App Revenue Data (2023)

Mansoor Iqbal

Updated: January 9, 2023

The mobile app industry has been active for over a decade now, generating billions of dollars in revenue for Apple, Google and thousands of mobile app developers.

While originally not perceived as necessary by Apple or Google, which did not add app stores to the first versions of iOS and Android, it has become a key revenue stream for both of them.

Even with less than 15 percent market share, iOS has led the way in revenue generation for app developers. This is partly due to iPhone being more popular in regions with high income, such as Japan and the United States, which also tend to spend more on apps.

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In comparison, Google Play’s largest markets are India, South-east Asia and South America, which typically generate less revenue per user. Apple also operates in China, while the Google Play store is banned in the country. Several third-party Android app stores are available in China, and are estimated to generate over $8 billion in yearly revenue.

Both platforms have matured in the past few years, adding new ways for developers to increase revenue generation. These include a multi-purpose advertising platform, in-app purchasing systems and subscription services, all of which is covered in this app market analysis.

Subscription revenues have increased rapidly over the past few years, as every app tries to entice users to purchase a monthly or annual subscription to get premium services. Almost every app category now has leaders which sell subscriptions, whether that’s in music, video, health, fitness, wellness, language learning, or even food delivery.

In the past two years, there has been a collective effort by developers to reduce the percentage of revenue Apple and Google take for in-app purchases, alongside providing alternative ways for users to pay for subscriptions. Apple and Google have compromised slightly, adjusting the percentage take from 30 to 15 percent, but developers and anti-competitive departments are calling for further revisions.

What will be the next big money maker for this app economy? Some expect the metaverse, or some form of it, to be where app developers spend a lot of their resources in the next decade, perhaps trying to replicate the success of Roblox and Minecraft in building an in-game economy.

We have collected data and statistics on app revenues. Read on below to find out more.

App Revenue Key Statistics

Android and iOS app revenue reached $133 billion revenue in 2021, a 19% year-on-year increase. iOS was responsible for 63% of total app revenue in 2021
Games accounted for 67% of total app revenue in 2021. Google Play contributed $37.3 billion, or about 41% of the total amount
Outside of games, iOS was responsible for 75% of the $43.4 billion generated in 2021
Subscription revenues increased to $15.5 billion in 2021, iOS was responsible for 78% of that revenue

App Data Report 2022

Want to learn all about the app industry? Our App Data Report covers revenues, downloads, and number of apps across the Apple App Store and Google Play, alongside the top grossing and most downloaded individual apps.

App and game revenues

App and game revenues increased by 19.1% to $133 billion, with revenues peaking in Q4 2021 at $34.5 billion.

Quarterly app and game revenues 2016 to 2022 ($bn)

Annual app and game revenues 2016 to 2021 ($bn)

Year	Revenue ($bn)
2016	43.5
2017	58.1
2018	71.3
2019	89
2020	111
2021	133

Source: App Data Report

iOS app and game revenue

App and game revenues for iOS increased by 17.7% in 2021 to $85.1 billion. iOS was responsible for 63% of total app revenue in 2021.

Quarterly iOS app and game revenue 2016 to 2022 ($bn)

Annual iOS app and game revenue 2016 to 2021 ($bn)

Year	Revenue ($bn)
2016	28.6
2017	38.5
2018	46.6
2019	58.4
2020	72.3
2021	85.1

Source: App Data Report

Google Play app and game revenue

App and game revenues for Google Play increased by 24% in 2021 to $47.9 billion.