Where to publish a mobile application

Faced the need to publish your mobile application and at the same time faced with the fact that there is no resource in runet where at least more or less significant platforms would be gathered to house your own creations. Maybe there is such a resource, but it is hidden somewhere deep in the Internet’s web so that it is not shown in the first pages of the search results.

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Search engines appropriate request with persistent perseverance, the question "where" is converted into the answer "how ...", offering zero information. The result gave the request "markets for publishing mobile apps"in English and, among other things, issued an excellent current article, which, in order not to lose and every time not to jump into Google translator, decided to translate and publish the main here. In addition, the article contains quite a lot of interesting and useful other information.

So, “App Stores List 2018” from businessofapps.com . Well, that is,

List of mobile application stores 2018



The Google Play Store for Android and the Apple App Store for iOS are the two largest distribution channels for mobile applications, offering almost global reach to a huge potential audience. However, as competition grows in these two largest venues, it becomes more and more difficult for developers to make their applications visible in store windows. At the same time, many new alternative app stores have emerged, due to the open nature of the Android platform (which allows third-party applications to be distributed) and the growth of the Chinese application market, where Google Play is not officially available. These resources provide developers with a number of benefits and can be an important part of their marketing and distribution strategy.

Launching an application using alternative stores can match your market entry strategy if you want to reach an audience in a particular niche. Knowing which audience an app store serves means that developers can confidently offer their own app — there are users who are interested in this type of app. For example, an application trading platform may specialize in a specific application topic (games, utilities, business ...). Alternative app stores also allow you to focus on a national audience — for example, Tencent MyApp, 360 Mobile Assistant (China) and SK T-Store (Korea) will be key channels for Western developers and publishers seeking access to these markets.

Alternative sites may offer a different income distribution model, more favorable for developers than the standard 70/30 division offered by Apple and Google Play. New stores may not be so generous, but they are able to offer more flexible payment systems. Access to additional advertising tools is also one of the key benefits of using alternative stores for independent developers who face difficulties in publishing due to tight control when editing by major publishers.

New sites can provide increasingly impressive levels of downloads and the number of users if you apply the right market entry strategy. This article lists mobile app stores grouped by platform, manufacturer, location, and mobile operator.

  • Android App Stores
  • IOS App Stores
  • Blackberry application stores
  • Cross-platform app stores
  • Specialized App Stores
  • Chinese app stores
  • Regional and shops of mobile operators

Key data on the mobile application industry:

  • Total number of Android apps on Google Play - 3.6 million
  • The total number of apps for iOS on the App Store is 2.2 million
  • MyApp (Tencent) market share - 25% of the market for Android applications in China
  • 360 Mobile Assistant market share - 15% of the Chinese market for Android applications
  • Xiaomi App Store Market Share - 11% of the Market for Android Applications in China

Android App Stores


As for the quantitative indicators, speaking about this category, there are data on the following sites:

  • Google Play leads the list with 3.6 million Android applications as of May 2018,
  • more than 850 thousand applications in the independent application store GetJar,
  • 700 thousand - Aptoid,
  • more than 430 thousand in the Amazon AppStore,
  • 300 thousand. Opera Mobile Store.

Source: Wikipedia



Google Play is an Android application store, managed by Google, with more than 3.3 million apps, several categories, top charts, parenting guides, and more.

CodeNgo is, however, not a store, but a service — it offers the sending of Android applications to trading platforms. Just fill out one form to send your app to more than 30 stores - from Google Play, Opera to Amazon, Samsung and others. CodeNgo also has a section with top app stores for Android.



Appbrain- is an online store, created with the aim to provide developers with a quick and easy way to expand the implementation of applications, as well as develop their business. AppBrain pays developers only for the actual installation, not for clicks or impressions. The budget for advertising services can start at $ 100, and developers can track their expenses and the number of installations in real time to get visual results.



Slideme- This is an alternative application store, founded in 2008 in Seattle, hosts Android applications targeted at specific segments of the audience. Market philosophy - “One store cannot reach all users with the applications they need.” The company is also positioned as a place where applications are distributed for those users who do not have Google Play-enabled devices — many of these devices are pre-installed SlideMe. The second place after Google Play, speaking in terms of the global reach of Android applications, is an impressive figure.



1Mobile- application store that provides a collection of mobile applications, games and videos. There are several mobile formats on the website, but the Android format includes the largest library of applications. Developers must complete a standard registration procedure before they can begin publishing applications to 1Mobile. Having registered, the developers send their application to 1Mobile for AppReview - if the developer's application is of high enough quality for publication, it will appear on 1Mobile within 2 business days. If the application does not meet specific requirements, then the developer will have to correct the errors. Income distribution - standard 70/30. 1Mobile aims to become the leading alternative choice for sales and distribution of applications.



Aptoide- gives solutions to users to create their own application store. The resource provides developers, equipment manufacturers and telcos access to a fully customizable app store. Thanks to an ever-growing community and a large number of partnerships, Aptoide is currently one of the leading players in the application market.

Some Aptoide clients:



Top app stores for iOS


Unlike the open Google model for Android, Apple Inc. created its ecosystem as a closed moderated platform, which assumes the presence of only one app store - the App Store, which by January 2017 had 2.2 million iOS apps. Another distinctive feature of the Apple ecosystem from iOS is the blocking of iOS-managed devices (iPhone and iPad) from certain mobile operators. From the first days of the advent of iOS, several alternative app stores based on it appeared. This required hacking and unlocking devices to be able to install iOS applications outside the official Apple app store. As of 2017, there are only a few such app stores.

