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Apps on Apple devices powered $519B in 2019 sales

A new study from Analysis Group shows the worldwide economic impact of Apple's App Store, before the seismic impact of the coronavirus.

Jason Hiner VP of Content, CNET Labs; Editor in Chief, ZDNET
Jason is Vice President of Content for CNET Labs and the Editor in Chief of ZDNET. From CNET's world-class testing facilities, the CNET Labs team designs tests to quantify the best products worth buying.
Expertise Over 20 years of experience covering Apple, Google, Microsoft, Samsung, computers, smartphones, wearables, and the latest technology products. Credentials
  • Jason is an award-winning journalist, editor, and video host with a passion for covering cutting edge innovation.
Jason Hiner
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The App Store now spans across iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV and Apple Watch.

Apple

New research commissioned by Apple and carried out by the third-party research firm Analysis Group sought to measure the total global economic impact of the App Store for the first time. Released on Monday, the study found that apps led to over $519 billion in sales in 2019. 

The Analysis Group's approach was to measure how people use, consume and engage with apps and not where they are paid for. The study aimed to capture sales made outside the App Store, but that involved using apps on iPhone , iPad , Mac, Apple TV and Apple Watch .

Of the $519 billion pinpointed in the study, 80% of those sales were physical goods, 12% digital goods and 9% advertising. (The numbers don't add up to 100% because of rounding.)

In terms of geography, the Analysis Group found that China represented 47% of the total sales, US 27%, Europe 10%, Japan 7% and the rest of the world 8%.

Keep in mind that this was before COVID-19, which has driven a surge in entertainment, education, food and grocery delivery, home and fitness apps, video conferencing and mobile orders with physical pickups. But the coronavirus pandemic has also negatively effected apps because of a drop in advertising and the closure of businesses.