Apple's EU Core Technology Fee Could Bankrupt Freemium App Developers

App developers in the European Union who choose to opt in to Apple's new business terms must pay an €0.50 "Core Technology Fee" or CTF for every app install over one million installs, a model that has the potential to bankrupt free or freemium app developers.

app store fees eu
Apple does not charge for the first one million "first annual installs" per iOS account each year, but after that, developers will begin racking up charges. A free or freemium app that goes "viral" and is downloaded more than one million times could be forced to pay astronomical fees, as demonstrated in estimates shared by developer Steve Troughton-Smith.


Under Apple's new business terms, a free or freemium app that gets two million annual "first installs" would need to pay an estimated $45,290 in fees per month according to Apple's fee calculator, or more than half a million dollars per year, even if no money is earned.

That's an unsustainable model for free apps, and freemium apps would need to be earning at least €0.50 per user to break even with the fee. A freemium app with thousands of installs from non-paying users could end up owing far more than is made. Developers will likely need to charge up front to ensure their apps make enough money to pay the CTF, as offering a free-to-download app could be risky if downloads exceed 1 million.

Free and freemium app developers can, however, choose to stick with Apple's current App Store business terms instead of opting for the new terms. In that situation, nothing would change, and app developers would continue to pay a 15 to 30 percent commission to Apple.

The €0.50 CTF applies to apps distributed both through the ‌App Store‌ and through alternative app stores if developers choose the new business terms. With the ‌App Store‌, developers are charged the €0.50 fee and must pay a 10 to 17 percent commission to Apple. With an alternative app store, there is no commission. Fees can be estimated for the existing terms and the new terms through a dedicated calculator that Apple has provided to developers.

Here's a breakdown of the available options:

  • Current App Store Agreement - Developers pay Apple a 15 to 30 percent commission. Under one million in revenue is a 15 percent commission through the ‌App Store‌ Small Business Program, over $1 million results in a 30 percent commission. Subscriptions require a 30 percent commission for the first year, and a 15 percent commission for the second year and beyond.
  • New terms, App Store distribution - Commission drops to 17 percent from 30 percent, and 10 percent from 15 percent. There is an additional fee of 3 percent for using Apple's payment system, so the commission would be between 13 and 20 percent for a developer that opts for the new rules and uses in-app purchases. The 3 percent fee does not apply for developers who use alternative payment systems. Developers must also pay €0.50 per app install per user each year after 1 million app installs.
  • New terms, alternative app store distribution - No commission, but developers must pay €0.50 per app install per user annually after 1 million app installs.

According to Apple, the CTF is applied for the first annual install, which is the first time an app is installed by an account in the EU in a 12-month period. After the first annual install, the app can be installed any number of times by the same account for the next 12 months with no charge.

Apple is waiving the fee for nonprofit organizations, accredited educational institutions, and government entities that are approved for a fee waiver.

Apple's Core Technology Fee could also be prohibitively expensive for apps like Spotify that have millions of users. An app that makes $10 million in sales through the ‌App Store‌ with 10 million "first installs" (aka, a 0.99 price) will need to pay Apple over $500k per month.


The EU app ecosystem changes are included in iOS 17.4, and developers who opt for Apple's new system will need to start paying fees starting in March when the update launches to the public.

Popular Stories

iOS 18

Apple Says iOS 18.4 Will Be Released in April With These New Features

Wednesday February 26, 2025 7:15 am PST by
In a recent press release, Apple confirmed that iOS 18.4 will be released in April. From the Apple News+ Food announcement:Coming with iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 in April, Apple News+ subscribers will have access to Apple News+ Food, a new section that will feature tens of thousands of recipes — as well as stories about restaurants, healthy eating, kitchen essentials, and more — from the...
Generic iPhone 17 Feature With Full Width Dynamic Island

Latest iPhone 17 Series CAD Images in Line With Redesign Rumors

Friday February 28, 2025 2:51 am PST by
Apple is expected to embrace a new camera system design for some models in its upcoming iPhone 17 series, and the latest purported CAD images don't deviate from what we have been hearing lately about Apple's new lineup. If you do not like the sound of an iPhone with a Google Pixel-style camera bar, look away now. Seasoned leaker Sonny Dickson shared the following images in a post on X...
iphone 16e usb c feature

Apple Provides Reason for iPhone 16e's Lack of MagSafe

Friday February 28, 2025 4:39 am PST by
Apple has offered a reason why the iPhone 16e doesn't include MagSafe, one of the more notable omissions from its latest entry-level smartphone. According to Apple representatives who spoke to Daring Fireball's John Gruber, MagSafe is not included in the iPhone 16e because "most people in the iPhone 16e's target audience exclusively charge their phones by plugging them into a charging...
apple intelligence black

