Aptoide has accumulated over 430 million users, 10 billion downloads, and 1 million apps entirely outside Google Play and Apple’s App Store, according to Aptoide’s own disclosures and announcements with its backer, Digital Turbine. The Lisbon-based independent store reaches those users across Android, web, car, and TV, and since 2025 it has added iPhone through its EU iOS launch. That gives developers a distribution channel well beyond the two platforms most people treat as the whole mobile app market. The numbers below cover Aptoide’s user base, catalog size, monthly reach, revenue growth, iOS economics, and funding history.

Key Takeaways

On iOS, Aptoide charges 20% on organic in-app purchases against Apple’s 30%, roughly a one-third lower take rate for developers.
Aptoide posted 75% year-on-year revenue growth in 2023, the year before its full iOS expansion.
Digital Turbine put €8.5 million into Aptoide, building on an earlier stake the two firms formed in October 2022.
On iOS, Aptoide’s commission runs from 10% to 20% depending on whether the marketplace generated the purchase.
Aptoide absorbs Apple’s Core Technology Fee rather than passing it to users, a fee Apple sets at €0.50 for each first annual install over one million in a rolling 12-month window.
Aptoide filed an EU antitrust complaint against Google in 2014, a decade before the Digital Markets Act reshaped the market in its favor.
Aptoide launched its iOS store as an invite-only beta in June 2024 before opening it to all EU users.

Editor’s Choice

Aptoide reports over 430 million users, 10 billion downloads, and 1 million apps across its distribution channels.
Aptoide reaches a global community of 50 million users per month.
Aptoide raised a Series A of €3.7 million ($4 million) in 2015, led by e.ventures.
The company took €750,000 in seed funding from Portugal Ventures in 2013.
Aptoide’s first public release dates to November 17, 2009.

Aptoide by the Numbers: Users, Downloads and Apps

Aptoide’s scale is the headline story. Per its own disclosures, and according to TechCrunch’s February 2026 review, it runs to over 430 million users, 10 billion downloads, and 1 million apps, all built outside the two dominant app marketplaces. The catalog reaches those users across Android, web, car, and TV, with iOS added as a fifth channel.

Aptoide’s base spans over 430 million users, 10 billion downloads, and 1 million apps across all of its distribution channels.
Aptoide runs with global reach and no geo-restrictions, backed by one of the best malware-detection systems in the market.
It is an open-source store that scans apps to confirm they are safe before installation.

Metric	Latest figure
Registered users	Over 430 million
Cumulative downloads	10 billion
Apps in catalog	1 million
Distribution channels	Android, web, TV, car, iOS

Source: Aptoide, TechCrunch 2026

By the numbers: Aptoide reports over 430 million users, 10 billion downloads, and 1 million apps, all accrued outside Google Play and Apple’s App Store. That scale sits almost entirely beyond the two default marketplaces on most phones, which is why the average user never sees it.

Aptoide Monthly Active Users and Reach

Monthly reach is the number that matters most for a store this mature. According to Aptoide, it counts a global community of 50 million users per month, the active slice of its far larger registered base. Apple’s own developer documentation defines the competing iOS fee structure Aptoide is measured against, which is why advertisers and developers weigh that monthly figure when they decide whether an alternative store is worth shipping to.

Aptoide reported the 50 million monthly figure when it opened its iOS store to all EU users in 2025.
In the nine months after its June 2024 iOS beta, tens of thousands of people joined and downloaded the store.
The monthly community sits against a cumulative base of over 430 million registered users.

Recent Developments

February 2026: Epic Games began bringing its titles, including Fortnite, to Aptoide’s iOS store in the EU alongside other alternative marketplaces.
February 2026: Aptoide’s cross-platform catalog stood at 1 million apps for its more than 430 million users across Android, web, car, and TV.
Early 2026: Apple’s CTC applies to digital goods or services sold through the App Store, web distribution, and alternative marketplaces, a shift toward the Core Technology Commission that reshapes the fee math Aptoide navigates.

Aptoide Revenue Growth and the Digital Turbine Investment

Aptoide’s momentum shows in both its top line and its cap table, where the company reported 75% year-on-year revenue growth in 2023, then secured a €8.5 million investment from Digital Turbine that built on the two firms’ initial tie-up in October 2022.

Aptoide reported 75% year-on-year revenue growth in 2023.
The €8.5 million Digital Turbine investment followed the two firms’ initial tie-up in October 2022.
GamesHub, a joint venture between Digital Turbine and Aptoide, targets US mobile carriers including Verizon, Tracfone, and Cricket.
Paulo Trezentos, Aptoide’s Founder and CEO, framed the 2023 results this way: “Our accomplishments in 2023 validate our commitment to delivering exceptional experiences”.

Why it matters: Aptoide’s 75% revenue growth and its €8.5 million Digital Turbine investment landed in the same window that Apple’s EU obligations under the Digital Markets Act took effect, turning a regulatory opening into distribution reach across a second platform.

