Apple Says App Store Ecosystem Supported Over $500B in Commerce Worldwide in 2019

Apple today announced that its App Store ecosystem supported $519 billion in billings and sales worldwide in 2019, based on an independent study conducted by Analysis Group, an economic consulting firm in the United States.

appstore
Since the App Store launched in 2008, developers have earned over $155 billion from app and in-app purchases, with a quarter of those earnings occurring in 2019. However, the App Store also facilitates the sale of a wide variety of physical goods and services, ranging from Uber and Lyft rides to Postmates and DoorDash deliveries, which the study found accounted for $413 billion of the last year's total.

Apple App Store infographic stats 06152020 inline
Of this $413 billion, some categories include:

  • $268 billion from retail apps such as Target, Best Buy, and Etsy
  • $57 billion from travel apps such as Expedia and United
  • $40 billion from ride-hailing apps such as Uber and Lyft
  • $31 billion from food delivery apps such as DoorDash and Grubhub

Apple CEO Tim Cook:

The App Store is a place where innovators and dreamers can bring their ideas to life, and users can find safe and trusted tools to make their lives better. In a challenging and unsettled time, the App Store provides enduring opportunities for entrepreneurship, health and well-being, education, and job creation, helping people adapt quickly to a changing world. We're committed to doing even more to support and nurture the global App Store community — from one-developer shops in nearly every country to businesses that employ thousands of workers — as it continues to foster innovation, create jobs, and propel economic growth for the future.

Apple said the App Store now has nearly two million apps and is accessed by half a billion people each week across 175 countries.

Top Rated Comments

dspdoc Avatar
51 months ago
They’re really hurting for money huh? Where’s the QC along their Mac line and OS to match? With their budget, Catalina should be nearly perfect.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DeepIn2U Avatar
51 months ago

> The App Store is a place where innovators and dreamers can bring their ideas to life

Except if they compete with Apple. Or try to offer free speech. Or need to escape Apple's narrow sandbox. Or have a novel business model that can't work with 30% overhead. Etc.
offer free speech in an App Store what does that even mean? Please elaborate.
So developers that make good money, are now going to bite the hand that feeds them; pretty much?! I get changing default iOS apps to third party but asking for no fees when distribution, support for over 12 different mode iPhones to make money off of, guaranteed per sale income (no refunds) and ability to upload test keys for apps? Not agreeing on that ever.

every business should be able to work with some overhead. If you’re coding completely 24/7 no other income then it’s your responsibility to deal with rent, food, internet and other bills not Apple.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
farewelwilliams Avatar
51 months ago
App Store is great for developers. Any developers complaining about the lack of "alternative app stores" clearly doesn't understand the user experience side of having 1 app store. They also don't understand that having 1 app store allows Apple to concentrate all of their resources to making it better for the developer.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Madhatter32 Avatar
51 months ago
Impressive and good news for Apple. This is the future for Apple and it knows it -- services, recurring revenue, and software. It's just far more profitable and sustainable over time.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Cosmosent Avatar
51 months ago
OK, but I have one MAJOR complaint:

Cook & Co. has a Complete & Total Stranglehold on "App Discovery" in their "curated" iOS App Store !

UN-Discovered Gem Apps sit Idle, while apps from BIG public companies that appear to be near-copy-cats of other similar apps (flooded) in the App Store, get recommended as App of the Day ... see today's Photoshop app !

Strike that, it's actually "two" MAJOR complaints:

The other, AAPL clearly "plays Favorites" !
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Naaaaak Avatar
51 months ago
> The App Store is a place where innovators and dreamers can bring their ideas to life

Except if they compete with Apple. Or try to offer free speech. Or need to escape Apple's narrow sandbox. Or have a novel business model that can't work with 30% overhead. Etc.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iOS 18 Siri Integrated Feature

iOS 18 Rumored to Add These 10 New Features to Your iPhone

Wednesday April 24, 2024 2:05 pm PDT by
Apple is set to unveil iOS 18 during its WWDC keynote on June 10, so the software update is a little over six weeks away from being announced. Below, we recap rumored features and changes planned for the iPhone with iOS 18. iOS 18 will reportedly be the "biggest" update in the iPhone's history, with new ChatGPT-inspired generative AI features, a more customizable Home Screen, and much more....
apple id account

Apple ID Accounts Logging Out Users and Requiring Password Reset

Saturday April 27, 2024 12:41 am PDT by
There are widespread reports of Apple users being locked out of their Apple ID overnight for no apparent reason, requiring a password reset before they can log in again. Users say the sudden inexplicable Apple ID sign-out is occurring across multiple devices. When they attempt to sign in again they are locked out of their account and asked to reset their password in order to regain access. ...
macos sonoma feature purple green

Apple's Regular Mac Base RAM Boosts Ended When Tim Cook Took Over

Friday April 26, 2024 6:34 am PDT by
Apple used to regularly increase the base memory of its Macs up until 2011, the same year Tim Cook was appointed CEO, charts posted on Mastodon by David Schaub show. Earlier this year, Schaub generated two charts: One showing the base memory capacities of Apple's all-in-one Macs from 1984 onwards, and a second depicting Apple's consumer laptop base RAM from 1999 onwards. Both charts were...
maxresdefault

The MacRumors Show: Apple's iPad Event Finally Announced!

Friday April 26, 2024 8:31 am PDT by
On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we discuss the announcement of Apple's upcoming "Let loose" event, where the company is widely expected to announce new iPad models and accessories. Subscribe to The MacRumors Show YouTube channel for more videos Apple's event invite shows an artistic render of an Apple Pencil, suggesting that iPads will be a focus of the event. Apple CEO Tim...
ipad pro 2022

Apple Event Rumors: iPad Pro With M4 Chip and New Apple Pencil With Haptic Feedback

Sunday April 28, 2024 6:19 am PDT by
In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman outlined some of the new products he expects Apple to announce at its "Let Loose" event on May 7. First, Gurman now believes there is a "strong possibility" that the upcoming iPad Pro models will be equipped with Apple's next-generation M4 chip, rather than the M3 chip that debuted in the MacBook Pro and iMac six months ago. He said a ...
maxresdefault

Apple Announces 'Let Loose' Event on May 7 Amid Rumors of New iPads

Tuesday April 23, 2024 7:11 am PDT by
Apple has announced it will be holding a special event on Tuesday, May 7 at 7 a.m. Pacific Time (10 a.m. Eastern Time), with a live stream to be available on Apple.com and on YouTube as usual. The event invitation has a tagline of "Let Loose" and shows an artistic render of an Apple Pencil, suggesting that iPads will be a focus of the event. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more ...