Apple Small Business Program: 15% Commission (2026)

Apple's Small Business Program cuts the App Store commission from 30% to 15% on paid apps and in-app purchases. It's for developers whose proceeds (what they get after the commission and certain taxes) didn't go over $1 million in the previous calendar year, and for new developers. It's free, but it's not automatic: the Account Holder has to enroll.

Once your enrollment is approved, the reduced rate kicks in fifteen days after the end of Apple's fiscal month. This guide covers the eligibility rules, how it differs from the 15% on subscriptions after one year, step-by-step enrollment, what happens above the threshold, and the European Union rules in effect since October 1, 2026. Everything comes from Apple's official pages, reviewed on October 15, 2026.

I sell subscriptions in my own iOS apps, like Solys, an alarm clock with mini-games, and TradaZen, a trading simulator. Apple's commission goes into every pricing calculation, and it's the line people forget most often when they estimate what an app can earn.

Apple Small Business Program: what changes on every sale

According to the membership page, the commission on digital goods and services sold through the App Store is 30%. It drops to 15% for Small Business Program members, and for eligible subscriptions. The official program page specifies that the reduced rate applies to paid apps and Apple's in-app purchases.

Sale (outside the EU)	Standard rate	With the program
Paid app	30%	15%
In-app purchase	30%	15%
Subscription, 1st year	30%	15%
Subscription after 1 year	15%	15%

Ad revenue doesn't go through the App Store, so it's not affected. Apple also notes that other rates may apply in Brazil, the European Union, Japan, the Netherlands, Russia and South Korea. The EU case is covered below.

Eligibility requirements

The $1 million threshold

The threshold is based on your proceeds, meaning your sales minus Apple's commission and certain taxes and adjustments. It's not your gross revenue. To be eligible, you and your associated accounts must have earned no more than $1 million over the twelve fiscal months of the previous calendar year, and no more than that in the current year.

To estimate your proceeds, Apple suggests adding up the payments you received in your bank account last year, then adjusting them with the taxes and adjustments in the Payments and Financial Reports section of App Store Connect. If your account isn't in US dollars, convert each payment using a public exchange rate, the one at the end of each Apple fiscal month.

New developers are eligible: you don't need to have made any sales to enroll.

Associated accounts

An associated account is an Apple Developer Program account that you own or control, or that owns or controls yours. That's the case if one holds more than 50% of the other, or has final decision-making authority over it. Proceeds from all these accounts are added together.

For each associated account, Apple asks for its name, its Team ID, the Account Holder's email address and a description of how you're related. If you're on your own with a single account, there's nothing to declare.

App transfers

Transfers are allowed. But when an app moves to another account, its proceeds for the calendar year count toward every account that initiated or accepted the transfer.

The program's 15% vs. the 15% on subscriptions after one year

People often mix them up. Apple's subscriptions page clearly separates them.

Without the program, you get 70% of the price during a subscriber's first year of service, excluding applicable taxes. Once that subscriber reaches one year of paid service, your share goes up to 85%. A few counting rules:

• Paid offers count toward days of paid service (introductory offer, promotional offer, offer code).
• Free trials and renewal extensions don't count.
• The counter is specific to each subscription group. Switching plans within the same group doesn't reset it.
• If the subscription expires, the counter stops. If it's renewed within 60 days, it picks back up.

With the program, you get 85% from the very first payment, whether the subscriber has been around a year or not. So the program makes you more money on each subscriber's first year, and on everything that isn't a subscription.

Sample calculation, with a made-up price

What you keep out of 100 euros of sales, excluding taxes:

For 100 euros excl. taxes	Without program	With program
Sale outside the EU	70 euros	85 euros
Sale in the EU	74 euros	85 euros
Subscriber after one year	85 euros	85 euros

Take an annual subscription at 49.99 euros including VAT, a price picked purely for this example, bought in France. Without the 20% French VAT, it's worth about 41.66 euros. With the program, you keep about 35.41 euros. Without it, in the first year, you keep about 30.83 euros at the EU standard rate. The difference, about 4.58 euros, comes back to you on every new subscriber.

App Store Connect shows your exact share for every price and every country: that's your reference. To get from there to monthly revenue, read subscription or one-time purchase for an iOS app, and for an overall estimate, how much an app earns.

