The MacPaw team has conducted a survey of 670 Mac OS X developers, to learn their preferences on app distribution channels, revenue channels, tools they prefer to use, challenges they face, etc.
When asked how they distribute their Mac apps, 22.68% said via the Mac App Store only, 34.90% said outside the Mac App Store only, and 42.42% used both methods. When asked where they got more revenue from, 52% said the Mac App Store, while 48% said outside the MAS.
When asked if they thought sharing 30% of revenue with Apple is worth the advantages of the MAS, 62.31% of developers said “no,” while 37.69% said “yes.”
About a third of the developers the Mac Dev team asked run their own business. More than 20% of them have tried the MAS, but left. The reasons for leaving:
- Licensing limitations: 4%;
- API restrictions: 4%;
- Sandboxing: 6%;
- No app bundles: 8%;
- No analytics: 13%;
- No pricing upgrades: 27%;
- No ability to respond to clients’ reviews: 34%;
- No demos/trials: 41%;
- 30% revenue share with Apple: 52%;
- Long and unclear app review process: 53%.
You can find more details about the survey results here. Mac Paw is a developer of Mac software. Their products include CleanMyMac, Gemini, CleanMyDrive, DevMate, and more.
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