The Google Play Store desperately needs to copy Apple’s App Store: Here’s why

Every week, I research the latest apps and games for Android. It’s a fairly straightforward task, but it might surprise you that the one tool I don’t use is the Play Store. This might seem a ridiculous limitation for someone looking for new apps and games, but the Play Store has gotten so bad in recent years that I only open it when I know exactly what I’m looking for. If I want to discover exciting new apps and games, I’ll browse the internet instead.

What’s especially galling is that I regularly see news of exciting new iOS apps and games during my research. While Apple picks up new exclusives, and developers prioritize iOS over Android, Google seems content just to pack even more ads into the Play Store. While both platforms have a discoverability problem, the App Store is the only one that provides a worthwhile incentive to scroll past the irrelevant recommendations. Google needs to redevelop the Play Store and snap up exclusives to make it a worthwhile platform for developers and users.

Discoverability is equally bad on both the Play Store and App Store

Both platforms share the same major problem

Before we explore what the Play Store needs to copy from the App Store, let’s discuss what it shouldn’t. If there’s one major way Google can differentiate its app store from Apple’s, it’s how you discover new apps and games. Right now, the Play Store is so difficult to use that it’s easy to completely miss exciting new apps and games.

Opening the Play Store app reveals the first major problem. This is an app store designed to generate Google money, not to help you find useful and interesting apps. The default page puts the text “Suggested for you” front and center, with a list of three games immediately below. You may think that Google populates this list based on what games you’ve downloaded and how much you play them, but that would be completely wrong. The small print next to “Suggested for you” informs us that these are sponsored games, and you can even tap the three-dot button to the right to see which advertisers are paying to put these games front and center on your screen.

The App Store is better, but not by much. The home screen on the App Store is the “Today” tab, which is simply a list of ads and currently popular apps. In some ways, it’s worse than the Play Store. Apple updated the App Store in 2023 to ensure ads on the Today tab are fully visible. Before then your App Store home screen could have shown just one huge ad. Nevertheless, the App Store pushes fewer ads and recommendations in your face than the Play Store.

So discovering new apps and games is bad on both platforms. However, it’s unlikely to end soon. Google and Apple are making billions from their platforms, and the numbers continue to grow. Nevertheless, the App Store is still a stronger platform for users looking for exciting new apps and games.

Apple is actively populating the App Store with awesome games

It feels like Google has forgotten that apps are the lifeblood of an app store

App developers have always prioritized the App Store over the Play Store, but this isn’t surprising as the App Store generated over 70% of worldwide app revenue in 2024. While it’s frustrating that we have to twiddle our thumbs while we wait for Android ports, it’s a bigger problem than ever in 2025.

Modern phones have the processing power capable of playing AAA games, but only Apple is keen on capitalizing on the latest technology. It made a big splash in 2023 when Resident Evil 4 and Resident Evil Village launched on the App Store, but this was just the start.

Apple is making it easy for developers to port their games to iOS, iPadOS, and macOS. Through the Game Porting Toolkit 2 software, it’s relatively straightforward for developers to port DirectX PC games to macOS and then to iOS. To be clear, porting a PC game to iOS isn’t simple, but compared to the steps needed to port a game to Android, it’s a walk in the park.

In a few years, it could be commonplace to see AAA games launch simultaneously on consoles, PC, and iOS. It’s not just AAA games either. Hades, which is part of the Netflix Games library, launched exclusively on iOS in 2024. Want to compare the latest AI chatbots side-by-side? The standalone Grok app is only available on iOS.

I haven’t even touched on Apple Arcade, which offers a curated, high-quality collection of games that could not be more different than the junk-filled Play Pass. It’s worth opening the App Store just to see the latest additions to Apple Arcade. The most notable recent addition is Balatro, which I had to pay full price for (£10) on the Play Store.

Google needs to redefine its vision for the Play Store in 2025

While you have to trawl through ads on both app stores, the App Store is worth a brief browse. From news on upcoming AAA games, to an announcement for an Apple Arcade sequel to the best mobile skating game, it’s worth scrolling past the ads to discover something new.

However, I can’t think of any reason to explore the Play Store. Google hasn’t made any initiative to scoop up exclusives, and most new Play Pass apps and games are barely worth my time of day. It’s depressing to watch Apple make the App Store more attractive year after year while I read up on Google’s latest advertising initiative for the Play Store. Right now, the Apple ecosystem is the place to be if you want to explore the bleeding edge of mobile apps and games.