Apple App Store Revenue Surges 30% to $72.3 Billion in 2020

How the Pandemic Ballooned the App Store

Picture this: the world went into lockdown, people got stuck at home, and suddenly the Apple App Store turned into the digital equivalent of a money‑making vending machine.

More Downloads, More Dollars

Apps were downloaded at a record pace.
Revenue streams—subscriptions, in‑app purchases, and premium downloads—overflowed.
Crunch time: $72.3 billion spent in 2020 alone.

That figure is not a fluke; it’s a 30% jump year‑over‑year, which means the market didn’t just survive the lockdown— it thrived.

A Quick Snapshot

According to fresh data from BuyShares.co.nz, Apple users turned their phones into portable cash registers, flooding the Store with:

Whole‑new app game releases.
Bond‑style subscription services (think streaming, fitness, and more).
Premium apps that customers were ready to pay for with gusto.

In short, the App Store didn’t just ride the wave—it built a tsunami. And as the world slowly reopens, the momentum looks like it’s set to keep rushing forward.

Mobile Games Top the iOS Apps Ranking

App Downloads and Revenue: A Smartphone Story

Almost Before the Pandemic

Even before the world went sideways, people were already dotting their iPhones and Androids with fresh apps. In the first quarter of 2015, the combined haul from Google Play and the App Store reached a whopping 15.9 billion downloads, Sensor Tower and Apple Insider reported. And the peaks kept rising.

By the End of 2017

That quarter saw an even bigger leap to 23.4 billion downloads. More clicks, more markets, more opportunities for that little “tap‑to‑buy” button.

Money Is Money

2017 App Store spend: About $38.7 billion in in‑app purchases, subscriptions and premium apps.
2019: A 44 % surge brought revenue to $55.5 billion.

The 2020 Lockdown Rush

When every day turned into a stay‑home episode, smartphone hungry spikes became real. In the first nine months of 2020, iOS users hit 26.6 billion downloads— 16 % higher than the same stretch in 2019. The App Store capitalized, adding $16.8 billion to its yearly revenue that pushed the total to $72.3 billion.

Which Apps are Killing It?

Mobile games: The feast— 22 % of all active apps.
Business apps: Still in the game— 10.1 % share.
Education, Lifestyle, Utility: 8.7 %, 8.6 % and 6 % respectively.

So, whether you’re a gamer, a corporate nerd, or just hunting for a new utility, the App Store remains the go-to digital marketplace— and it keeps growing faster than your monthly data plan surprises you with.

iOS App Developers Hit $200bn in Earnings, a 30% Increase in a Year

A Snapshot of Apple App Store Economics

Curious about the real playbook behind the App Store? 42matters’ latest digs show that the digital marketplace is practically a vault of free and super‑low‑priced sandboxes.

Free‑and‑Easy: The 92.7% Rule

Out of every 100 apps, 92.7 slip into the free or freemium league – meaning you can grab them without a single dime, but later you can pay for upgrades, ads, or extras. It’s the “grab, go, pay later” model that keeps the store bustling.

Paid Apps: Mostly Pocket‑Friendly

~47,000 paid apps tick under $1 – a price you can almost forget.
~25,000 sit in the $1‑$2 sweet spot – the sweet spot for most wallets.
~16,000 go for $2‑$3, still a bargain for a full‑featured experience.
Only 3,200 go up to $9‑$10, those few high‑end gems.

2020: A Winning Sprint for Developers

Star‑studded December saw an average of 41.7 thousand new app launches per month – a 7% bump from the previous year. That’s developers writing code, designing UI, and hoping the next block of apps become the next big hit.

Apple’s Wallet Isn’t Empty

By January 2021, Apple had handed out more than $200 billion to iOS creators who sold goods and services on the App Store – a whopping $45 billion increase over the last year.