What Apple’s 2025 App Store Awards winners tell us about where apps are headed

Apple has announced the winners of its 2025 App Store Awards, highlighting 17 apps and games that stood out for technical achievement, thoughtful design and what the company describes as “lasting cultural impact”. Drawn from a shortlist of 45 finalists, this year’s selections reflect the breadth of work happening across Apple’s platforms, from productivity tools to immersive storytelling to powerful gaming.
The mix this year feels more indicative of how software creators are responding to the moment: Leaning into AI when it’s genuinely useful, refining user experience, and exploring what new hardware can enable.
“Every year, we’re inspired by the ways developers turn their best ideas into innovative experiences that enrich people’s lives,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “This year’s winners represent the creativity and excellence that define the App Store, and they demonstrate the meaningful impact that world-class apps and games have on people everywhere.”
Among the apps recognised, Tiimo’s visual planning system stood out for its blend of design clarity and practical AI assistance. Detail, the iPad-focused video editor, was acknowledged for smoothing out the often clunky workflows of recording and producing videos. On the Mac side, Essayist earned praise for taking on the drudgery of academic formatting with a set of AI-driven tools that quietly automate what scholars usually spend far too long perfecting.
Developers also pushed into Apple’s newer hardware spaces. Explore POV, built for Vision Pro, uses Apple’s Immersive Video format to transport viewers to sweeping landscapes with an almost travelogue sensibility. Strava was recognised for its Apple Watch implementation, which marries community-driven fitness with real-time performance data, while HBO Max was noted for expanding accessibility through American Sign Language support across more of its catalogue.
In gaming, the range was equally broad. Pokémon TCG Pocket reimagines card battles for mobile screens without losing the charm of the original franchise. DREDGE, the quietly eerie fishing adventure, has had a good run among iPad users. Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition signals the growing maturity of high-end titles on Apple silicon, while WHAT THE CLASH? embraces the cheerful absurdity packaged as a brisk, chaotic party game. Vision Pro’s Porta Nubi, meanwhile, uses spatial interaction to deliver a puzzle experience that is as much about ambience as mechanics.
Taken together, the 2025 winners reveal a landscape where developers are experimenting across genres and platforms, but with a shared focus on clarity, usability and craft, a shift that says as much about user expectations as it does about Apple’s evolving ecosystem.
iPhone App of the Year
Tiimo, from tiimo.
iPad App of the Year
Detail, from Detail Technologies B.V.
Mac App of the Year
Essayist, from Essayist Software Inc.
Apple Vision Pro App of the Year
Explore POV, from James Hustler.
Apple Watch App of the Year
Strava, from Strava, Inc.
Apple TV App of the Year
HBO Max, from WarnerMedia Global Digital Services, LLC.
iPhone Game of the Year
Pokémon TCG Pocket, from The Pokemon Company.
iPad Game of the Year
DREDGE, from Black Salt Games.
Mac Game of the Year
Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition, from CD PROJEKT S.A.
Apple Vision Pro Game of the Year
Porta Nubi, from Michael Temper.
Apple Arcade Game of the Year
WHAT THE CLASH?, from Triband ApS.
Cultural Impact Winners
Art of Fauna from Klemens Strasser
Chants of Sennaar from Playdigious
despelote from Panic, Inc.
Be My Eyes from Be My Eyes
Focus Friend by Hank Green from B-Tech Consulting Group LLC
StoryGraph from The StoryGraph