconds or less
- 53% uninstall apps with severe crashes, freezes, or errors
- Mercury app reduced crashes and warnings by 75% in 6 months
- Team optimized build times, removed legacy code, and downloads heavy images on demand
- Proguard rules and flavor configurations reduced app weight significantly
Critical Insight
Mobile performance directly impacts retention: 80% of users abandon problematic apps after just three attempts, making continuous optimization a business imperative.
