How much do apps make? The honest answer
How much do apps make? Most make very little, a small minority make a meaningful income, and a tiny group earns most of the money. That is not a cynical guess; it is what the largest public dataset on subscription apps shows. RevenueCat’s State of Subscription Apps 2026, which covers “over 115,000 apps, representing more than $16 billion in revenue,” reports that among newly launched apps only 17.3% reached $1K in monthly revenue and only 4.6% reached $10K within their first two years (RevenueCat).
So a better question than “how much do apps make?” is: how does an app make money, how much of each sale does the developer keep, and what evidence would show a particular app’s revenue? This guide covers all three, using official App Store and Google Play fee pages as of October 2026.
What the data says about app revenue
The RevenueCat report is based on apps using RevenueCat’s subscription infrastructure, so it describes subscription apps on that platform, not every app in existence. With that caveat, the figures it publishes on its report page are useful anchors (RevenueCat):
- Milestones: across all categories, 17.3% of newly launched apps hit $1K monthly revenue and 4.6% hit $10K within two years of launch.
- Typical early revenue: the cross-category median monthly revenue one year after launch is about $72.
- Value per payer: “$23 annual RLTV per payer is the global median” (realized lifetime value after year one).
- Growth spread: half of apps grew MRR by at least 5.3% year over year, while “the top 10% grew 306%+.”
- Concentration by age: “apps launched before 2020 generate 69% of all subscription revenue.”
Read together, these numbers describe a skewed market. A median new subscription app earns tens of dollars a month after a year, while established apps capture most of the revenue. Headlines about apps earning thousands per day describe outliers, not typical results.
These figures also measure revenue, not profit. They say nothing about development, marketing, or support costs.
How apps make money
Most app revenue comes from a few models. Each has different economics.
Subscriptions
Recurring payments for ongoing access. Subscriptions dominate the RevenueCat dataset by design. They produce recurring revenue that can be measured as MRR, but they also churn. See what is MRR and how to calculate churn rate.
Paid apps and one-time in-app purchases
A single upfront price, or one-time unlocks inside a free app. Revenue arrives in bursts around launches, features, and promotions, which makes monthly revenue volatile.
Advertising
Free apps can earn from ads. Ad revenue depends on audience size, engagement, geography, and ad network rates. Because it is not paid through App Store or Google Play billing, it usually does not appear in subscription-platform data at all.
Web or direct payments
Some developers sell subscriptions on the web through Stripe or a merchant of record, depending on platform rules in each region. Those payments have different fees and are recorded by a different provider.
How much the App Store and Google Play keep
Store commissions are the largest single cost on in-app revenue. The figures below come from the official developer pages as of October 2026. Rules vary by region, program, and product type, so check the current pages for your situation.
Apple App Store
- Subscriptions: “During a subscriber’s first year of service, you receive 70% of the subscription price at each billing cycle, minus applicable taxes. After a subscriber accumulates one year of paid service, your net revenue increases to 85%” (Apple: Auto-renewable subscriptions).
- App Store Small Business Program: a “reduced commission rate of 15% on paid apps and Apple In-App Purchases” for developers who made up to $1 million in proceeds in the prior calendar year, and for new developers (Apple: Small Business Program). Enrolled developers receive 85% of the subscription price regardless of subscription age, per Apple’s subscriptions page.
- Apple also describes a further reduced 10% commission for some developers on alternative terms in the EU; that applies only in specific circumstances.
Google Play
Google updated its service fees in 2026, with new structures for Australia, the EEA, Japan, the UK, and the US. According to Google’s Play Console help page (Google Play service fees):
- In those markets, under the standard tier, auto-renewing subscriptions are charged a 10% service fee plus a 5% billing fee when Google Play Billing is used.
- Other transactions (such as one-time in-app purchases) carry 20% plus the billing fee for new installs and 25% plus the billing fee for existing installs, with lower rates for developers in certain Google programs.
- Whether a user counts as a “new” or “existing” install depends on regional rollout dates: June 30, 2026 for the EEA, UK, and US, and September 30, 2026 for Australia and Japan.
- In remaining markets, until the update rolls out globally, developers in the 15% tier pay 15% on the first $1M of annual revenue and 30% above it, and auto-renewing subscriptions are charged 15%.
