App Store versus Play revenue split: Sensor Tower’s store estimates, fees included

Sensor Tower’s State of Gaming 2026 materials put App Store game revenue near $52.5 billion and Google Play near $30 billion for 2025, while Play still leads downloads. Those are store consumer-spend estimates on two official stores—not net publisher proceeds after fees and taxes, and not China Android third-party spend.State of Gaming release; methodology notes in the report PDF.

Fees and countries are part of the split

Sensor Tower’s documented IAP scope includes paid downloads, in-app purchases and subscriptions from the App Store and Google Play and excludes third-party Android downloads. Revenue is commonly discussed as gross consumer spend inclusive of store take. Country mix matters: high-ARPU markets weight iOS; high-volume markets weight Play. A first-OS decision that cites “iOS wins revenue” without fee treatment and country coverage is incomplete.

Secondary outlets repeat the $52.5B / $30B split from Sensor Tower; they are not independent measurements.

Use the split carefully

Our recommendation is to record estimator, gross-versus-net treatment, stores covered and whether China Android third-party is included before using the split in a launch memo. Missing fee or country fields stay blank.

Inspect the evidence

Download the source-population and comparability card. The extraction separates documented facts from our analysis and unknowns.

Further reading in the existing archive: authority Sensor Tower IAP-scope card; Blended ROAS Calculation: Where It Quietly Goes Wrong. These links provide background; this check does not independently verify their full contents.

Frequently asked questions

How should UA teams read and apply App Store versus Play revenue split: Sensor Tower’s store estimates, fees included?

Confirm the reading discipline already on this URL: Sensor Tower’s State of Gaming 2026 materials put App Store game revenue near $52.5 billion and Google Play near $30 billion for 2025, while Play still leads downloads — those are store consumer-spend estimates on two official stores, not net publisher proceeds after fees and taxes, and not China Android third-party spend. Soft-gate fees/countries framing to body: documented IAP scope includes paid downloads, IAP and subscriptions from App Store and Google Play and excludes third-party Android downloads; revenue commonly discussed as gross consumer spend inclusive of store take; high-ARPU markets weight iOS; high-volume markets weight Play; a first-OS decision that cites “iOS wins revenue” without fee treatment and country coverage is incomplete. Soft-gate: secondary outlets repeating $52.5B/$30B are not independent measurements. Soft-gate recommendation to body: record estimator, gross-versus-net treatment, stores covered and whether China Android third-party is included before using the split in a launch memo; missing fee or country fields stay blank. Soft-gate Inspect fields (Report/Period/Population/Metric/Aggregation/Critical limit/Comparable with) to body-read. Soft-gate: linked CSV 404 — do not invent additional table rows or studio net-revenue conversions.