Apple Confirms iPadOS Will Get Same EU App Changes as iOS This Fall

Apple today confirmed that it will be bringing all of the app ecosystem changes made to iOS in the European Union to iPadOS in the fall. Earlier this week, the European Commission said that iPadOS is also a gatekeeper platform under the Digital Markets Act.

ipad pro new blue
EU developers will be able to distribute iPad apps outside of the App Store using alternative app marketplaces or websites, and all of the same terms will apply. The Core Technology Fee will be charged for apps that are distributed outside of the ‌App Store‌ and have more than one million first annual installs, though there are exceptions for small developers, which Apple also announced today.

With iPadOS being added to the mix, Apple has also confirmed that users who install the same app on both iOS and iPadOS in a 12-month period will only generate one first annual install for that app rather than two, which should help developers keep below the CTF threshold.

As with the changes to iOS, the upcoming changes to iPadOS only apply to developers who distribute apps in the European Union and ‌iPad‌ users in the EU. For the rest of the world, there are no changes and apps will continue to be available only from the ‌App Store‌.

Popular Stories

Apple Shopping Event 2025

Apple Announces 2025 Black Friday Event, Here's What You Can Get

Thursday November 20, 2025 6:28 am PST by
Apple's annual four-day Black Friday through Cyber Monday shopping event is returning on Friday, November 28 through Monday, December 1 in many countries, including the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, Thailand, and others. During the shopping event, customers can get an Apple gift card with...
iOS 26

iOS 26.2 Adds These New Features to Your iPhone

Thursday November 20, 2025 10:50 am PST by
iOS 26.2 is currently in beta testing. The upcoming update includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, including a new Liquid Glass slider for the Lock Screen's clock, offline lyrics for Apple Music, and more. In a recent press release, Apple confirmed that iOS 26.2 will be released to all users in December, but it did not provide a specific release date. Keep reading...
hikawa phone grip stand apple%402x

Apple Launches Second Limited-Edition iPhone Accessory in a Month

Friday November 21, 2025 3:53 am PST by
Apple has begun selling the Hikawa Phone Grip and Stand, a new limited-edition iPhone accessory designed with accessibility in mind. Designed by LA-based Bailey Hikawa to celebrate the 40th anniversary of accessibility at Apple, the grip uses magnets to securely snap onto any iPhone with MagSafe. Apple says it can be removed with ease, and doubles as a stand with two different viewing...
iPhone 17 Pro Cosmic Orange

10 Reasons to Wait for Next Year's iPhone 18 Pro

Wednesday November 19, 2025 4:00 am PST by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. One thing worth...
ipad black friday 2025

The Best Early Black Friday iPad Deals

Thursday November 20, 2025 10:20 am PST by
Black Friday is just over a week away, and iPad deals have finally started to flood in at retailers like Amazon and Best Buy. Below we're tracking discounts on every current generation iPad, including lowest-ever prices on M3 iPad Air and M5 iPad Pro, plus steep markdowns on iPad and iPad mini. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a ...
ipad mini 7 feature red and blue

iPad Mini 8: Four Major New Features to Expect

Wednesday November 19, 2025 7:50 am PST by
Apple's eighth-generation iPad mini is highly likely to arrive next year, offering a significant refresh of the device with at least four major new features. OLED Display The next-generation version of the iPad mini could feature an OLED display, as part of Apple's plan to expand the display technology across many more of its devices. Apple's first OLED device was the Apple Watch in 2015, ...
watchos 26 workout app

Apple Watch Users Claim Workout App Is Now Worse in Every Way

Thursday November 20, 2025 7:01 am PST by
Apple Watch owners have been voicing their frustration online over changes to the Workout app that Apple introduced in watchOS 26, with many finding the redesigned interface makes starting exercises difficult and exasperating. When Apple launched watchOS 26 in September, the Workout app went from large, easily tapped workout tiles to a scrolling, corner-button interface. Instead of tapping a ...
Apple Foldable Thumb

