Apple's App Store doubles Google Play revenue with only half the downloads, study finds

Posted:
in iOS
App analytics firm Sensor Tower is out with their latest report, once more showing Apple's App Store trouncing the more widely used Google Play Store in terms of generated revenue.

App Store Game


Both of the application shopping destinations showed some serious growth during the first half of 2018 as compared to last year. Combined, customers spent $34.4 billion on mobile games and apps from January to June of this year, an uptick from $26.9 billion or 27.8 percent growth year-over-year.

App Store customers spent roughly $22.6 billion in that time frame, which is nearly double Google Play's $11.8 billion. During that time, it had less than half the downloads of the Play Store.

On one hand, it is impressive that Apple is able to so handily beat Google when Android has a much larger global install base, but it is important to note that Google Play is not yet available in China, whereas the App Store is.

Year-over-year, Google Play did manage to slightly edge out Apple, growing 29.7 percent versus Apple's 26.8 percent.

Gaming, in particular, shined, growing an impressive 30 percent year-over-year during 2017, representing 82 percent of all app revenue. Looking at 2018, games grew 19.1 percent in the first half of this year, pulling in around $26.6 billion worldwide across both stores, representing about 78 percent of total app expenditure.

The new metrics continue to illustrate Apple's dominance in the field. In April, Sensor Tower observed App Store customers installed an average of 45 new iPhone apps in 2017, up from about 41 during the preceding year.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 39
    This is a strong positive for Apple, regardless of comparison or the competition. Apple invests heavily in the chips and the software tools to help App / Game developers on iOS, this include ARKit. Plus iOS updates propagate quickly to a sizable and well-heeled installed base. All these factors create superior ROI for iOS App developers, and superior UX for iOS users. 

    That 26.8% growth rate allays concerns of seasonal or cyclical hardware sales.
    Muntztmayracerhomie3watto_cobraAlex1N
  • Reply 2 of 39
    brakkenbrakken Posts: 687member
    The Goog CrapStore will never be available in China. They are smart enough to make sure they don’t let some foreign company profit from something they can do so themselves. Throwing out these random and unfounded red herrings just makes AI seem as cheap and sketchy as most Android apps.
    Rayz2016watto_cobra
  • Reply 3 of 39
    chasmchasm Posts: 3,273member
    Headline is missing the word "still." :)
    macxpresswatto_cobraAlex1N
  • Reply 4 of 39
    nunzynunzy Posts: 662member
    This is why the devs always come out with the iOS version of an app before they come out with the Android version, and lots of them never even bother to make an Android version.

    And the iOS version is always much better quality than the Android version.

    Android cannot survive much longer. They tried to kill the iPhone, but they failed.
    edited July 2018 racerhomie3Avieshek
  • Reply 5 of 39
    supadav03supadav03 Posts: 503member
    Same story we been hearing. It’s not surprising anymore. If anything, it’s expected now. 
    Avieshekwatto_cobra
  • Reply 6 of 39
    lkrupplkrupp Posts: 10,557member
    supadav03 said:
    Same story we been hearing. It’s not surprising anymore. If anything, it’s expected now. 
    Yeah, well, you try and convince @Gatorguy. He’ll be along shortly to defend Google’s app store and tell us how it is actually better and more profitable than Apple's store.
    edited July 2018 Rayz2016watto_cobrasupadav03MacProAlex1N
  • Reply 7 of 39
    croprcropr Posts: 1,122member
    nunzy said:
    This is why the devs always come out with the iOS version of an app before they come out with the Android version, and lots of them never even bother to make an Android version.

    And the iOS version is always much better quality than the Android version.
    Owning an app development company, I can only disagree.   All our apps are simultaneously developed for Android and iOS and there is absolutely no difference in quality between the 2 versions. 

    We also develop apps on request for 3rd parties.   I think it was in 2013 we got the last request for an iOS only app. 


    IreneWKoll3mansingularitymuthuk_vanalingam
  • Reply 8 of 39
    brakken said:
    The Goog CrapStore will never be available in China. They are smart enough to make sure they don’t let some foreign company profit from something they can do so themselves. Throwing out these random and unfounded red herrings just makes AI seem as cheap and sketchy as most Android apps.


    Nothing you said makes sense. The fact that they aren't in China means that Baidu or whatever is the search engine of choice, so essentially "some foreign company" is actually profiting from something Google could have done themselves.

    As for the story itself, what exactly was the "random and unfounded red herring"? The story is simple enough - the AppStore makes more money than Google even with half the downloads. They theorise that the presence of the AppStore in China (and the absence of the Play Store) may be one of the factors in it.


