Fewer Apps, More Utility: How Mini Apps Are Changing Digital Life in Southeast Asia
With phones cluttered by dozens of apps and constant notifications, users across Southeast Asia are feeling the weight of digital overload. It’s no surprise then, that many are embracing a simpler solution: doing more with fewer apps. Instead of toggling between separate tools for payments, messaging, shopping, or booking, users are turning to “mini apps” which are compact, lightweight programs nestled within larger platforms.
The Rise of the App-in-App Model
This shift is part of a broader trend toward reducing friction in everyday digital life. In countries like Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam, users may have 40 apps on their phones, but they regularly use just 6 to 7 per day. In South Korea, the average is even starker – 53 installed apps, but only 11 used daily, according to Think with Google.
This gap between installed and actively used apps is fueling the rise of multi-service superapps, where mini apps are embedded into familiar interfaces. These mini programs offer everything from e-commerce to healthcare to financial services—all without forcing users to switch apps, log in again, or download yet another tool.
From China to Southeast Asia: A Digital Multiverse
Mini apps first took root in China, where platforms like WeChat and Alipay pioneered the concept. These embedded tools—typically under 10 megabytes—let users shop, pay, book services, or interact with brands seamlessly. Backed by developer-friendly APIs and infrastructure, these ecosystems scaled rapidly.
As of December 2024, WeChat’s mini programs boasted around 936 million monthly active users, with shopping-related ones alone drawing 867 million, an 11.1% year-on-year increase.
This app-in-app model has since evolved across Asia, including Southeast Asia, where it is being localized to fit distinct market needs and regulatory contexts.
Southeast Asia’s Superapp Landscape
Platforms like Grab and Gojek have emerged as regional leaders in this space. Once best known for ride-hailing, both have expanded to offer food delivery, payments, digital banking, and more – all within a single app.
Grab, which operates in eight Southeast Asian countries, experimented early with in-app content (like its short-lived partnership with Hooq), and now includes hotel bookings, healthcare via GrabHealth, and insurance products. Today, Grab offers more than 10 services for consumers and over 15 products for both merchants and enterprises, although availability varies by market.
Gojek launched its GoLife suite, which included home maintenance and wellness services like GoMassage and GoClean, though these were shut down in 2020 due to scalability issues. Gojek now has more than a dozen products across on-demand and fintech verticals in Indonesia.
Both companies have since streamlined their offerings, focusing on high-return verticals. Instead of fully opening their ecosystems to third-party developers, as WeChat has done, they’ve opted for controlled, managed platforms. This approach ensures tighter control over branding, user experience, and data security – vital in fragmented, regulation-heavy markets.
The Case of Vietnam: A Glimpse of Openness
In contrast, Vietnam’s homegrown messaging app Zalo, developed by tech giant VNG, is making moves toward a more open mini app model. Its Mini App platform and APIs allow third-party developers to build services directly within the Zalo interface. While still modest in scale compared to WeChat, Zalo’s evolution highlights how the mini app concept can be tailored to fit local preferences and ecosystems.
Why Mini Apps Matter
For platforms, mini apps offer higher engagement, massive transaction volumes, and integrated monetization tools like flash promotions and livestreams. For businesses, they provide a shortcut to customers without the hassle of distribution via Apple’s App Store or Google’s Play Store. For users, they eliminate friction and bring a smoother, more cohesive digital experience.
What started as an experimental add-on is now shaping the design of digital services. Whether it's a user booking a doctor’s appointment inside Grab, chatting with a seller on Zalo, or checking out in one tap through a Shopee mini program, the message is clear: users want fewer apps – and more utility.
Not a One-Size-Fits-All Future
While WeChat's model is impressive, replicating it across Southeast Asia isn’t straightforward. Diverse languages, device fragmentation, and uneven developer support create real scaling challenges. Instead of a single dominant platform, what’s emerging is a regional multiverse of mini apps, customized to each market’s habits, needs, and constraints.
Still, the direction is consistent: a tighter, more efficient digital life, where users stay inside the apps they already know and let the mini apps do the rest.