Apple’s App Store Small Business Program affects 98% of developers

Apple’s App Store Small Business Program — which cuts the App Store fee from 30% to 15% for all developers who earned less than US$1 million in 2019 (after the store’s fee) — affects 98% of the company’s developers, according to a report by appfigures.

The report says that, of the two million apps available in Apple’s app stores, 376,000 are either a paid download, have in-app purchases, or monetize via subscriptions.Those apps belong to almost 125,000 developers. Appfigures says that, of those developers, only a little under 2% earned more than $1,000,000 in 2019.

Earlier this month, Apple announced a new developer program “to accelerate innovation and help small businesses and independent developers propel their businesses forward with the next generation of groundbreaking apps on the App Store.”

Apple CEO Tim Cook says the new App Store Small Business Program will benefit the vast majority of developers who sell digital goods and services on the store, providing them with a reduced commission on paid apps and in-app purchases. Developers can qualify for the program and a reduced, 15% commission if they earned up to $1 million in proceeds during the previous calendar year.

The App Store Small Business Program will launch on January 1, 2021. Its reduced commission means small developers and aspiring entrepreneurs will have more resources to invest in and grow their businesses in the App Store ecosystem, according to Apple.

In 2019 alone, the App Store ecosystem facilitated US$519 billion in commerce worldwide — with over 85% of that total accruing solely to third-party developers and businesses of all sizes, according to Apple. The App Store, which launched in 2008, currently offers 1.8 million apps and is visited by half a billion people each week.