According to Neowin, Apple has selected 45 finalists for its 2025 App Store Awards across iPhone, iPad, Mac, Vision Pro, Apple Watch, and Apple TV categories. The company’s Global App Store editors handpicked apps like BandLab, LADDER, and Tiimo for iPhone App of the Year, while games including Pokémon TCG Pocket, Assassin’s Creed Shadows, and Cyberpunk 2077 made the cut in gaming categories. Apple also highlighted 12 Culture Impact finalists like Be My Eyes, Venba, and StoryGraph that are making a difference. Interestingly, the announcement dropped just one day after Google revealed its 2025 Play Awards winners, with several apps like Focus Friend and Pokémon TCG Pocket appearing as finalists on both platforms. Apple plans to announce the actual winners in the coming weeks.
Strategic Timing
Here’s the thing about Apple‘s timing – this isn’t accidental. Announcing their finalists just one day after Google’s Play Awards? That’s a classic power move. It basically says “Hey, we’re watching you, and we’ve got our own curated list that’s arguably more selective.” The 45 finalists across all categories actually feels pretty exclusive when you consider there are millions of apps in the App Store. And let’s be real – this isn’t just about celebrating developers. It’s about reinforcing Apple’s position as the premium platform where quality triumphs over quantity.
What The Picks Reveal
Looking at these finalists tells you exactly what Apple values right now. BandLab for music creation, Strava for fitness, HBO Max for entertainment – these aren’t flash-in-the-pan trends. They’re established apps with serious staying power. But the Vision Pro selections are particularly telling. Camo Studio, D-Day: The Camera Soldier, Explore POV – all heavily focused on immersive media and content creation. Seems like Apple’s really pushing the spatial computing narrative hard. And the Culture Impact category? That’s Apple positioning itself as socially conscious while highlighting apps that align with their brand values.
The Business Behind The Awards
Let’s not forget this is ultimately about money. Winning an App Store Award can literally transform a developer’s business overnight. The visibility alone drives massive downloads and revenue. For Apple, it’s brilliant marketing that costs them almost nothing while generating tons of positive press. They get to showcase their ecosystem’s strength across all devices – from Watch to Vision Pro. And when you see apps like Focus Friend and Pokémon TCG Pocket appearing as finalists on both Apple and Google’s platforms, it reinforces that quality transcends operating systems. But Apple’s curated approach definitely feels more exclusive than Google’s broader selections.
What’s Next
So what happens now? We wait a few weeks for the winners announcement, which Apple will undoubtedly turn into another marketing spectacle. The real question is whether these awards actually influence consumer behavior or if they’re just industry back-patting. I think it’s a bit of both. For developers, it’s huge validation. For users, it’s a curated list of “what’s good” in a sea of options. And for Apple? It’s another way to remind everyone who sets the standard in mobile apps. Not bad for a day’s work.
