Android apps too expensive, cost more than double those on iOS

Android apps are too expensive, a study by Canalys concluded. The researcher looked at apps on the Android Market and found that in general they cost 2.5 times those on the more mature iOS where fierce competition drives prices down.

Shocked? So are we, but the facts set the record straight - Canalys took the top 100 apps on both app markets and compared the total cost. On the Android Market the top 100 applications will set you back $374.37, or an average of $3.74 per app, while on the App Store you can get the top 100 apps for $147, or a measly $1.47 apiece. That's means Android apps are nearly 2.5 times more expensive.

Canalys reasons that there are two main reasons behind this:

1. Apple has a more mature, more competitive environment, forcing developers to lower the prices of their creations.

2. Android users aren’t that prone to spending money on apps. Thus, developers are trying to reap the most of what customers are already buying.

We could also add another speculation by saying that in general Android users are considered geekier, more of power users, so they are willing to pay more for more advanced apps.

"Selling more apps at higher prices is the Holy Grail for developers, but achieving big volumes of paid apps on Android is no small challenge. More aggressive price competition around Android apps would help to encourage more consumers to make their first app purchases, drive greater download volumes, and ultimately be good for the vibrancy of the app ecosystem," Canalys' analyst Rachel Lashford summarized.

Interestingly, the top 100 titles on both markets differ hugely - there are only 19 repeating titles. Most common bestsellers like Where’s My Water (currently holding the number one spot on both App Stores), Cut the Rope and Fruit Ninja are priced equally, but other titles like Monopoly cost five times more on the Android Market. 

Feel free to dive in the links below and make the comparison yourself, and let us know your thoughts whether that conclusion is valid for the whole of the Android Market and the App Store.

- Top paid apps on the Android Market

- Top paid apps on iTunes

source: Canalys via BGR