    If you've actually got a point to make, be a little coherent about it:

    supadav03 said:
    Same story we been hearing. It’s not surprising anymore. If anything, it’s expected now. 
    That's an example of a coherent point.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 9 of 39
    I still think it's weird that apple doesn't embrace gamers more. They keep making all this damn money from it, even though they don't seem to care at all. Look at the state of Game centre now, this should be a rival to Xbox live by now. A simple place were people can create parties, chat, rate and discuss games and gaming.
    Avieshekwatto_cobraacejax805
  • Reply 10 of 39
    avon b7avon b7 Posts: 7,623member
    nunzy said:
    This is why the devs always come out with the iOS version of an app before they come out with the Android version, and lots of them never even bother to make an Android version.

    And the iOS version is always much better quality than the Android version.

    Android cannot survive much longer. They tried to kill the iPhone, but they failed.
    You need to dig a little deeper. The article deliberately played down the bigger issue and as a result only used the word Android once.

    That should have put you on alert.

    However, you jumped in and used it four times in three very short paragraphs!

    This piece isn't really about Android. It is about the Google Play store. When it says the Google Play Store isn't available in China but the App Store is, didn't it occur to you that removing China from any smartphone tally would seriously distort the numbers?

    The linked article only compares Google's and Apple's stores. It doesn't compare Android with iOS in any meaningful way.

    In 2016, non-Play Store Android app revenue was sitting at 10 billion dollars. In 2017 it was expected to double and combined Android app at revenues were expected to surpass Apple App Store revenue:

    https://techcrunch.com/2017/03/29/app-annie-android-to-top-ios-in-app-store-revenue-this-year/

    Now, I don't know the figures for the first half of 2018 for combined Android app store revenue nor the Apple figures without the China numbers but if you want a meaningful platform comparison, the numbers really should take Apple's China revenues off the total or add non-Play Store Android app revenue onto the total.



    edited July 2018 gatorguy2old4funsingularitynunzymuthuk_vanalingam
  • Reply 11 of 39
    AvieshekAvieshek Posts: 100member
    Apple killed GameCentre. Funny.
    Alex1N
  • Reply 12 of 39
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,176member
    lkrupp said:
    supadav03 said:
    Same story we been hearing. It’s not surprising anymore. If anything, it’s expected now. 
    Yeah, well, you try and convince @Gatorguy. He’ll be along shortly to defend Google’s app store and tell us how it is actually better and more profitable than Apple's store.
    You've maybe confused me with other posters who sometimes make stuff up just to push an agenda. ;)
    edited July 2018 avon b7singularityAlex1Nmuthuk_vanalingam
  • Reply 13 of 39
    crowleycrowley Posts: 10,453member
    Does this include ad revenue?  Doesn't seem so, which makes it suspect as data of any consequence, since it is pretty well established that Android apps lean more on advertising than an upfront price.
  • Reply 14 of 39
    avon b7 said:
    nunzy said:
    This is why the devs always come out with the iOS version of an app before they come out with the Android version, and lots of them never even bother to make an Android version.

    And the iOS version is always much better quality than the Android version.

    Android cannot survive much longer. They tried to kill the iPhone, but they failed.
    You need to dig a little deeper. The article deliberately played down the bigger issue and as a result only used the word Android once.

    That should have put you on alert.

    However, you jumped in and used it four times in three very short paragraphs!

    This piece isn't really about Android. It is about the Google Play store. When it says the Google Play Store isn't available in China but the App Store is, didn't it occur to you that removing China from any smartphone tally would seriously distort the numbers?

    The linked article only compares Google's and Apple's stores. It doesn't compare Android with iOS in any meaningful way.

    In 2016, non-Play Store Android app revenue was sitting at 10 billion dollars. In 2017 it was expected to double and combined Android app at revenues were expected to surpass Apple App Store revenue:

    https://techcrunch.com/2017/03/29/app-annie-android-to-top-ios-in-app-store-revenue-this-year/

    Now, I don't know the figures for the first half of 2018 for combined Android app store revenue nor the Apple figures without the China numbers but if you want a meaningful platform comparison, the numbers really should take Apple's China revenues off the total or add non-Play Store Android app revenue onto the total.




    More bullshit from you-know-know. It’s funny how hypocritical you Android fans are.

    Third party Android stores are rife with malware and other security issues. The Android fans answer to this is “Google Play is safe and if you get something by downloading a third party App you only have yourself to blame. Stick to Google Play.”

    Yet when they want to compare revenues (to desperately try to come up with a “win” against iOS), suddenly third party stores are included (ALL of Android).
    nunzyAlex1N
  • Reply 15 of 39
    cropr said:
    nunzy said:
    This is why the devs always come out with the iOS version of an app before they come out with the Android version, and lots of them never even bother to make an Android version.