App Store - 2.20 million applications,
Cydia - no data,
GetJar - 0.85 million.
Appland - 0.13 million. The



App Store is the official Apple app store for iOS and iOS devices, such as the iPhone and iPad. The process of reviewing the application takes about a day on average. The total number of applications, iPad and iPhone combined, is more than 2.2 million. The total number of downloads for iOS applications from July 2008 to June 2017 is more than 180 billion. The number of applications in the App Store has grown from 5,000 at the time of launch in summer 2008 to 2.2 million in January 2017.

The number of applications available on the App Store 2008-2017.


Cydia- unofficial app store for iOS, which is available only to users with "hacked" iOS devices. Most applications are offered for free, but there are paid applications. It is claimed more than 4.5 million users per week.

BlackBerry OS application stores


The fifth largest store with 130,000 Blackberry apps is going through difficult times: Facebook and Whatsapp have recently announced that their apps will no longer support Blackberry.



BlackBerry World is the official app store for the BlackBerry platform. However, newer phones use the Google Play app store. Although the BlackBerry World is now also working with the Amazon app store.

Cross-platform app stores


The ecosystem of mobile applications is not limited to the duo of iOS and Android. Of the other platforms, many app stores are still focused on Windows Phone and Symbian. Amazon and Windows Phone app stores rank third and fourth in terms of applications: 400,000 and 340,000 applications, respectively. Some stores, such as Kongregate, are focused on the gaming market, while Opera offers cross-platform applications that run in their own web browser. Many of them also work as content stores, offering not only apps, but also music, wallpaper, screens and other products. Amazon



teamlaunched its own alternative Android application store for Android developers in 2011 and, being a well-known brand, was able to attract quite a lot of attention to it. The store has fewer applications than some other competing stores, partly because of the moderation process, which must meet certain quality standards.

Amazon provides many useful services for developers using their app store. The company is positioned as one of the largest third-party alternative application stores, they allow developers to distribute applications in more than 200 countries.



Getjar, since its inception in 2004, has allowed to download more than 2 billion applications. 3 million apps are downloaded every day. In addition, more than 395,000 developers have registered with the company to distribute their applications. Supported application platforms for developers are Android, older Windows Mobile and even iOS (although Android prevails here). Users can find an application for developers in a number of categories, and the most popular and new applications are displayed on the main page of the store site.

For developers, there are no upfront costs, and the requirements for publishing an application are minimal. Developers can also target any device or platform. GetJar claims to reach more than 200 million Android users - developers can direct this audience with free cross-promotion and proprietary technology Behavioral Targeting. At the time of writing, they are positioned as one of the largest alternative app stores.



Opera Mobile Storewas launched in 2011. The store boasts support for multiple application formats: Android, Java, iOS, Windows Mobile and provides 170,000 applications and games for 6000 different models of mobile devices. First of all, the site presents the most popular applications, new software. Applications are divided into key categories such as business and finance, games, multimedia, communication and more.

Application or game developers can register a developer account that allows them to publish their applications in several different formats. The advertising platform is part of the free account. The wide range of supported application formats in the store, combined with the fact that the application can be distributed in 230 countries, means that the platform is positioned as one of the leading places to enter specific local markets. This is ideal for the developer who created the application, referring to a specific market.



Appolicious- one of the most reputable alternative app stores, operating since 2009. In 2010, he became a Yahoo! and began to provide high-quality applications for iOS. In addition, Appolicious owns the androidapps.com directory in order to cover Android with one structure.



NexVa is a multi-platform application store that also offers white labels for mobile operators, OEMs and companies from different business sectors. He also works with partners to drive traffic through CPI and advertising solutions and offers his own API to support application monetization.



Kongregate- application store, popular and famous for its choice of games in Flash. The store continues this tradition by offering video games for the mobile Internet (and, therefore, mostly cross-platform).



Appland is both an app store and an app store manager that allows you to create your own stores. Application download is free. Your applications will be on display in stores installed by other developers.

Itch.io is an application store that is designed for game developers and gamers. This is a free and paid indie game store that covers all platforms. Provides a very large selection, has sections for game resources, development tools and books.

Specialized application stores manufacturers


Following Apple’s brilliant example with its App Store as part of a company's ecosystem that helps to unite its customers into a single platform to provide them with the best attitude, leading smartphone and tablet manufacturers have opened their own app stores. None of these stores came close in scale to the Apple App Store and Google Play Google, but nevertheless, the app stores of these companies are located together with millions of Samsung, LG, Lenovo smartphones owners who can download and install apps as soon as they acquire the corresponding device. .



Samsung apps- the official app store of Samsung Electronics for apps running on Samsung Galaxy smartphones, Samsung Gear and popular Samsung phones. It is available in 125 countries and offers applications that can be run on Android, Windows Mobile and Bada mobile operating systems.



LG Smart World is the official app store managed by LG. It offers Android apps to run on mobile devices and LG smartphones.



Huawei is the official Huawei app store that hosts games and apps, and also offers its own cloud storage solution.



The article then follows a list of brief descriptions of 16 Chinese sites and several specific regional app stores from countries such as Turkey, Sri Lanka, South Korea, and South Africa. If someone from domestic developers is interested in such exotic ecosystems of mobile applications, I think they will be able to refer to the original article.

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