Enrolling in the Small Business Program, step by step

1. Be the Account Holder. Only they can apply. If you don't have an account yet, everything is in the Apple developer account guide.
2. Accept the latest Paid Apps agreement. According to App Store Connect Help, open Business at the top of the page, then the Agreements tab. On the Paid Apps row, click View and Agree to Terms. You may be asked for a two-factor authentication code, and accepting can't be undone.
3. Get your list of associated accounts ready, if you have any, with the four pieces of information requested.
4. Fill out the form. On the program page, click Enroll now, sign in with the Account Holder's Apple Account, then submit your request.
5. Wait for approval. Your proceeds are adjusted fifteen days after the end of the fiscal month in which your request is approved. Apple's example: an enrollment approved on February 10, 2022 got adjusted proceeds starting March 14, 2022. You can check Apple's fiscal calendar in App Store Connect.
6. If you use RevenueCat, enter your program start date. RevenueCat's documentation shows where: in your App Store app settings, under Apple Small Business Program. Use the effective date Apple gives you, or your estimated revenue will be off.

Enroll before your first sale. Apple adjusts your proceeds from the effective date, not before: every week you lose is paid at the standard rate. For the full subscription setup with RevenueCat, read RevenueCat and iOS in-app subscriptions.

If you go over $1 million

Apple has two rules:

• If you go over the threshold during the current year, the standard rate applies to your subsequent sales.
• If your proceeds fall back under the threshold for a calendar year, you can become eligible for 15% again the following year.

A made-up timeline: you cross the threshold in June 2027. Your remaining 2027 sales switch to the standard rate, and so does all of 2028, since your 2027 proceeds were over a million. If your 2028 proceeds drop back below, you can get 15% again in 2029.

What about the European Union?

Since October 1, 2026, Apple has applied unified terms in the EU, added as Schedule 14 of the Apple Developer Program License Agreement, which you accept in your account. They replace the old alternative terms. Here are the App Store rates from Apple's page on apps in the EU:

Payment (EU)	Standard	Program
Apple in-app purchase	26%	15%
Alternative payment	20%	10%
Link to an external offer	15%	10%

The "Program" column also applies to subscriptions after their first year. For a link to an external offer, only sales made within 7 days of the click are covered. And if you offer an alternative payment, you have to keep your payment options for 12 months.

For a first app selling through Apple's in-app purchase, remember this: with the program, it's 15% in the EU just like everywhere else. The FAQ on the program page still mentions 10% for "alternative terms": those terms were replaced on October 1, 2026, so go by the EU page.

A recent perk: Apple's models with no API cost

The program page announces another benefit. According to the Private Cloud Compute page, program members can use Apple Foundation Models on Private Cloud Compute with no cloud API cost, under three conditions: being enrolled in the program, having fewer than 2 million first-time downloads for each of your apps, and getting the matching entitlement for your account.

The service works wherever Apple Intelligence is available, and TestFlight test installs don't count. If an app goes over the threshold, or if you leave the program, Apple notifies you and you have six months to switch to another solution. If your app calls a cloud AI, that's one more reason to enroll early.

If you want a foundation to sell your first subscription

The iOS Kit contains the starter code from my apps, with onboarding, paywall and subscriptions already built, plus the four-step path all the way to the App Store, at your own pace.

Before you set your price, the free diagnostic tells you what's really holding your project back and sends you my Apple anti-rejection checklist. Setting up a subscription, from products in App Store Connect to the paywall, is covered in detail in iOS in-app subscriptions. And before you launch your paywall, go over the paywall mistakes to avoid.

Frequently asked questions

What is Apple's Small Business Program?

It's a free program that cuts the App Store commission from 30% to 15% on paid apps and in-app purchases. It's aimed at developers whose proceeds didn't go over $1 million in the previous calendar year, and at new developers.

What commission does Apple take on the App Store?

Outside the European Union, 30% at the standard rate, and 15% with the Small Business Program or for a subscriber with one year of paid service. In the EU, since October 1, 2026, it's 26% through Apple's in-app purchase, and still 15% with the program.

How do I enroll in the Small Business Program?

The Account Holder first accepts the latest Paid Apps agreement in App Store Connect. Then they click Enroll now on the program page, sign in, declare any associated accounts and submit the request.

Is the Small Business Program automatic?

No. Even if you're eligible, you stay at the standard rate until you've applied and your request is approved. Enroll before your first sale.

When does the 15% commission take effect?

Fifteen days after the end of the Apple fiscal month in which your enrollment is approved. In Apple's example, an enrollment approved on February 10, 2022 took effect on March 14, 2022.

What happens if my proceeds go over $1 million?

The standard rate applies to your remaining sales that year, then to the entire following year. If your proceeds fall back under the threshold for a calendar year, you can become eligible again the year after.