Connected car report

What do drivers expect from connected car apps?

By the end of 2023, over 70 million new connected cars will be shipped worldwide.

What does this mean for the future of mobility? A wide and diverse ecosystem of apps and services powered by vehicle telematics.

This report on connected car apps explores what drivers think about their automaker's connected services application and why they use third party vehicle apps.

Explore our findings

Understanding the State of Connected Car Apps

We asked drivers in the United States:

  • Why do they use connected car apps?
  • How many connected car apps do they use?
  • How often do they use connected car apps?
  • What capabilities do they want in connected car apps?

Keep scrolling for a peek at the results 👀

“If done right, connected car applications can transform the relationship we have with our cars while generating a massive revenue opportunity for the otherwise poorly utilized assets that are our vehicles.”

Tyler Lancaster

Partner at Energize Capital

Download the report

Drivers prefer third-party connected car apps

Graphic of frustrated person looking at phone with car icon in background

74%
are unsatisfied with the quality of their connected services app. Why?

Graphic of a phone with a sad face on it with down arrow in background

Poor user experience

Hand with thumb down

Slow and unreliable app

Graphic of a bar chart with an X above the highest segment

Limited capabilities

Graphic of a phone with a smiley face on it and car icons coming from phone

64%
of respondents say third-party connected car apps offer more and better features than their official automaker app.

Vehicle owners believe that collaboration between automakers and third-party connected car apps will lead to better telematics capabilities. Learn more in our State of Connected Car Apps report.

Drivers want more choices for their connected car

The demand for connected car applications is growing fast. In the past 10 months, the number of vehicle owners using two or more Smartcar-powered apps has almost tripled.

Graphic of hands using a phone with car related icons in background

26%
of our survey respondents have downloaded more than five third-party connected car apps, with 10% having downloaded more than 10 apps.

Car with a thumbs up next to it

51%
of respondents would consider switching to a different vehicle brand or model if that meant having access to a bigger ecosystem of connected car apps and services.

Learn why drivers use third-party connected car apps

Download our connected car report for a look into:

  • Driver sentiment on third-party car apps.
  • The features that motivate drivers to use third-party car apps.
  • The types of services drivers want to access with their connected car.