Logo

Apple app developers brought in more sales than McDonald’s in 2017

It’s a very good time to be an Apple developer.

It’s a very good time to be an Apple developer.

The company announced Jan. 4 that developers who make apps and games for its iOS mobile operating system earned $26.5 billion in revenue in 2017. That’s an increase of 30% over what developers generated from sales in 2016, and more than the annual revenues of Starbucks, Qualcomm, DuPont, Kraft Heinz, or McDonald’s, according to Fortune. Apple said iOS customers made $890 million in purchases alone during the seven-day period between Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve.

 

Apple, which takes a 15% cut of App store sales, puts the successes down to new features available on its mobile devices, including ARKit, which allows most modern iPhones and iPads to run augmented-reality apps with ease.

Since launching the App Store in June 2008, developers have earned over $86 billion in revenue from sales. But it’s not all good news for app builders: As Bloomberg’s Shira Ovide points out, the growth rate is actually down from 2016, when developers earned 40% more than they had a year earlier.

Regardless, the record-breaking numbers are welcome news for Apple, as sales of its latest smartphone, the iPhone X, may well prove to be lower than analysts had previously expected.

📬 Sign up for the Daily Brief

Our free, fast and fun briefing on the global economy, delivered every weekday morning.

Apple app developers brought in more sales than McDonald’s in 2017