Aptoide for iOS: The EU Digital Markets Act Launch

The Digital Markets Act turned Aptoide from an Android story into an iOS one. Aptoide launched the first free alternative app store on iOS as a beta in June 2024, then made it available to all EU users, crediting the Digital Markets Act for creating the expanded market.

On iOS, Aptoide charges 20% on organic in-app purchases, well under Apple’s 30%.
The June 2024 beta was the first free alternative app store on iOS, per Aptoide.
The iOS launch added an App Versions feature that lets users install older versions of their favorite games, which Aptoide calls the first such feature on any app store.
Aptoide’s iOS store scans apps to confirm they are safe to download and install, carrying over its Android security posture.
Aptoide has fought to give developers freedom beyond major app stores since its founding almost two decades ago.

iOS milestone	Timing
Invite-only beta launch	June 2024
Full availability to all EU users	2025
App Versions feature debut	2025

Source: Aptoide 2025

The iOS expansion follows the same platform-diversification pattern documented in our mobile app growth statistics, where distribution beyond the default store increasingly drives developer economics.

Aptoide vs Apple: Commission and Fee Comparison

Fees are where Aptoide draws its sharpest contrast with Apple. On organic in-app purchases, Aptoide for iOS charges 20% against Apple’s 30%, and its overall iOS commission ranges from 10% to 20% depending on whether the marketplace generated the purchase.

Aptoide charges 20% on organic iOS in-app purchases against Apple’s 30%.
Its overall iOS commission runs from 10% to 20%, and it covers Apple’s Core Technology Fee itself rather than charging consumers.
Apple’s Developer Program includes one million first annual installs per year for free before the Core Technology Fee applies.
Above that threshold, Apple charges €0.50 for each first annual install over one million in the past 12 months.

Key finding: Aptoide’s 20% ceiling on organic iOS purchases undercuts Apple’s 30% standard, and its iOS commission can drop to 10%. That gap is a product of the Digital Markets Act rather than a permanent market feature, so the advantage depends on the EU keeping the regime in place.

Aptoide Funding History: Seed to Series A

Aptoide reached its current scale on comparatively modest early funding.
It raised €750,000 in seed funding from Portugal Ventures in 2013, then closed a Series A of €3.7 million ($4 million) in 2015, led by e.ventures with co-investment from Gobi Partners and Golden Gate Ventures.

The €750,000 seed round from Portugal Ventures closed in 2013.
The €3.7 million Series A ($4 million) closed in 2015, led by e.ventures.
Aptoide was incorporated in Lisbon in 2011 as a spin-off of CM Software, and its 2015 round drew co-investment from Gobi Partners and Golden Gate Ventures.

Aptoide and Antitrust: The 2014 Google Complaint

Aptoide’s regulatory history predates the rules that now benefit it. In 2014, the company filed an EU antitrust complaint against Google, arguing that Google creates obstacles for users to install third-party app stores. That posture placed Aptoide on the same side of the argument the Digital Markets Act would later adopt.

The 2014 complaint claimed that Google creates obstacles for users to install third-party app stores.
A decade later, Aptoide credited the Digital Markets Act with helping create the expanded market it now operates in.

How Aptoide Works: Decentralized, Open-Source Distribution

Aptoide’s architecture separates it from centralized stores. It uses a decentralized store model in which users can manage their own store, and its Android client is open source. Its name combines “APT,” the Debian package manager, with the last syllable of “Android”.

Several forks exist, including F-Droid, which was forked from Aptoide.
Aptoide remains Lisbon-based and open source across its distribution channels.

The broader download economy these independent stores feed into shows up in our mobile app statistics, where distribution channel choice increasingly shapes developer reach.

Is Aptoide safe to use?

Aptoide positions security as a core feature. The company scans apps to confirm they are safe to download and install, and it promotes one of the best malware-detection systems in the market. Independent app stores still carry more sideloading risk than first-party stores, so users should keep device-level protections on and install only apps they can verify, which helps reduce, though never eliminates, exposure.

How much does Aptoide charge developers?

Aptoide’s developer economics vary by platform. On iOS, it charges 20% on organic in-app purchases, with an overall range of 10% to 20% depending on whether the marketplace generated the sale, and it absorbs Apple’s Core Technology Fee rather than passing it to users. That structure gives developers a lower headline take rate than Apple’s 30% standard commission on comparable organic purchases.

Conclusion

Aptoide’s numbers describe a marketplace hiding in plain sight: over 430 million users, 10 billion downloads, and 1 million apps built entirely outside Google Play and the App Store, now reaching 50 million users per month. Its 20% iOS take rate undercuts Apple’s 30%, its 75% revenue growth coincided with a €8.5 million strategic investment from Digital Turbine, and its 2014 antitrust complaint against Google anticipated the Digital Markets Act it now leans on.

For developers weighing distribution beyond the two default stores, and for readers tracking how the DMA is reshaping mobile economics, Aptoide is a clear case study of an independent store turning regulation into reach. The next data point to watch is how far Epic’s Fortnite launch and Apple’s shifting Core Technology Commission move Aptoide’s iOS numbers over the current year.