QuestMobile 2026 "Night Economy" Insight Report

Today, I'd like to share with you the "Night Economy" Insights Report. Since last year, the national level has continuously stepped up the cultivation of the "night economy," promoting the release of new consumption drivers from aspects such as cultural and tourism innovation and business format upgrading. QuestMobile data shows that in May 2026, the daily average de - duplicated active user scale during the night time was 937 million, a 4.6% increase compared to the same period last year. Among them, the daily average de - duplicated active user scale during the late - night period from 0:00 to 2:00 the next day reached 440 million, a 16.9% increase compared to the same period last year.

From the perspective of user behavior, night - time shopping, night - time entertainment, night - time food, and night - time hospitality and tourism have become the four core scenarios. Taking night - time shopping as an example, since it is suitable for price comparison and is closely related to fresh food consumption, the night has become a peak consumption period for e - commerce platforms, with the proportion of active users during the night time exceeding 40%. In terms of night - time food, the daily average de - duplicated active user scale of the local life industry during the night time increased by 6.2% year - on - year, reaching 112 million, and the user scale during the late - night period increased by 15.2% year - on - year, reaching 16.72 million.

Behind the changes in user behavior is the evolution of user profiles. Generally speaking, the age of the participants in the "night economy" shows a significant polarization. The core groups are concentrated among those under 30 and the silver - haired group over 51, accounting for 33% and 28.8% respectively, and they can be regarded as the main consumption force! At the same time, the active period of the group under 40 can be extended to the late - night period from 0:00 to 2:00 the next day, bringing incremental customer flow to the late - night consumption.

In addition, from the perspective of urban distribution, two characteristics are very prominent: on the one hand, users in new first - tier, second - tier, and third - tier cities together account for more than 60%, which is the core consumption market supporting the growth of the night economy; on the other hand, affected by factors such as climate and catering business formats, the user activity during the late - night period in South China regions such as Guangdong, Guangxi, and Hainan is significantly higher than the national level. At the same time, affected by the time difference, regions such as Xinjiang, Tibet, Yunnan, and Guizhou also show relatively high activity...

So, how to do it specifically? You may as well read the report.

The scale of the "Night Economy" is steadily expanding, and the overall activity has increased significantly

1. The national level has continuously stepped up efforts in the night economy, comprehensively guiding the innovation of night - time culture and tourism and the upgrading of business formats, effectively consolidating the foundation for market expansion and accelerating the release of new consumption drivers.

2. Driven by night - time economy policies, diverse night - time business formats such as offline night tours, catering, and shopping continue to expand, driving the overall online activity of users across the network to increase year - on - year during the night time.

QuestMobile data shows that in May 2026, the daily average de - duplicated active user scale during the night time was 937 million, a 4.6% increase compared to the same period last year. Among them, the daily average de - duplicated active user scale during the late - night period from 0:00 to 2:00 the next day reached 440 million, a 16.9% increase compared to the same period last year.

3. With the release of outdoor consumption demand in summer, the age of the participants in the "night economy" shows a significant polarization. The core groups are concentrated among those under 30 and the silver - haired group over 51. Users in new first - tier, second - tier, and third - tier cities together account for more than 60%, which is the core consumption market supporting the growth of the "night economy."

QuestMobile data shows that the active period of those under 40 can be extended to the late - night period from 0:00 to 2:00 the next day, bringing incremental customer flow to the late - night consumption.

4. Affected by multiple factors such as time difference, warm climate, and mature night - time catering business formats, the user activity during the late - night period in western regions such as Xinjiang, Tibet, Yunnan, and Guizhou and South China coastal regions such as Guangdong, Guangxi, and Hainan is significantly higher than the national average.

5. Mobile social and mobile video account for more than 90% of the night - time activity, and they are the core traffic carriers of the "night economy." The social and entertainment tracks still maintain a relatively high level of activity during the late - night period. There is abundant night - time demand in fields such as mobile shopping, financial management, and life services, which synchronously taps the incremental market at night.

The four core scenarios resonate, and night - time consumption habits continue to deepen

1. Night - time shopping

1.1 The night time has become the core period for users to compare prices and place orders, continuously releasing the potential of night - time retail consumption. The proportion of active users of the top two e - commerce platforms during the night time exceeds 60%.

1.2 The early start of the 618 promotion drove the warming - up of night - time consumption on comprehensive e - commerce platforms in May 2026. The proportion of late - night active users of leading platforms such as Pinduoduo, Taobao, and JD.com generally increased year - on - year, and the user shopping period continued to extend to the early morning.

1.3 Relying on the instant fulfillment ability, fresh food e - commerce platforms transform the "impromptu" demand for food ingredients at night into a stable consumption increment. The scale of active users of typical platforms at night has generally increased compared to the same period last year.

QuestMobile data shows that the peak of the all - day active users of Hema, Dingdong Maicai, and Qixian APPs is during the night time from 18:00 - 19:00 or 19:00 - 20:00, with an increase of 1.2 percentage points, 0.7 percentage points, and 2.1 percentage points respectively compared to the same period last year. The instant consumption demand for preparing food at home and stocking up for dinners at night is concentratedly released, continuously driving the growth of night - time traffic on fresh food e - commerce platforms.

2. Night - time entertainment

2.1 With the continuous expansion of the public's night - time cultural and entertainment consumption demand, the scale of night - time users in the mobile video field has steadily increased. The rapid rise of emerging content such as short dramas and comic dramas has become an important new source of growth in the night - time entertainment market.

QuestMobile data shows that in May 2026, the daily average de - duplicated active user scale of the mobile video industry during the night time reached 887 million, a 12.7% year - on - year increase. Among them, the daily average scale of the short - video industry was as high as 838 million, a 9.5% year - on - year increase. Relying on the immersive viewing experience of long - form content, the growth potential of night - time users in the online video industry is more prominent, with a year - on - year increase of 17.9%, and the growth rate is significantly higher than that of the overall mobile video industry and the short - video industry.

2.2 Among the top 15 mobile video APPs in terms of the daily average scale during the night time, short - video apps occupy the top three positions. Among them, Douyin leads with a night - time traffic of over 600 million, and the proportion of night - time active users is as high as 87.5%. Overall, the proportion of the night - time scale of long - and short - video platforms such as Kuaishou, Hongguo Free Short Drama, and Bilibili APPs all exceeds 60%. The night is the core golden period for the video industry.

The lightweight and fragmented content form of short dramas meets the users' needs for relaxation at home in the evening, driving the continuous increase of night - time traffic. QuestMobile data shows that the proportion of active users of Hongguo Free Short Drama APP during the two night - time periods of 18:00 - 19:00 and 19:00 - 20:00 has increased significantly, with an increase of 0.9 percentage points compared to the same period last year. The proportion of active users of Hippo Theater APP reaches the peak of the whole day during the 23:00 - 24:00 period, and the year - on - year increase is prominent, with an increase of 3.1 percentage points.

2.3 Among the newly launched mobile games in 2026, the classic IP "Roco Kingdom: World" with more than a decade of accumulation has seen a growth in popularity after its launch, and the daily average active user scale is impressive. The daily average active users of the two games, the multiplayer voice social reasoning game "Goose Goose Duck" and the veteran IP "NZ: Future", have both exceeded 2 million.