App Store Fees Explained: How the 15% and 30% Commissions Actually Affect Your Profit

Everyone knows the app stores take 30%. But in 2026, the real fee structure is a lot more complicated than that headline number, with small business programs, subscription discounts, EU regulatory changes, and ongoing legal battles pushing fees around.

If you’re trying to figure out your actual profit margins, you need to understand exactly how much the platforms take and when. Let me walk through it.

Apple’s commission structure

Apple’s standard cut is 30% on paid app downloads and in-app purchases of digital goods. That covers payment processing, distribution across 175 storefronts in 44 currencies, review, and hosting.

Two reductions matter for most developers:

Small Business Program. If your app business earns less than $1 million in annual proceeds (across all your apps), you qualify for a 15% commission instead. You need to apply for it, and if you cross $1 million during a calendar year, you go back to 30% for the rest of that year. For indie developers, this effectively doubles your take-home on every sale.

Subscription discount. For auto-renewable subscriptions, Apple charges 30% for the first year a subscriber is active. After someone has been subscribed continuously for 12+ months, the rate drops to 15%. This applies whether or not you’re in the Small Business Program.

Apple also charges a $99/year developer program fee just to be on the store, free app or not.

Google Play’s commission structure

Google’s standard rate is also 30%, but their small business deal works differently.

Reduced service fee. All developers who enroll pay only 15% on the first $1 million in annual earnings. This isn’t income-restricted like Apple’s program - everyone gets the reduced rate on their first million, period. Above $1 million you’re back to 30%. Resets January 1st each year.

You enroll by creating an Account Group in Play Console and accepting the terms. Google’s one-time registration fee is $25, versus Apple’s annual $99.

Subscriptions. Here’s where Google is more generous: they charge 15% on all subscription revenue from day one. Not just after the first year. If your app is subscription-based, Google takes a significantly smaller bite from the start.

The Epic Games settlement could change things

The Epic v. Google legal saga is still playing out. A proposed settlement would cap Google Play fees at 9% for non-gameplay items and 20% for gameplay-affecting items, lasting through 2032.

As of early 2026, this still needs court approval - Judge Donato has expressed skepticism and the final hearing is set for April 30, 2026. If it goes through, Android developers in certain categories could see their fees drop dramatically.

EU DMA: alternative terms in Europe

The EU’s Digital Markets Act forced Apple to offer alternative terms in Europe. Developers can use alternative payment processors or app marketplaces, but Apple tacked on a Core Technology Fee of €0.50 per first annual install beyond the first million.

For most small developers this is neutral or worse - that per-install fee hurts free apps with high download volumes. If you have a high-revenue, low-download app you might benefit. High downloads, low revenue? Probably not.

What you actually take home (worked examples)

Numbers are easier to understand with real scenarios, so let me run through three revenue levels.

At $5,000/month

Platform	Rate	Commission	You keep
Apple (Small Business)	15%	$750	$4,250
Google Play (first $1M)	15%	$750	$4,250

Basically identical on both platforms at this level. The small business programs make the two stores equivalent for most indie developers.

At $50,000/month

Platform	Rate	Commission	You keep
Apple (Small Business)	15%	$7,500	$42,500
Google Play (blended)	~18.75%	$9,375	$40,625

At $600K/year, you still qualify for Apple’s Small Business Program. On Google, the first $1M is at 15% and the rest is at 30%, so your blended rate is about 18.75%. Apple’s actually cheaper here.

At $500,000/month

Platform	Rate	Commission	You keep
Apple (standard)	30%	$150,000	$350,000
Google Play (blended)	~28.75%	$143,750	$356,250

At this scale Apple’s full 30% kicks in. Google is marginally better because the first $1M still gets 15%, but the difference is small.

The costs nobody talks about

Commissions are the biggest expense, but there’s more:

Currency conversion. Both platforms handle FX when you sell internationally. Apple converts about 33 days after the fiscal period ends. Google converts at time of purchase. Neither discloses their exact spread - it’s baked into the rate you get.

Tax withholding. Both withhold taxes in many countries. Apple does this in over 70 countries. If you haven’t submitted proper tax docs (W-8BEN for non-US developers, etc.), the withholding rate can be much higher than it needs to be. Worth sorting out early.

Payout timing. Apple’s 33-day cycle after fiscal month close means you might wait 45-60 days from sale to cash in your account. Google’s 15th-of-next-month schedule is faster but still creates cash flow gaps if you’re running tight.

Refunds. Both platforms deduct refunds from your accrued revenue. Not a huge deal for most apps, but if you’re in a category with high refund rates, it adds up.

Why this matters for profit calculation

Your dashboard “revenue” isn’t your revenue. It’s gross sales before commissions. Your actual revenue is 70-85% of that number depending on your scale and program enrollment.

Stack acquisition costs on top - Google Ads, Apple Search Ads - and plenty of developers discover their profit margin is way thinner than they assumed.

I track net revenue after all fees and costs using Apps Finboard, which pulls in both revenue data and advertising spend. Seeing the real profit number rather than gross sales changes how you think about pricing, ad budgets, and where to focus your effort.