These New Apple Intelligence Features Are Coming in iOS 18.4

Friday February 28, 2025 3:17 pm PST by
iOS 18.4 was supposed to bring new Apple Intelligence Siri features, but Apple ended up needing to pull those capabilities from the update to continue testing. There are fewer new Apple Intelligence additions now, but there are still some new features that will make the update worth installing when it comes out in April. Priority Notifications Apple introduced Priority Notifications back at ...
Generic iOS 19 Feature Mock Light

iOS 19 Rumored to Include These New Features for Your iPhone

Saturday March 1, 2025 11:00 am PST by
iOS 19 is still around three months away from being unveiled, but there are plenty of rumors about the upcoming update. Below, we recap iOS 19 rumors so far. Redesigned Camera App A leak earlier this year allegedly revealed a redesigned Camera app coming with iOS 19. On his YouTube channel Front Page Tech in January, Jon Prosser shared a video showing what the new Camera app will...
cook trump

Trump Responds to Apple Keeping Diversity Policies

Wednesday February 26, 2025 6:32 am PST by
In an all-caps post on Truth Social today, U.S. President Donald Trump said Apple should fully end its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies. Tim Cook meeting with President Trump in 2017 "APPLE SHOULD GET RID OF DEI RULES, NOT JUST MAKE ADJUSTMENTS TO THEM," he wrote. Trump's post comes one day after Apple held its annual shareholders meeting, during which a majority of...
apple watch ultra snow

6 Features Coming to the Apple Watch Ultra 3

Tuesday February 25, 2025 9:00 am PST by
The Apple Watch Ultra 3 is expected to launch later this year, arriving two years after the previous model with a series of improvements. While no noticeable design changes are expected for the third generation since the company tends to stick with the same Apple Watch design through three generations before changing it, there are a series of internal upgrades on the way. By the time the ...
airpods pro purple

Here's When AirPods Pro 3 Are Rumored to Launch

Monday February 24, 2025 9:14 am PST by
According to a post on X today from a leaker known as Kosutami, Apple plans to launch AirPods Pro 3 in May or June this year. The leaker also claimed that an AirTag 2 will launch around the same time. Kosutami is best known as a collector of prototype Apple hardware, but they have occasionally shared accurate information about Apple's future product plans. For example, they accurately...
apple c1

How Fast is Apple's First-Ever 5G Modem? The Results Are Surprising

Friday February 28, 2025 10:08 am PST by
iPhone 16e reviews are now out, and Apple's custom-designed C1 modem has been put to the test. The results so far are quite surprising, as the C1's speeds are not as slow compared to Qualcomm modems as originally expected. While the C1 does not support ultra-fast mmWave 5G in the U.S., it appears to offer comparable 5G performance to Qualcomm's Snapdragon X71 modem found in the iPhone 16,...

Top Rated Comments

mthomas184 Avatar
14 months ago
If you’re app is free, why the hell would you list it in a side loaded store knowing the fees.

This is a non issue.
Score: 75 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BC2009 Avatar
14 months ago

We all know that the new terms will be mandatory at the point of your annual account renewal.
I am pretty sure the new terms are there to deter people from using alternative app stores. Apple is telling the EU that the work they do to support app developers is not a charity and that adding value to the App Store (and revenue for non-free apps) is where Apple recuperates the costs of the investment they make into Xcode and all the API's (xxxKit's) they provide to developers.

I still recall when game consoles would take like 60% in licensing fees for every cartridge sold. Nobody cried about Nintendo or Sony or Microsoft doing that. How about when Amazon was taking like 95% from independent authors selling books through them and only paid them after they sold a minimum number of books? Yet Apple was the one who DOJ went after in eBooks.

There is nothing wrong with Apple taking the fees they do to provide development tools and distribution. The problem with the App Store that needs fixing is the horribly inconsistent and seemingly arbitrary review process for apps -- you would think Apple's executives would have fixed that by now.
Score: 71 Votes (Like | Disagree)
truthsteve Avatar
14 months ago
well no, you can use the old agreement. just don't switch to the new one.

clickbait title.
Score: 58 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Marshall73 Avatar
14 months ago
Ah, the greed never ends. Apple looked at what unity wanted to do then said “hold my beer”
Score: 42 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Shirasaki Avatar
14 months ago

I am pretty sure the new terms are there to deter people from using alternative app stores.
Not just deter, but with full intention to DOA it. Apple is full on middle fingering EU.
Score: 34 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DFZD Avatar
14 months ago
You don’t build a 3 Trillion Empire by sharing your lunch with other kids.
Score: 34 Votes (Like | Disagree)