{"slug":"app-store-developer-fees","name":"App Store / Google Play / Steam Developer Take-Home Calculator","category":"business","tags":["income","business","planning"],"region":null,"tagline":"What your app or game actually nets after Apple’s, Google’s, or Valve’s cut — including the 30 Jun 2026 Google Play restructure no AI model has memorized.","endpoint":"https://xearno.tools/api/v1/tools/app-store-developer-fees","page":"https://xearno.tools/t/app-store-developer-fees","description":"Computes a developer’s real take-home on the App Store, Google Play, or Steam. General AI gets this wrong three ways. First, Google Play restructured its US/UK/EEA fees on 30 June 2026 — a 10%+5% / 25%+5% matrix keyed to when the user installed your app — which post-dates every model’s training data. Second, all three platforms have a “$1M tier” that works completely differently: Apple’s Small Business Program is opt-in with a prior-calendar-year eligibility test and a mid-year cliff; Google’s 15% bracket is automatic and marginal per calendar year; Steam’s tiers are marginal on per-app LIFETIME gross — models conflate the three into “15% under $1M”. Third, Apple’s EU (DMA) and US (external purchase links) fee situations are under active litigation, where a confident stale answer is the worst answer of all. This tool computes the exact net from the current schedules.","inputSchema":{"type":"object","properties":{"platform":{"description":"Platform The three stores’ fee structures are not variations on one formula — they are structurally different. This decides everything below.","type":"string","enum":["apple","googlePlay","steam"],"default":"apple"},"annualRevenue":{"description":"Gross revenue ($) Gross annual consumer spend, before the store’s cut. STEAM IS DIFFERENT: enter this app’s LIFETIME gross, not annual — Steam’s tiers are marginal on per-app lifetime revenue, so where you sit depends on everything the app has ever earned.","type":"number","minimum":0,"default":200000},"revenueType":{"description":"Revenue type Apple and Google Play only — ignored for Steam. Apple drops any subscription to 15% after the subscriber’s first paid year; Google prices subscriptions on a separate (flat) schedule from one-time purchases.","type":"string","enum":["oneTime","subscriptionY1","subscriptionY2"],"default":"oneTime"},"appleSbp":{"description":"Apple Small Business Program Apple only. Unlike Google’s automatic bracket, SBP is OPT-IN, and eligibility is tested on your PRIOR calendar year’s post-commission proceeds (≤ $1M). Crossing $1M proceeds mid-year flips future sales that year to 30% — a cliff, not a marginal bracket.","type":"string","enum":["yes","no"],"default":"yes"},"googleRegion":{"description":"Google Play buyer region Google Play only. Google restructured US/UK/EEA fees effective 30 June 2026 — a service fee plus a separate 5% billing fee, keyed to when the user installed your app. Rest-of-world keeps the classic 15%-to-$1M / 30% schedule.","type":"string","enum":["row","usUkEea"],"default":"row"},"googleCohort":{"description":"Install cohort (US/UK/EEA) Google US/UK/EEA, non-subscription revenue only. New installs pay 10%+5% on the first $1M/yr then 25%+5%; existing installs pay a flat 20%+5%. Real revenue is usually a mix — run both to bracket your blend.","type":"string","enum":["newInstalls","existingInstalls"],"default":"newInstalls"}},"required":[],"additionalProperties":false},"methodology":["Net take-home = gross consumer spend − the store’s fee under the current schedule. Effective fee rate = fee ÷ gross. Apple and Google figures are annual; Steam is per-app lifetime (that is how Valve’s tiers are defined).","Apple (developer.apple.com, verified 2026-07-23): standard commission 30%. Small Business Program: 15%, opt-in, eligible while PRIOR-calendar-year post-commission proceeds ≤ $1M; crossing $1M proceeds mid-year moves future sales that year to 30%. Subscriptions: 30% in a subscriber’s first paid year, 15% after one year of paid service (15% from day one under SBP).","Apple SBP simplification (documented deliberately): the $1M test is on post-commission PROCEEDS, so at 15% it is crossed at 1,000,000 ÷ 0.85 ≈ $1,176,470.59 gross. This tool applies 15% flat up to that gross and a 15%/30% blend above it. Apple’s real mid-year mechanics are harsher — the flip to 30% applies to ALL sales after the crossing date (calendar-dependent), and exceeding $1M in a year disqualifies the following year entirely until proceeds fall back under $1M. The blend here is therefore a best case for revenue above the line.","Google Play rest-of-world: automatic marginal bracket for every developer — 15% on the first $1M of gross each calendar year, 30% above; no enrollment. Subscriptions: 15% flat from day one.","Google Play US/UK/EEA (effective 30 Jun 2026): a service fee plus a separate 5% Google Play billing fee. Subscriptions: 10% + 5%. Other revenue, keyed to install cohort: apps first installed on/after 30 Jun 2026 pay 10% + 5% on the first $1M per year then 25% + 5%; installs predating that pay 20% + 5%. The 5% billing fee is avoidable by using your own payment processor (typical processor cost ≈ 2.9% + 30¢ per transaction, with billing/refund/tax handling shifted to you) — noted as an insight, not computed. Google’s Level Up program (15% + 5% tiers for qualifying developers) launches September 2026 and is not yet modeled.","Steam (Valve, structure unchanged since late 2018): marginal on per-app LIFETIME gross — 30% up to $10M, 25% from $10M to $50M, 20% above $50M. Enter lifetime gross for the app, not annual revenue. The $100 Steam Direct submission fee (recoupable once the app earns $1,000) is excluded as one-time and immaterial at these scales.","Not computed (fluid or out of scope): Apple’s US external-purchase-link regime (currently 0% Apple fee, under active litigation — SCOTUS cert petition June 2026); Apple’s EU DMA alternative terms (tiered Store Services fee 5%/13%, Core Technology Fee → Core Technology Commission transition, General Court judgment July 2026 — genuinely per-case); income tax and VAT/sales tax the stores collect and remit; refunds and chargebacks; currency conversion.","Confidence: Apple, Google, and Valve figures verified on primary platform pages 2026-07-23. The Google US/UK/EEA schedule is three weeks old at verification; all figures refresh quarterly."],"usage":"POST https://xearno.tools/api/v1/tools/app-store-developer-fees with a JSON body matching inputSchema."}