Google states that “99% are eligible for a fee of 15% or less” by participating in its programs. The structure is now complex enough that you should calculate fees for your own mix of markets, products, and install dates.
What this means in practice
A $9.99 monthly subscription in its first year on the App Store, outside the Small Business Program, returns about $6.99 before taxes to the developer. The same subscription for a developer in the Small Business Program returns about $8.49. Use the App Store fee calculator to model your own prices.
Why app revenue numbers are hard to compare
Even when two founders share “revenue,” the numbers often mean different things:
- Gross sales vs proceeds. Store dashboards can report what customers paid or what the developer receives after commission and taxes.
- Store vs subscription platform. A platform such as RevenueCat aggregates store transactions, and its reporting may cover a whole project containing several apps. RevenueCat’s API documentation notes that its revenue endpoint totals revenue across all apps in a project (RevenueCat API).
- Refunds. App Store and Google Play refunds can arrive after the original purchase and reduce past revenue.
- Currency. Apps sell in many currencies; conversion rates and timing change reported totals.
- Annual plans. A burst of annual subscriptions can inflate a single month of cash revenue while monthly recurring value is much lower.
That is why screenshots of app revenue are weak evidence. A provider-connected figure is stronger because it comes directly from the system that records the transactions, though it still needs context.
Verified app revenue on RevenueBug
RevenueBug connects to RevenueCat and other providers to calculate trailing 30-day revenue for a startup profile. That figure is successful payment principal minus refunds and disputes, before provider fees, as described in the methodology. It is provider-verified, not an audit, and it is not necessarily subscription MRR.
You can browse mobile app startups to see verified figures from real apps, or look at mobile apps for sale. If you are evaluating an app to buy, read the guide to buyer due diligence and confirm what scope the connected account covers.
How to estimate what your app could make
Instead of searching for an average, build a simple model from your own inputs:
Monthly revenue ≈ active payers × average price per month × (1 − store commission) − refunds
Then stress-test each input:
- Active payers depend on installs, trial start rate, and trial conversion. RevenueCat publishes category-level benchmarks on its report page that can help sanity-check your assumptions.
- Average price depends on your mix of weekly, monthly, annual, and lifetime plans.
- Commission depends on store, program, region, subscription age, and product type.
- Churn determines whether payers accumulate or leak away. Use the churn and retention calculator and the LTV:CAC calculator to test unit economics.
If the model only works with optimistic conversion and retention, treat that as a warning.
Common mistakes
Treating outliers as typical. The data shows most new subscription apps stay below $1K monthly revenue for at least two years.
Ignoring commission. A 15–30% store fee is often the largest cost line.
Annualizing a launch month. Launch spikes and annual-plan bursts do not represent steady revenue.
Confusing revenue with profit. Paid acquisition can cost more than a subscriber is worth.
Comparing different metrics. Gross sales, proceeds, MRR, and trailing revenue are not interchangeable.
Frequently asked questions
How much does the average app make?
There is no reliable single average because revenue is extremely skewed. RevenueCat’s 2026 report puts the cross-category median monthly revenue one year after launch at about $72 for subscription apps on its platform, and reports that only 4.6% of new apps reach $10K monthly revenue within two years.
How much does Apple take from app revenue?
For auto-renewable subscriptions, Apple says you receive 70% in a subscriber’s first year and 85% after one year of paid service. Developers in the App Store Small Business Program pay a reduced 15% commission. Figures are as of October 2026.
How much does Google Play take?
It depends on market, product type, program, and install date. In the US, UK, EEA, Australia, and Japan, Google lists a 10% service fee plus a 5% billing fee for auto-renewing subscriptions under its updated structure. Other markets still use the earlier 15%/30% structure until the update rolls out.
What percentage of apps make money?
RevenueCat reports that 17.3% of newly launched subscription apps on its platform reach $1K in monthly revenue within two years. Many apps earn something but well below a living income.
Do free apps make money?
Some do, through ads, in-app purchases, or subscriptions offered inside a free download. Ad revenue depends heavily on audience size and engagement.
How can I verify an app’s revenue before buying it?
Ask for provider-connected data rather than screenshots, check which apps the connected account covers, and reconcile against store payout reports. A RevenueBug profile shows trailing 30-day revenue from a connected provider, which is a starting point for diligence, not a substitute for it.