Apple has already announced its App Store 2025 winners: a relatively short list of 17 apps and games focused on each of its platforms (including iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, Apple TV and Vision Pro). But now the Cupertino-based tech giant is also sharing the voice of a few people in the app space.
We have top 10 lists, plus detailed App Store rankings, for the most downloaded apps and games on iPhone and iPad, broken down by free and paid apps. There is also a list of the most downloaded Apple Arcade titles. And while we all might have guessed that OpenAI’s ChatGPT would be at the top, it’s the number one free app for iPhone. However, there are a few surprises as you scroll through the listings.
Threads is the second most downloaded free app for iPhone: yes, the new Meta Platform, which Mark Zuckerberg hopes will take down X (formerly Twitter and Bluesky). This means that a significant number of people have downloaded it, whether they discovered it on their own or through recommendations in the Instagram app.
Instagram itself isn’t at the bottom of the list, at number six, and TikTok, which still has a pretty tough spot here in the US, is at number four. You can see the full list below, but it’s worth noting that Google also had a strong presence in the top ten, with Gemini, YouTube, Google’s flagship app and Google Maps all making appearances.
On the iPad side, Instagram has finally arrived on the platform, but it’s not among the top 10 free apps for iPadOS. As expected, this is a streaming lineup with Disney+, HBO Max, Netflix and Amazon Prime Video all securing the top spots. YouTube ranks first and Google Chrome is not at the bottom of the list. Also launching is the wildly popular GoodNotes, a note-taking app with a variety of AI features, including handwriting cleaning and extensive folder organization.
You can keep scrolling to see the full ten lists of the best free and paid apps for iPhone and iPad, the best games for each, and the overall list of the most downloaded Apple Arcade titles. It’s always fun and often enlightening to explore these year-end lists to see what people use most often, or, in some cases, download them and open them just once.
I would like to know which applications you use most on iPhone and iPad. Let me know your options (and if you use one of the most downloaded apps) in the comments below.
The Best Free iPhone Apps – 2025
- ChatGPT
- Substances
- Googling
- TikTok – Video, Store and LIVE
- WhatsApp messages
- YouTube
- Google Maps
- Gmail: Google email
- Google Gemini
The Best Free Apps for iPad – 2025
- YouTube
- ChatGPT
- netflix
- Disney+
- Amazon Prime Video
- TikTok – Video, Store and LIVE
- google chrome
- Goodnotes – AI notes, documents and PDFs
- Canva: AI photo and video editor
- HBO Max: stream movies and series
The Top Paying iPhone Apps – 2025
- hot times
- shadow rocket
- Reproduction bag
- AnkiMobile memory card
- Paprika recipe manager 3
- SkyView®
- TonalEnergy tuner and metronome
- AutoSleep Track your sleep on the watch
- Forest: focus on productivity
- Radar scope
The Highest Paying iPad Apps – 2025
- To testify
- create dreams
- for punctuation
- Cartoon octopus
- nomadic sculpture
- shadow rocket
- AnkiMobile memory card
- Bluebeam Review for iPad
- Teach your monster to read
- Plum: draw in 3D
The best free games for iPhone – 2025
- Block the explosion!
- Fortnite
- Roblox
- Community
- Pokemon Trading Card Bag
- royal realm
- royal shock
- Mahjong life
- white survival
- The Last War: Survival
The best free games for iPad – 2025
- Roblox
- Block the explosion!
- Fortnite
- Ordered perfectly
- Magic Tiles 3: Piano Game
- Mini game: calm down and relax
- Merchandise Puzzle: Sorting Challenge
- hole.io
- subway surfers
- Community
The Best Paying iPhone Games – 2025
- Minecraft: Dream it, Build it!
- Balatro
- Right!
- Plague Inc.
- geometric writing
- BalloonsTD 6
- Valley of the Stars
- Papa’s Freezeria left!
- Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp C
- Röda’s first flight
The highest paying iPad games – 2025
- Minecraft: Dream it, Build it!
- geometric writing
- Valley of the Stars
- Balatro
- BalloonsTD 6
- Plague Inc.
- Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp C
- Poppy Playtime Chapter 3
- Purple Place – Classic Games
- Dad’s sushi restaurant to go to!
The Best Apple Arcade Games – 2025
- NFL ’26 Retro Bowl
- NBA 2K25 Arcade Edition
- Balatro+
- snake.io+
- The cunning Sasquatch
- Hello Kitty Island Adventures
- Classic Fruit Ninja+
- TD Balloons 6+
- PGA TOUR Professional golf
- MobilityWare+ Solitaire