- 90% of the billings and sales are without commission to Apple
- Entertainment category saw highest growth in goods and services
An independent study by economists from Analysis Group found that the App Store ecosystem facilitated US$1.1 trillion (RM5.072 trillion) in developer billings and sales in 2022.
The economists from Analysis Group estimate that App Store developers generated US$910 billion (RM4.196 trillion) last year from selling physical goods and services. In other words, more than 90% of the billings and sales accrue solely to developers and businesses of all sizes without any commission paid to Apple.
(RM1 = US$0.216)
Another US$109 billion comes from in-app advertising and US$104 billion from digital goods and services. Apple charges a 15% to 30% fee for app purchases, in-app purchases, and in-app subscriptions through the App Store
They concluded that developer billings and sales increased by 27% between 2019 and 2020, 27% between 2020 and 2021, and 29% between 2021 and 2022.
Revenue of small developers — those earning up to US$1 million a year and with fewer than 1 million annual downloads — grew by 71% between 2020 and 2022, outpacing more prominent developers. The growth was due to a tech boom during the pandemic.
The study also found that travel sales jumped 84%, and ride-hailing sales increased by 45% in 2022. This increase is also not surprising as travel restrictions are fully lifted by then.
Food and grocery sales were among the fastest-growing app categories, and the app-based entertainment category saw the highest growth in digital goods and services.
“The Continued Growth and Resilience of Apple’s App Store Ecosystem” was written by Dr Juliette Caminade and Dr Jonathan Borck.
The App Store’s reach
The App Store launched 15 years ago and now supports over 195 local payment methods and 44 currencies across 175 storefronts. It has 1.8 million apps, 123 times more than when it launched.
In 2022, 54% of downloads occurred in storefronts outside developers’ home countries.
According to new data from Apple, the App Store attracted over 650 million average weekly visitors worldwide in 2022. The data also shows that, on average, users downloaded apps 747 million times and redownloaded 1.5 billion times each week in 2002.
In 2022, the App Store blocked over US$2 billion in fraudulent transactions and rejected 1.7 million app submissions for failing to meet privacy, security, and quality standards.
From 2008 to 2022, iOS developers earned over US$320 billion on the App Store, and iOS users have downloaded apps more than 370 billion times.