VC & PE Glossary
What Is DAU?
Updated
Definition
DAU (Daily Active Users) counts how many unique users engage with a product on a given day — a core traction metric for consumer apps and platforms.
Useful for: Founders, Investors
DAU (Daily Active Users) is the count of unique users who perform a defined meaningful action in your product within a single calendar day.
How it works
Teams must define “active” consistently — opening the app, sending a message, completing a session over 30 seconds, or making a payment. Changing definitions breaks comparability across weeks.
DAU is tracked against installs, MAU (monthly actives), and cohort retention curves. A app with 1M downloads but 50k DAU has an engagement gap worth diagnosing.
Monetization models tie differently to DAU: ad-supported products need high daily frequency; B2B tools may prioritize weekly active teams instead, making DAU less central.
Investors benchmark DAU/MAU ratios and retention to spot products with habitual use versus novelty spikes after marketing bursts.
Why it matters
- Founders: Pick one active definition and never silently change it in board decks. Segment DAU by platform, geography, and acquisition channel.
- Investors: Raw DAU alone is vanity without retention and revenue per user. Ask how DAU translates to LTV and whether bots or incentive fraud inflate counts.
Common mistake
Counting any app open as active when users bounce in seconds. Meaningful engagement definitions align metrics with business value.
Related ideas
Related terms
- DAU/MAU — DAU/MAU is the ratio of daily active users to monthly active users — a shorthand for how often monthly users return on a typical day, often called stickiness.
- KPI — A KPI — key performance indicator — is a measurable metric tied to a specific business goal, used to track whether a company is on track and to align teams and investors on what "good" looks like.
Common questions
Short answers for founders, LPs, and operators