    And the iOS version is always much better quality than the Android version.
    Owning an app development company, I can only disagree.   All our apps are simultaneously developed for Android and iOS and there is absolutely no difference in quality between the 2 versions. 

    We also develop apps on request for 3rd parties.   I think it was in 2013 we got the last request for an iOS only app. 



    Irrelevant. Yours is the case for many, but doesn’t change the fact that overall developers still favor iOS. Or the fact that overall iOS Apps are superior (esp tablet Apps which are a complete joke on Android).

    nunzyAlex1N
  • Reply 16 of 39
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,176member
    cropr said:
    nunzy said:
    This is why the devs always come out with the iOS version of an app before they come out with the Android version, and lots of them never even bother to make an Android version.

    And the iOS version is always much better quality than the Android version.
    Owning an app development company, I can only disagree.   All our apps are simultaneously developed for Android and iOS and there is absolutely no difference in quality between the 2 versions. 

    We also develop apps on request for 3rd parties.   I think it was in 2013 we got the last request for an iOS only app. 



    Irrelevant. Yours is the case for many, but doesn’t change the fact that overall developers still favor iOS. Or the fact that overall iOS Apps are superior (esp tablet Apps which are a complete joke on Android).

    Android has tablets? Well how many apps do you think the 100 people who might have one actually need? :wink: 
    edited July 2018 ericthehalfbeenunzy
  • Reply 17 of 39
    avon b7avon b7 Posts: 7,623member
    avon b7 said:
    nunzy said:
    This is why the devs always come out with the iOS version of an app before they come out with the Android version, and lots of them never even bother to make an Android version.

    And the iOS version is always much better quality than the Android version.

    Android cannot survive much longer. They tried to kill the iPhone, but they failed.
    You need to dig a little deeper. The article deliberately played down the bigger issue and as a result only used the word Android once.

    That should have put you on alert.

    However, you jumped in and used it four times in three very short paragraphs!

    This piece isn't really about Android. It is about the Google Play store. When it says the Google Play Store isn't available in China but the App Store is, didn't it occur to you that removing China from any smartphone tally would seriously distort the numbers?

    The linked article only compares Google's and Apple's stores. It doesn't compare Android with iOS in any meaningful way.

    In 2016, non-Play Store Android app revenue was sitting at 10 billion dollars. In 2017 it was expected to double and combined Android app at revenues were expected to surpass Apple App Store revenue:

    https://techcrunch.com/2017/03/29/app-annie-android-to-top-ios-in-app-store-revenue-this-year/

    Now, I don't know the figures for the first half of 2018 for combined Android app store revenue nor the Apple figures without the China numbers but if you want a meaningful platform comparison, the numbers really should take Apple's China revenues off the total or add non-Play Store Android app revenue onto the total.




    More bullshit from you-know-know. It’s funny how hypocritical you Android fans are.

    Third party Android stores are rife with malware and other security issues. The Android fans answer to this is “Google Play is safe and if you get something by downloading a third party App you only have yourself to blame. Stick to Google Play.”

    Yet when they want to compare revenues (to desperately try to come up with a “win” against iOS), suddenly third party stores are included (ALL of Android).
    The article isn't about malware or Android.

    It's about Google Play Store revenues.

    I was replying to someone who was equating Google Play with Android.

    There was nothing untoward to be smelled, much less, bullshit.

    Nothing hypocritical either and the idea of getting a 'win' is absurd. That makes little sense.
    nunzysingularitymuthuk_vanalingam
  • Reply 18 of 39
    wigbywigby Posts: 692member
    supadav03 said:
    Same story we been hearing. It’s not surprising anymore. If anything, it’s expected now. 
    This is an old narrative and yet every time someone claims that iOS customers are more valuable than Android customers because they are willing to spend more, they are shouted down as elitists or liars with no data to cite. This (and many other studies) seem to be an apples to apples comparison for app purchasing but I'm sure someone will object because China is not part of Google's strategy.
    Alex1N
  • Reply 19 of 39
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,176member
    avon b7 said:
    nunzy said:
    This is why the devs always come out with the iOS version of an app before they come out with the Android version, and lots of them never even bother to make an Android version.

    And the iOS version is always much better quality than the Android version.

    Android cannot survive much longer. They tried to kill the iPhone, but they failed.
    You need to dig a little deeper. The article deliberately played down the bigger issue and as a result only used the word Android once.

    That should have put you on alert.

    However, you jumped in and used it four times in three very short paragraphs!

    This piece isn't really about Android. It is about the Google Play store. When it says the Google Play Store isn't available in China but the App Store is, didn't it occur to you that removing China from any smartphone tally would seriously distort the numbers?

    The linked article only compares Google's and Apple's stores. It doesn't compare Android with iOS in any meaningful way.

