The Apple Developer Program fee is $99 a year and Google Play charges $25 once. What each covers, what it does not, and the costs that surprise teams at launch.
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What the $99 includes
The Apple Developer Program annual fee is $99 (USD) per year for an individual or an organisation. Google Play charges $25 once, for the life of the account. Everything below is what those fees do not cover, which is where teams get caught.
The right to publish on the App Store, for as many apps as you like.
TestFlight: up to 100 internal testers from your own team, and up to 10,000 external testers once a build passes beta review.
App Store Connect, certificates, provisioning profiles and push notification services.
Access to beta OS releases and to the developer forums.
The fee renews annually. Miss the renewal and your apps come off the store: not immediately, but Apple stops distribution once the membership lapses. Expiring certificates are the more common failure. A build signed by a certificate that expired cannot be installed by testers, even though the app on the store keeps working.
How the Apple Developer Enterprise Program compares
The Enterprise Program is $299 a year and exists for internal-only distribution inside one organisation. It cannot be used to ship to the public. Choosing it because “we are an enterprise” is a common and expensive mistake: Apple revokes accounts used to distribute publicly.
Individual or organisation account?
An individual account is fast: an Apple ID, a card, sometimes a photo of ID. Your personal name appears on the store as the seller.
An organisation account needs a D-U-N-S number, and Apple verifies that the legal entity exists and that you can bind it. In the UK that usually means matching Companies House details exactly. Allow one to three weeks in total: the D-U-N-S lookup is free but takes days, and Apple’s verification call can take longer.
Working with Magora, the client owns the app, so we publish only from the client’s own Apple accounts. Transferring an app between accounts is possible, but it is a support process with conditions: the app must have no pending agreements, no App Store Connect users in an awkward state, and both accounts must be in good standing. From experience it is slow, so it is better to publish from the right account in the first place. This is one of the things an experienced iOS development partner sets up correctly on day one rather than unpicking later.
What is not in the fee
The commission matters more than the membership for anything that sells. A subscription app turning over £10,000 a month pays Apple £1,500–£3,000 in the same month. The $99 is a rounding error next to it, which is why the fee is rarely the decision that costs money.
| Cost | Typical | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Apple annual fee | $99/yr | Per account, not per app |
| Google Play | $25 once | Per account |
| Apple commission | 15–30% of in-app revenue | 15% under the Small Business Program (under $1m/yr) |
| Google commission | 15–30% | Similar tiers |
| Push, analytics, crash tools | £0–£300/mo | Free tiers cover early stage |
| Backend hosting | £50–£1,000+/mo | Depends entirely on the product |
| Code signing on CI | Included | Engineer time to configure it is not |
| App review rejections | Engineer days | We budget for one or two rounds on a first release |
The UK specifics
Apple bills in USD and the amount on your statement moves with the exchange rate.
You need a bank account in the entity’s name to receive payouts, plus tax forms: UK companies complete a W-8BEN-E, individuals a W-8BEN.
For digital goods sold to consumers, Apple handles VAT as the marketplace in most territories — but not everywhere, and not for every product type. Take advice before assuming.
Renewal, and the trap in between
Apple’s renewal is automatic if a payment method is on file. The trap is a card that expires in the same month as the membership: the charge fails, the membership lapses, apps come down, and the fix requires a fresh purchase rather than a retry.
Two habits prevent it: a calendar reminder 30 days before renewal, and a payment method owned by the company rather than by whoever set the account up three years ago.
When the fee is the least of it
If you are weighing the $99 against the cost of building the app, the two are not comparable. A production iOS and Android build with a backend, an admin panel and a test suite is a three-to-six-month project, and it usually starts with a discovery phase that fixes the scope before anyone writes code. The fee is the last item on that budget, and it is the only one you can pay in a minute.
The biggest factor in an app budget is the team: one that thinks about the product, and uses AI-assisted development to cut cost without cutting quality. Our mobile app development company page sets out what those projects cost and how long they take.
Apple Developer fee: frequently asked questions
How much is the Apple Developer Fee in 2026?
The standard Apple Developer Program is $99/year. The Apple Developer Enterprise Program is $299/year. UK individuals pay 20% VAT on top of the $99 fee — around £20 extra.
Do I need an Apple Developer account to write iOS code?
No. Xcode is free from the Mac App Store. Write Swift, SwiftUI or Objective-C code, build apps, run them on iOS simulators — all without paying Apple. The paid programme is needed only when distributing apps to other people via App Store or TestFlight.
Can I test an iOS app on my own iPhone without paying?
Yes — since Xcode 7. Sign in with a free Apple ID, connect the device, Xcode installs the build. Limitations: builds expire after 7 days, max 3 free-tier apps on the same device at once, certain entitlements (push notifications, iCloud, Sign in with Apple) are not available.
What's the difference between Individual and Enterprise Apple Developer Program?
The $99 Individual programme distributes apps to the public via the App Store and up to 100 internal TestFlight testers and up to 10,000 external testers. The $299 Enterprise programme distributes apps only to your own staff with no App Store review. Enterprise eligibility: legal entity with 100+ employees and a clear internal use case.
Is the $99 Apple Developer fee one-time or annual?
Annual — the fee renews every 12 months. If you let the subscription lapse, your apps remain on the App Store for a grace period and then get removed.
Can I get a refund on the Apple Developer fee?
Yes — within 14 days of purchase if no developer software has been downloaded or programme services used. Apple's standard 14-day cooling-off period applies in the EU and the UK under consumer law.
Is the Apple Developer Fee tax-deductible in the UK?
For a UK business (Ltd company or sole trader) the fee is a normal business expense, deductible against corporation tax / income tax. VAT-registered businesses can reclaim the 20% UK VAT through their VAT return.
Can I transfer my Apple Developer account?
You cannot transfer the account itself, but you can transfer individual apps between Apple Developer accounts. The recipient must be a paid Apple Developer Program member. The transfer covers ratings, reviews, ranking and in-app purchase history. Restrictions: apps using iCloud, Apple Pay, Passbook or Game Center cannot be transferred.
What's the App Store Small Business Program?
Developers earning under $1M/year in App Store sales qualify for a reduced 15% commission instead of the standard 30%. Opt in after account approval; eligibility checked annually.
Do you need a paid Apple Developer account for Sign in with Apple, push notifications, iCloud?
Yes. The free Apple ID tier does not grant access to entitlements like Sign in with Apple, Push Notifications, iCloud, App Groups, Apple Pay, Game Center or Universal Links — all require the $99 paid programme.
How long does Apple's App Store review take in 2026?
Apple's average is currently 24-72 hours from submission to decision. Edge cases (regulated industries, AI capabilities, accessibility issues) can push to 7-10 days.
Can Magora register the Apple Developer account on our behalf?
Standard practice: the account is in your name, not Magora's. We help you register, verify and configure App Store Connect, but ownership stays with you from day one. That keeps IP, App Store reviews and analytics under your control.