The Google Play store has seen a significant drop in apps in the last year, with 1.8 million fewer apps available for download.
This represents a decline of around 47% from its peak of 3.4 million apps at the beginning of 2024.
The drop has been attributed to Google’s renewed focus on prioritising high-quality apps and enhanced user safety.
In recent years, Google has implemented more stringent review processes and enhanced its monitoring of policy-violating apps.
App categories most affected by the purge included Games, Education, and Business apps, although overall global app releases have increased by 7.1% year on year.
In contrast, Apple’s App Store has seen a marginal increase in available apps, rising from 1.6 million to 1.64 million.