    In 2016, non-Play Store Android app revenue was sitting at 10 billion dollars. In 2017 it was expected to double and combined Android app at revenues were expected to surpass Apple App Store revenue:

    https://techcrunch.com/2017/03/29/app-annie-android-to-top-ios-in-app-store-revenue-this-year/

    Now, I don't know the figures for the first half of 2018 for combined Android app store revenue nor the Apple figures without the China numbers but if you want a meaningful platform comparison, the numbers really should take Apple's China revenues off the total or add non-Play Store Android app revenue onto the total.




    More bullshit from you-know-know. It’s funny how hypocritical you Android fans are.

    Third party Android stores are rife with malware and other security issues. The Android fans answer to this is “Google Play is safe and if you get something by downloading a third party App you only have yourself to blame. Stick to Google Play.”

    Yet when they want to compare revenues (to desperately try to come up with a “win” against iOS), suddenly third party stores are included (ALL of Android).
    Eric, it's certainly a pertinent mention if the article's premise was that Android has more users but less app spend than iOS and at the same time only including Google Play revenues as evidence to prove that point. You can't use all Android smartphones on the one hand and then carve out a subsection of app sources on the other to draw a conclusion. 

    I will agree with your point that given a choice users should stick with Google Play. That store is not always an option with mainland China the biggest altho not only example of that. 

    If the author's claim is Apple is getting richer from the App Store than Google is from the Play Store, that's 100% unquestionably true and should get no disagreement, tho $3 Billion in gross profit from Play Store sales in just half a year is a nice little contribution to Alphabet's coffers even if it's not up to Apple standards. 
    edited July 2018 Alex1Nmuthuk_vanalingam
  • Reply 20 of 39
    avon b7 said:
    avon b7 said:
    nunzy said:
    This is why the devs always come out with the iOS version of an app before they come out with the Android version, and lots of them never even bother to make an Android version.

    And the iOS version is always much better quality than the Android version.

    Android cannot survive much longer. They tried to kill the iPhone, but they failed.
    You need to dig a little deeper. The article deliberately played down the bigger issue and as a result only used the word Android once.

    That should have put you on alert.

    However, you jumped in and used it four times in three very short paragraphs!

    This piece isn't really about Android. It is about the Google Play store. When it says the Google Play Store isn't available in China but the App Store is, didn't it occur to you that removing China from any smartphone tally would seriously distort the numbers?

    The linked article only compares Google's and Apple's stores. It doesn't compare Android with iOS in any meaningful way.

    In 2016, non-Play Store Android app revenue was sitting at 10 billion dollars. In 2017 it was expected to double and combined Android app at revenues were expected to surpass Apple App Store revenue:

    https://techcrunch.com/2017/03/29/app-annie-android-to-top-ios-in-app-store-revenue-this-year/

    Now, I don't know the figures for the first half of 2018 for combined Android app store revenue nor the Apple figures without the China numbers but if you want a meaningful platform comparison, the numbers really should take Apple's China revenues off the total or add non-Play Store Android app revenue onto the total.




    More bullshit from you-know-know. It’s funny how hypocritical you Android fans are.

    Third party Android stores are rife with malware and other security issues. The Android fans answer to this is “Google Play is safe and if you get something by downloading a third party App you only have yourself to blame. Stick to Google Play.”

    Yet when they want to compare revenues (to desperately try to come up with a “win” against iOS), suddenly third party stores are included (ALL of Android).
    The article isn't about malware or Android.

    It's about Google Play Store revenues.

    I was replying to someone who was equating Google Play with Android.

    There was nothing untoward to be smelled, much less, bullshit.

    Nothing hypocritical either and the idea of getting a 'win' is absurd. That makes little sense.

    Sorry, but do you think you're fooling anyone? You always show up trying to put your spin on things (with a slant against Apple/iOS and in favor of Google/Android).

    BTW, the person you replied to didn't say anything about revenues, third party stores or how much is made in China. They talked about developers preferring iOS or that iOS Apps are generally superior. Both of these statements are true, yet you never addressed either of those in your post, and went all-in on third party revenues. The only thing incorrect in their post was that "Android cannot survive", which is clearly false.

    Third party Android stores should never be counted for numerous reasons:

    1. They are typically self-contained stores serving a particular market.
    2. Many of them are "closed", in that they only serve up their own Apps (more common with carriers).
    3. Developers rarely place their Apps on multiple third party stores (and wouldn't even have access to the closed stores). If someone wants to target a wider audience and multiple countries, they'd use Google Play.
    4. Because of these, third party Android stores do nothing to help the overall Android ecosystem. The only true Android ecosystem is Google Play, just like The App Store is the only iOS ecosystem.

    The only valid comparison to make is between Google Play and The App Store. And The App Store is trouncing Google Play.
    nunzyAlex1N
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