Google Play & App Store Revenue & Fee Calculator

How Google Play and Apple App Store commission tiers work in 2026

Both Google Play and Apple operate a tiered commission structure designed to give independent developers and small businesses a lower fee on their initial earnings. Under Google Play's 15% service fee tier and Apple's App Store Small Business Program, qualifying developers pay a reduced 15% rate on their first US$1,000,000 of eligible gross revenue each calendar year.

Once an account surpasses the $1,000,000 threshold within a calendar year, standard earnings above that amount are billed at the full 30% commission rate. For recurring subscriptions, both stores permanently reduce their cut to 15% for active retained subscribers, regardless of whether you are enrolled in the small business tier.

The real math of External Payment Links and Alternative Billing

Following antitrust enforcement and the Epic Games settlement, Google Play and Apple allow developers in select regions (including the US, European Economic Area, and South Korea) to offer external payment links or alternative in-app billing systems like Stripe, Adyen, or Paddle.

However, using external checkout is not fee-free. Google and Apple still charge a reduced platform service fee (typically 11% to 20% on Google Play, and 12% to 27% on Apple), on top of which you must pay your third-party payment processor (Stripe's standard 2.9% + $0.30 per successful charge).

• Fixed transaction fees ($0.30) severely penalize low-price in-app purchases ($0.99 to $4.99).
• Routing mobile users out of the app into a web browser causes a 12% to 25% checkout abandonment drop-off.
• You become directly responsible for chargeback fees, fraud disputes, and multi-country tax compliance (VAT/GST).
• For subscriptions under $20/month, native In-App Purchase at 15% almost always yields higher net profit than external web checkout.

How to qualify for and keep the 15% reduced fee tier

On Google Play, enrollment is not automatic. Developers must create an Account Group in the Google Play Console and formally enroll their associated developer accounts. Any related accounts under common ownership share the single $1M threshold.

On Apple, developers with under $1M in gross proceeds across all associated developer accounts during the previous calendar year must submit an application through App Store Connect. If your proceeds exceed $1M in the current year, the standard 30% rate applies to sales thereafter.