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2025 was an exceptionally strong year for Apple's services business. Nearly all services set records in usage, reach, or revenue. At the same time, numerous new features were introduced, existing offerings were expanded, and new markets were entered. Apple thus clearly demonstrated the strategic importance that services now hold for the company.
Eddy Cue, Apple's Senior Vice President of Services, reflects on a year marked by growth, global expansion, and continuous development. The goal remained to make users' everyday lives easier, safer, and more enjoyable. The particularly high level of activity around the holiday season underscores how deeply Apple services are integrated into the daily lives of many people. Data privacy and user experience remained central to these efforts.
Record numbers and growth in the App Store
In 2025, the App Store reached an average weekly usage of over 850 million people worldwide. Users came from 175 countries and regions. Since the platform's launch in 2008, developers have earned more than 550 billion US dollars there.
This figure only represents a fraction of the economic significance of the App Store ecosystem. In 2024 alone, it facilitated $1.3 trillion in revenue and sales. More than 90 percent of this trade went directly to developers, without Apple receiving a commission.
During the holidays between Christmas Eve and New Year's Day, the App Store saw record visitor numbers and peak spending on digital content. Productivity apps, as well as photo and video applications, experienced particularly strong growth. Educational apps like Simply Draw: Learn to Draw and Toca Boca World were also among the most downloaded.
Apple TV achieves record reach, sports and awards
Apple TV reached a new usage record in December 2025. Total hours watched increased by 36 percent compared to the previous year. Growth was primarily driven by Europe and Latin America, but also by the ongoing expansion in the US.
Worldwide streaming premieres such as F1, Pluribus, The Family Plan 2, and A Charlie Brown Christmas contributed to the success, as did the summer blockbuster F1. The film was the highest-grossing movie of the year, the most-watched title on Apple TV, and the highest-grossing sports film of all time. Pluribus also launched Apple TV's biggest series to date.
Apple TV also set standards in awards. The Studio became the comedy series with the most Emmy awards of all time, Severance was the most awarded drama series, and Slow Horses won the award for best director. In total, Apple TV now boasts 672 awards and 3,085 nominations.
In addition, Apple TV introduced a new brand identity and a new slogan, voiced by FINNEAS. The live sports offering was expanded, including the promise that all Major League Soccer games would be available to subscribers at no extra cost. A native Apple TV app for Android, new family profiles, and an Apple TV and Peacock bundle further enhanced the service.
Starting in March, Apple will further deepen its collaboration with Formula 1. A new five-year contract stipulates that all F1 races in the USA will be broadcast exclusively via Apple TV.
Apple Music and Shazam at their best
2025 was Apple Music's best year yet. Record numbers of listeners and new sign-ups coincided with the service's tenth anniversary. Apple introduced its biggest product innovation since launch and opened a new, state-of-the-art studio.
New features like lyrics translation, pronunciation, AutoMix, Library Pins, and in-app replay statistics significantly improved the music experience. Apple Music Sing was expanded to allow the iPhone to be used as a microphone, and users could appear alongside lyrics and visual effects via Continuity Camera. During the Christmas season, Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas Is You" was the most sung song.
Apple Music was also made accessible beyond the Apple ecosystem. Partnerships with companies like GM, TuneIn, and Chase contributed to its wider distribution.
Shazam recorded more than one billion music recognitions per month in 2025. Improvements to the app and website further strengthened the platform as a central hub for music discovery.
Apple Pay, Wallet and digital payments
By 2025, Apple Pay was available in 89 markets and worked with over 11,000 banks and network partners, including more than 20 local payment networks. According to Apple and industry data, it prevented well over $1 billion in fraud worldwide. At the same time, Apple Pay generated more than $100 billion in additional revenue for merchants.
During the peak shopping season in November and December, purchases made via Apple Pay grew faster than overall consumer spending. With iOS 26, banks and lenders were enabled to offer installment payments and rewards directly in stores using Apple Pay.
Apple Wallet underwent significant expansion in 2025. In Japan, an international identification card, the My Number Card, was integrated for the first time. In the US, Apple introduced Digital ID, which is based on passport data and can initially be used at TSA security checkpoints. Digital driver's licenses and ID cards are now available in 13 US states and Puerto Rico.
A redesigned boarding pass experience brings together flight status, maps, and Find My information in one place. Apple Wallet also uses Apple Intelligence to automatically recognize and summarize order information from emails. Apple Cash has been integrated into group chats, and Tap to Pay on iPhone is now available in 50 markets, supported by over 15 million merchants.
Maps, finding and navigation
Apple Maps has expanded its detailed city experience to include new locations such as New Orleans, Singapore, and Monaco. A total of 34 cities now offer 3D landmarks, including a special F1 Monaco Grand Prix experience. New maps have also been introduced in Mexico and Thailand, among other places.
With iOS 26, personalized features were added, such as preferred routes for the daily commute and visited locations for better orientation.
The location sharing feature in Find My has been expanded to 36 airlines. According to SITA, this has reduced the number of lost bags by 90 percent. In South Korea, Find My is now fully available, including location sharing with friends and family.
iCloud, invitations and data protection
iCloud continued to ensure the secure synchronization of photos, files, and apps. In 2025, Apple Invites was introduced, providing a new way to create invitations to events and capture memories via shared albums.
An iCloud+ subscription offers unlimited events, more storage, and additional features such as iCloud Private Relay, Hide My Email, custom email domains, and enhanced HomeKit Secure Video support. Subscriptions can be shared with up to five family members while keeping data separate. Two-factor authentication and Advanced Data Protection with end-to-end encryption provide additional security for your content.
Games, fitness and podcasts
Apple Arcade expanded its ad-free game catalog with more than 50 new titles. These included popular franchises like SpongeBob: Patty Pursuit 2 and PGA TOUR Pro Golf, as well as PC games such as PowerWash Simulator and Cult of the Lamb. In addition, over 500 updates were released for existing games.
Apple Fitness+ celebrated its biggest expansion in 2025, launching in 28 new countries. The service now offers over 8,000 workouts and meditations in 4K Ultra HD. New features included digitally synchronized content in German and Spanish, as well as individually tailored training plans. Users with AirPods Pro 3 can view performance data in real time.
Apple Podcasts had its best year ever in 2025, with record numbers of listeners, plays, and subscribers. To celebrate its 20th anniversary, new features were introduced, including improved dialogue, variable playback speeds, automatically generated chapters, timed links, and expanded transcripts. Over 125 million episodes are now available in 13 languages.
Apple News and Apple One
Apple News celebrated its tenth anniversary and maintained its position as the most-used news app in the US, Canada, and Australia, and number two in the UK. Over 3,000 publications and more than 600 titles are available with Apple News+. New additions include Apple News+ Food with 100,000 recipes and the Emoji Game in the US and Canada. Local news coverage has been expanded to include over 150 newspapers.
Apple services are becoming a growth engine
2025 was the strongest year yet for Apple services. Nearly every service set new records in terms of usage, reach, and economic significance. At the same time, the offerings were consistently enhanced through new features, increased personalization, and international expansion. This clearly demonstrates that services are a central component of Apple's corporate strategy and will continue to grow in importance in the future. (Image: Apple)
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