Google has deleted half of its apps near its Play Store last year. What is happening?

From the beginning of 2024, the total number of apps available worldwide Just 1.8 million to fall from about 3. 3.4 millionAccording to research Appfigures. This is a massive 47 % reduction, which means that almost HALF half apps are now gone there. Interestingly, this is not a global trend. Apple’s iOS App Store actually saw a small increase in its app count during the same timeframe, which remained stable at about 1.64 million apps.

Why a major change?

This important drop was not accidental. Google is actively working to improve its market quality and clean up quality or potentially harmful apps. Google confirmed the source that several updated policy -ups and strong implementation measures behind this major reduction are important drivers. Here is an error of what they are doing:

• Strict quality standards removed low cost and passive apps, which are just moving beyond fixing broken people.
• Strict developer checks include expanded verification measures and mandatory tests of new accounts.
• Human and AI studies aggressively blocked millions of policies -driven apps (2.36 million in 2024) and banned several developer accounts (over 158k).

Epifigaris also noted that Google had started this shortage before announcing major policy changes in the summer, so the whole picture was still emerging. On a positive note, the number of new apps released on Google Play actually increased by about 7 % year by April 2025, showing that developers are still actively ready for Android. Android users who sometimes struggle to find good apps in the sea of ​​disorder and objectionable software, this mass cleaning will be really good news. A small, more finished play store can make it easier to discover standard apps and give legitimate developers a better opportunity to stand. This points to a potentially safe and less disappointing experience when looking for your next download.