The Apple App Store and Google Play Store are among the biggest app stores today. For you to make your app available on these popular platforms, you need to pay certain fees.
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So, you might wonder, “how much does it cost for your app to show on Play Store and App Store?”
That’s precisely what you’ll learn in this article.
Continue reading and discover the Google Play/App Store app fees that you need to consider before adding your app to their platforms.
How do Google Play Store and Apple App Store make money?
Google Play Store and Apple App Store make money by charging their developers fees upon registration and when purchases are made within the app.
To give you a quick overview, generally speaking, the standard rate of app stores today is 30%. So, they take 30% of whatever income you earn from their platform.
While Play Store and App Store have different ways of charging their clients, the following are the most common ways they get a commission:
- In-app purchases
- Downloading paid apps
- Subscriptions
- Registration
In most cases, app stores don’t charge you for any income you get from selling physical goods and rendering services outside of their platform.
Aside from commissions, there are also one-time and recurring fees you need to take note of.
So, let’s look at the Google Play Store and Apple App Store fees individually.
Google Play Store fees
Like any business, Google needs money to keep their platform going and they get this money from their developers. Google uses its earnings to develop, sustain, and update the Google Play platform.
Google Play Store registration fee
To add your app to the Play Store, you need to pay a one-time $25 (USD) registration fee. That pays for your new developer account. Google explained that this registration fee helps in preventing spam and better ensures that only serious developers would use the platform.
That sounds reasonable. However, you might think that $25 is too much. Well, that’s actually way cheaper than what others charge. As you will later see, Apple charges at least $99 a year and Microsoft charges $19-$99 a year.
So, Google’s registration fee is more acceptable than others.
How Play Store fees work
There’s no single service fee for Google Play Store. The service fees vary depending on which industry an app belongs to. Generally speaking, there are two service fees that Google Play Store follows, the 15% and 30% service fees.
To be eligible for the 15% service fee, you need to be enrolled in the 15% service fee tier. If you qualify for this tier, you only have to pay 15% for the first $1 million of earnings you get each year.
On the other hand, you’ll need to pay the 30% service fee if you earn more than $1 million for a given year.
Moreover, if you are not part of the 15% service fee tier, you will need to automatically pay a 30% service fee even if you don’t exceed the $1 million earning.
For automatic subscription renewal in your app, you’ll have to pay 15% of your earnings.
Who pays the service fee?
Now, here’s the good news. Not everyone needs to pay a 15% or 30% service fee.
In the simplest sense, you only pay when you sell digital goods to your customers or charge them for your services. If you don’t directly earn from your app, then you don’t pay anything.
This is the reason that Google mentioned that only about 3% of their developers pay the service fee. The rest, which is 97% of the developers, can use Google Play Store without spending money.
Apple App Store fees
Just like Google, Apple needs to have a sustainable business model in order to survive and thrive. With fees, Apple will not just be able to provide their quality services, but also improve them as time passes by.
Apple App Store registration fee
To complete your app registration in the App Store, you would need to pay $99 as a registration fee. However, for developers who use the Apple Developer Enterprise Program, the annual fee is higher, which is $299. When registering, you’ll see the registration fee in local currency.
How Apple App Store service fee works
Similar to Google Play Store, Apple App Store also charges two different service fees — 15% and 30%.
If your earnings exceed $1 million per year, then you need to pay the 30% service fee. You’ll pay the 15% service fee if you make less than $1 million per year and if you are using a subscription-based model.
Moreover, starting January 1, 2021, Apple offers the App Store Small Business Program. If you qualify, you’ll only need to pay a 15% commission.
Earning from your app
Now that you know the service fees in both Google Play Store and Apple App Store, you should have a better idea of how you can make a meaningful income from these platforms.
Since adding your app to app stores can cost you money, it is best that you have a reliable plan on how you can earn back what you have spent.
That’s why it is not enough to simply create an app and add it to the app stores. You need the right marketing strategies to gain more users and increase your earning potential.
Thankfully, ShyftUp is here for you. As a leading user acquisition agency, they have the right expertise and technology to help improve your app’s visibility, get more downloads, and earn more income.
If you want to bring your app to the next level, then you should get in touch with ShyftUp today!
Is there a fee for Google Play Store?
Yes, there is a fee when using Google Play Store and having your app on their platform. The registration fee, which is $25, is a one-time payment you have to make. In addition, you would need to pay 15% to 30% of your earnings to the Play Store.
How much does it cost to put an app on the App Store and Google Play?
For the App Store, you need to pay an annual fee of $99 to have your app on their platform. For Google Play Store, you only have to pay $25 once as a registration fee. Aside from those fees, there are service fees that you need to pay, which range from 15% to 30% of your earnings.
Why do you need to pay service fees to the App Store and Play Store?
Like any business, the App Store and Play Store need money to run their platform. Aside from paying their staff, they also need money to provide, maintain and upgrade their services. All these operational costs are paid by the service fees that developers pay.
