Apple Shares 2023 App Store Transparency Report

Apple today published its second annual App Store Transparency Report [PDF], highlighting details like the number of apps that were rejected during the year, the number of customer and developer accounts deactivated, the number of apps removed from the ‌App Store‌, and more.

iOS App Store General Feature Sqaure Complement
In 2023, there were 1,870,119 total apps available, and Apple reviewed 6,892,500 app submissions. 1,763,812 apps were rejected, with performance, design, and legal listed as the top reasons why an app wasn't approved. 277,923 apps were approved after rejection following changes made to the app.

116,117 apps were removed from the ‌App Store‌, and top categories for removal included Utilities, Games, and Business. 76,887 apps were removed for violating Guideline 4.0 on design, and 35,245 apps were removed for violating ‌App Store‌ rules preventing fraud.

Apple removed 1,285 apps at the request of the Chinese government, and 103 at the request of the South Korean government. Apps were also pulled in India, Russia, Indonesia, Lithuania, Ukraine, and several other countries at the request of their respective governments.

398,499,012 customer accounts search the ‌App Store‌ on average on a weekly basis, and 166,360 apps appear in the top 10 results of at least 1000 searches each week. As Apple said earlier this week, it terminated 373,739,771 customer accounts and prevented an estimated $1,838,127,451 in fraudulent transactions.

More information on Apple's ‌App Store‌ numbers can be found in the full report. [PDF]

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Air Pastel Feature

iPhone 17 Air Battery Capacity and Weight Allegedly Revealed

Monday May 19, 2025 2:22 am PDT by
Apple is expected to launch an all-new ultra-thin iPhone 17 Air later this year, and while there have been plenty of rumors about the camera's overall design and thinness, we haven't heard any details about the device's weight and battery capacity until now. According to the leaker going by the account name "yeux1122" on the Korean-langauge Naver blog, the 6.6-inch iPhone 17 Air has a weight ...
Apple CarPlay Ultra instrument cluster themes 01

Apple's CarPlay Ultra Is Here – Does Your iPhone Support It?

Thursday May 15, 2025 5:17 am PDT by
Apple's recently announced CarPlay Ultra promises a deeply integrated in-car experience, but not all iPhone users will be able to take advantage of the new feature. According to Apple's press release, CarPlay Ultra requires an iPhone 12 or later running iOS 18.5 or later. This means if you're using an iPhone 11, iPhone XR, or any older model, you'll need to upgrade your device to access...
Apple CarPlay Ultra instrument cluster themes 01

Apple's 'CarPlay Ultra' Experience Now Available

Thursday May 15, 2025 5:07 am PDT by
Apple today announced that its next-generation CarPlay experience, now dubbed "CarPlay Ultra" begins rolling out today, starting with Aston Martin vehicles. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. CarPlay Ultra is now available with new Aston Martin vehicle orders in the U.S. and Canada. It will also be available for existing models that feature the brand's next-generation ...
WWDC 2025 Banner

Apple Announces WWDC 2025 Schedule, Including Keynote Time

Tuesday May 20, 2025 8:13 am PDT by
Apple today announced a more detailed schedule for its annual developers conference WWDC, which runs from June 9 through June 13. The schedule confirms that Apple's keynote will begin on Monday, June 9 at 10 a.m. Pacific Time, with a live stream to be available on Apple.com, in the Apple TV app, and on YouTube. During the keynote, Apple is expected to announce iOS 19, iPadOS 19, macOS 16,...
macOS 16 visionOS Inspired Feature 1

macOS 16: Everything We Know So Far

Tuesday May 20, 2025 7:31 am PDT by
The Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), Apple's annual developer and software-oriented event, is less than three weeks away. We haven't heard a great deal about macOS 16 ahead of its announcement this year, so we could be in for some major surprises when June 9 rolls around. Here's what we know so far about the next major update to Apple's Mac operating system. macOS 16 Name? Every year ...
Apple Glass

Apple Smart Glasses: Everything We Know So Far

Wednesday May 21, 2025 8:21 am PDT by
Google made waves yesterday by showcasing a set of lightweight smart glasses featuring deep Gemini integration and an optional in-lens display. The demo has reignited interest in Apple's own smart glasses project, which has been the subject of rumors for nearly a decade. Here's a recap of where things stand. Current Development Status Apple is actively working on new chips specifically...
Apple Intelligence General Feature

Report: Apple's Next-Gen Version of Siri Is 'On Par' With ChatGPT

Monday May 19, 2025 9:00 am PDT by
Apple has big plans to improve Siri over the next few years, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman and Drake Bennett report. Some Apple executives are now reportedly pushing to turn Siri into a true ChatGPT competitor. A next-generation, chatbot version of Siri has reportedly made significant progress during testing over the past six months; some executives allegedly now see it as "on par" with recent...

Top Rated Comments

DMG35 Avatar
13 months ago
They need to share a transparency report on how this deleted photos debacle has happened and how they are fixing it.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
I7guy Avatar
13 months ago
So you want the app store to be absolute mess, I gather?
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jasonsmith_88 Avatar
13 months ago

So you want the app store to be absolute mess, I gather?
Nobody would have a problem with the App Store if there were alternative methods of distribution. But in all markets except the EU, the App Store is the only way to distribute apps.

The right to develop and distribute software should be fundamental. If Apple revokes a perfectly legal app because of some nonsense clause, this can absolutely ruin someone’s life who is relying on that income to pay a mortgage.

The “buy an Android” argument is laughable. In that case, why do we have any regulations all? Why do we regulate car safety when people could just buy a Volvo? Why do we have building codes when people could just hire a reputable builder? Why do we have privacy laws when people could just choose not to divulge their information?

We regulate industry because the free market is incapable of doing what’s best for the consumer. Apple preventing the distribution of legal software is not best for the consumer.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
I7guy Avatar
13 months ago

Nobody would have a problem with the App Store if there were alternative methods of distribution. But in all markets except the EU, the App Store is the only way to distribute apps.
And we’re about find out if it’s cap or not.



The right to develop and distribute software should be fundamental. If Apple revokes a perfectly legal app because of some nonsense clause, this can absolutely ruin someone’s life who is relying on that income to pay a mortgage.
The right to distribute software is not fundamental. It’s like saying the right to drive fundamental. You drive with a dui and crash and can ruin someone’s life. There are many things in life that are not fundamental.



The “buy an Android” argument is laughable. In that case, why do we have any regulations all? Why do we regulate car safety when people could just buy a Volvo? Why do we have building codes when people could just hire a reputable builder? Why do we have privacy laws when people could just choose not to divulge their information?
The buy the competition is a perfect view. After all, Macrumors posters continually say competition is good. Why is competition good unless you are willing to buy a competitors better product?



We regulate industry because the free market is incapable of doing what’s best for the consumer.
Actually governmental regulation usually one party at the expense of another. And the more government intervenes the worse it is. Some things should only be managed due to the free market.

Apple preventing the distribution of legal software is not best for the consumer.
Yes it is, overall.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)