Foldable iPhone to Debut These Two Breakthrough Features

Wednesday November 19, 2025 7:26 am PST by
Apple's first foldable iPhone is expected to launch alongside the iPhone 18 Pro models in fall 2026, and it's shaping up to include two standout features that could set it apart from the competition. The book-style foldable will reportedly feature an industry-first 24-megapixel under-display camera built into the inner display, according to a recent JP Morgan equity research report. That...
maxresdefault

The MacRumors Show: iPhone 18 Pro Looks Like a Huge Upgrade

Friday November 21, 2025 9:10 am PST by
On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we talk through all of the new features and improvements expected to come to next year's iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max models. Subscribe to The MacRumors Show YouTube channel for more videos Apple's next-generation iPhones are less than ten months away and we already have a good idea about what to expect based on corroborated leaks, rumors,...

Top Rated Comments

vtrautia Avatar
20 months ago
Massive thank you to EU. iPad users should able to download apps where ever they see fit. Just like Mac users.
That core technology fee is the final obstacle that should be removed.
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TimFL1 Avatar
20 months ago
This is further evidence that Apple knows what they‘re doing, giving in this fast cause they know they‘re just buying time stalling DMA rollouts across platforms etc. to get their old business model going "just a little further".

Most of the other artificial roadblockers they have going will fall like domino blocks (little to no resistance from Applw) with the EU starting their nitpicking period.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
User 6502 Avatar
20 months ago
Apple capitulated once again. Thank you EU for caring about your citizens ❤️??
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
HobeSoundDarryl Avatar
20 months ago
Once again, congratulations EU friends on soon getting to do with your iPads what you've already been able to do on your iPhones for nearly 2 months now... and what the rest of us have been able to do with our Macs for decades. It's so nice to get to do what you want with tech you OWN (after all, it's NOT borrowed tech).

While I live in the "land of the free," I envy your added freedoms when it comes to shopping around for best app pricing, best in-app payment options and sourcing apps from alt stores or direct from the developers who made the app... just like the rest of us can do with our Macs. The virtually-no-consequences of that exact same bundle of consumer freedoms have not destroyed all of us Mac owners. I expect the experience to be just about exactly the same with both your iPhones and soon your iPads too.

This thread should fill with rants & raving about how terrible this is, how EU people are doomed to viruses, trojans, plague, locusts, frogs, etc... but I would guess that almost all of the people who are griping about EU laws do NOT live within the EU and thus are completely unaffected by what other people's laws do or do not do for those other people.

I would also be quick to place a pretty sizable bet that if we could take a peek at the apps installed on many the fault-finders Macs, we'd find AT LEAST ONE- IF NOT MANY- that did NOT come from the Apple Mac App Store.

Nevertheless EU Apple friends, enjoy apps the rest of us can't even consider on the very same devices we also "own" because the almighty "Father" forbids it. Enjoy knowing that towards 100% of the purchase price is rewarding the developer of the app instead of another entity taking the first 15-30% right off the top. Etc. With Almighty Father the richest company in the world on any given day, they don't actually have to have a big bite of every single app transaction to survive. But I bet the developer who actually made the app you're buying will appreciate getting to make a bit more than before on the app THEY created... even if they sell it to you for less because they don't have to cover the steep, "first bite" overhead.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JPack Avatar
20 months ago

My question is what are the caveats to installing non-Apple-app-store apps?

Is Apple putting a clause in the end-user license or something like that?

I'm genuinely curious as to how Apple is implementing this "circumvention" of their app store and how it'd impact the security (and support) of my device.
What caveat? It's not like the App Store is unblemished and Apple can make guarantees about it.

https://www.macrumors.com/2021/02/09/scam-apps-ios-making-millions-revenue/
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Mailia Avatar
20 months ago

Chapinging your region won’t suffice - cause Apple is keeping close tabs on your location:

https://adamdemasi.com/2024/04/20/ios-eligibility.html
Has Apple explained somewhere how constantly tracking my location is in my interest again? Wasn't this supposed to be the privacy phone?
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)