App Store and Google Play fees: what the stores charge in Brazil

Anyone planning an app that charges users usually does the math like this: plan price times number of customers. A line is missing. Apple and Google keep a cut of every sale made inside the app, and that cut can exceed a quarter of revenue.

In Brazil, the math changed in 2026. On June 18, Apple published new rules for the country after a settlement with CADE, Brazil's antitrust authority. Google also announced a new fee structure that hasn't reached Brazil yet. In this article I show what each store charges today, what's exempt from commission, and how it fits into the project before the first line of code.

What the App Store charges in Brazil in 2026

According to Apple's June 2026 announcement, made under the CADE settlement and effective from iOS 26.5, charges on digital goods and services in Brazil now look like this:

• App Store commission: 21% on most sales.
• Reduced commission: 10% for members of the Small Business Program and other Apple programs, and for subscriptions after the first year.
• Payment processing: an extra 5% when the sale goes through Apple's in-app purchase system.
• Link to pay outside the app: 15% on sales made on the website the app sends users to. Drops to 10% in the same cases as the reduced rate.
• Alternative stores: 5%, called the Core Technology Commission, for apps distributed outside the App Store.

In practice, a small developer charging through Apple's system pays 15% (10% commission plus 5% processing). Everyone else pays 26%. Apple itself makes it clear that apps that don't sell digital goods or services owe no commission at all.

What Google Play charges in Brazil

On Google Play's official fee page, Brazil is still on the old structure, which applies to markets outside the first round of changes:

• 15% on the first $1 million of developer revenue each year.
• 30% on anything above $1 million in the year.
• 15% on subscriptions with auto-renewal, regardless of revenue.

The change already has a date. In March 2026, Google announced a new structure that separates the service fee from the billing fee. In the United States, the UK, and Europe, the service fee dropped to 20% on purchases from new installs and to 10% on subscriptions, plus 5% for billing when payment goes through Google. Google says the changes will reach the rest of the world by September 30, 2027. Until then, Brazil stays on the 15% and 30% table.

What pays no commission at all

This is the part that changes the business plan the most, and the one fewest people know. Both stores only charge on what is digital and used inside the app.

Apple's guideline 3.1.3(e) says that if an app sells “physical goods or services that will be consumed outside of the app,” payment must use another method, such as a credit card. Google Play's payments policy says the same: the store's billing system can't be used for physical goods or services.

Exempt from commission:

• Delivery and online stores: food, clothing, parts, any delivered product.
• Booking: appointments, in-person classes, haircuts, technician visits.
• Transportation and travel: rides, tickets, lodging, tours.
• Services booked through the app: cleaning, maintenance, shipping.

Pays commission:

• Content or feature subscriptions: premium plans, members' areas, online courses inside the app.
• Virtual currency and items: credits, tokens, game levels.
• Feature unlocks: full version, extra reports, more users.

If your app is in the first group, the store fee doesn't affect your price. Your cost becomes the payment gateway fee, which you negotiate directly.

Three ways to charge and what each costs

For anyone selling something digital, Apple's new rules created three paths in Brazil. Here's an example with a R$50 monthly subscription from a small developer, in the first year:

1. Payment through Apple inside the app. 10% commission plus 5% processing: Apple keeps R$7.50. It's the path with the least friction for users, because they pay with the account already on their phone.
2. Link to pay on your website. 10% commission on the sale: R$5.00 to Apple. Add your gateway fee. Users leave the app, type in their card, and come back, and some give up along the way.
3. Alternative store. The app is distributed outside the App Store and pays a 5% Core Technology Commission: R$2.50. It's the cheapest path on paper, but it depends on users installing another store, which few people do today.

On Android, the same subscription pays 15% to Google: R$7.50.

The choice isn't just about the fee. It's about conversion. A R$2.50 difference per customer disappears fast if the website link costs you part of your sales. The right math compares net revenue for each path, not the percentage.

What to plan for in the project

Apple's new rules have limits. According to 9to5Mac's coverage, apps that use payment outside Apple's system must ask for parental involvement before a purchase by anyone under 18. And apps in the Kids category can't link out to complete a purchase on a website. If your audience is young, path 1 is likely the only viable one.

Another point: charging through the store or through your website changes what has to be built. Store payments require setting up products, plans, and renewal notices on both platforms. Website payments require a gateway, a checkout page, reconciliation, and tracking who paid so the app can unlock access. These are different scopes with different costs, so the decision has to come before the quote. I cover the other factors that move the price in how much it costs to build an app in 2026.

The product format matters too. A PWA, which runs in the browser, skips the stores and pays no commission, but loses its presence on the App Store and Google Play. I compared the three formats in native, hybrid, or PWA.

What this means for you

Before asking for a quote on an app that charges users, answer three questions:

1. Is what I sell digital or physical? If it's physical or a service outside the app, store commission doesn't factor in.
2. Do I qualify for the reduced rate? At Apple, the 10% rate applies to members of the Small Business Program. At Google, the 15% applies up to $1 million a year.
3. Where will users pay? In the store, on your website, or through an alternative store. Each option has its own fee, conversion, and scope.

With these answers, the plan price already includes the fee, and the project already has the right payment flow. At the Studio, how you charge is part of discovery, before the fixed price. The price is fixed and the deadline is written into the contract. Code, developer accounts, and access stay in the client's name, including the App Store and Google Play accounts.

If you're designing an app that will charge users, see how we work on app development and bring your numbers to discovery.