Millions of Android apps have disappeared from the Play Store this year, and for good reason

Millions of Android apps have disappeared from the Play Store this year, and for good reason

Google Play Store logo on smartphone stock photo (2)

Credit: Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority
  • Google Play Store has lost nearly half of its apps since early 2024, dropping from 3.4 million to around 1.8 million.
  • The sharp decline follows stricter quality policies that removed low-functionality, spammy, or deceptive apps.
  • Despite fewer overall titles, app development activity remains strong with over 10,000 new releases this year.

If you feel like the Google Play Store looks a little less crowded these days, you are not imagining it. A major cleanup over the past year has cut nearly half the apps from the Android marketplace, according to new data shared by app intelligence firm Appfigures. (h/t: TechCrunch)

At the start of 2024, Google Play hosted roughly 3.4 million apps worldwide. Fast forward to today, and that number has dropped to about 1.8 million, representing a 47% decline. Appfigures pointed out that this isn’t part of a broader industry trend, either. Apple’s App Store, for instance, saw a slight uptick in apps during the same period, growing from 1.6 million to 1.64 million apps.