How to Make Money From a Mobile Game (Without Ruining It)

You can make money from a mobile game in four main ways: charge for the game, show ads, sell in-app purchases or offer a subscription. Most small games today are free to download and earn from rewarded ads plus a few fair purchases, such as "remove ads". Both stores keep a share of every sale: about 15% for most small developers, as long as they get the lower small-developer rate. This guide explains each option, shows simple earnings math and lists the mistakes that cost games their ratings.

The four ways mobile games make money

Mobile game monetization simply means how a game earns money. There are four main models, and many games mix two of them:

Plan your model early, while you design the game, not the night before launch. Ads and purchases change how you build levels, menus and rewards. Our game design basics guide helps you build the fun first, which matters more than any money model.

Paid or free: which should you choose?

Most mobile players expect games to be free to download, so paid games are a hard sell. A free game reaches far more players, and a few of them will support you. Paid games still work when you already have fans. They also suit complete experiences, such as a story or a puzzle collection.

A friendly middle path is a free demo with one unlock. The first levels are free, and one purchase unlocks the full game forever. Players try before they pay, and nobody feels tricked.

Ads that players accept: rewarded, interstitial and banner

An ad network is a company that supplies ads and pays you for showing them. Popular choices include Google AdMob, Unity LevelPlay (which includes Unity Ads) and AppLovin MAX. You add their SDK, a ready-made code package, to your game. There are three main ad formats:

• Rewarded ads: the player chooses to watch a short video and gets something, such as an extra life. Players like them because they are optional, and they usually pay the most.
• Interstitial ads: full-screen ads between parts of the game. They are allowed at natural breaks, such as after a game-over screen, but they annoy players when they appear too often.
• Banner ads: small strips at the top or bottom of the screen. They pay little and must never cover buttons.

These are not only good manners. Google Play's ads policy bans full-screen ads that pop up unexpectedly, for example before the loading screen or at the start of a level. It also bans full-screen ads that cannot be closed after 15 seconds. Rewarded ads the player chose to watch, and ads at a natural break such as the score screen, may run longer. Read the Google Play ads policy before you add any ad.

Two privacy rules come with ads. In the European Union and the UK, players must give consent before they see personalized ads. AdMob has built-in tools to show that message. On iPhone, tracking players across other apps needs Apple's tracking permission prompt.

Adding your first ads usually works like this:

1. An adult creates the ad network account and adds your game to it.
2. Create ad units. An ad unit is one ad spot in your game, such as "rewarded ad at game over".
3. Add the SDK to your project, following the network's guide for Unity or for your engine's plugin.
4. Use test ads while you build. Never tap your own live ads. Networks treat that as fake clicks and can close the account.
5. Update your privacy answers. Your Data safety form and App Privacy details must include what the ad SDK collects.

In-app purchases and subscriptions

An in-app purchase (IAP) is anything a player buys inside the game. There are three main kinds:

• Consumables are used up, such as coins, extra lives or hints.
• Non-consumables are bought once and kept forever, such as "remove ads", a level pack or the full game.
• Subscriptions renew automatically, such as a monthly VIP pass.

In most countries, digital items inside your game must be sold through the store's own payment system. That means Google Play Billing on Android and Apple's in-app purchase system on iPhone. Some places, including the US and the EU, now allow links to outside payment pages under special rules. Those rules changed several times in 2025 and 2026, so check the current store rules first.

• Start simple. One "remove ads" purchase and one small coin pack is plenty for a first game.
• Price fairly. Small first purchases of one to five dollars feel safe to players.
• Add a restore button. Players who reinstall or change phones must get their non-consumables back. Apple's guidelines ask for a way to restore them.
• Use your engine's tools. Unity has an In-App Purchasing package. Godot uses official or community plugins. Our guide to making a mobile game in Unity covers the setup.

Mobile game store fees in 2026, and how to pay less

Every store keeps a share of each sale. The good news: small developers pay a much lower rate, but in some cases only after they sign up for it. These are the main rates as of November 2026:

Subscriptions often cost less. On Google Play, the total fee on subscriptions is about 15%. On the App Store, the standard 30% drops to 15% after a subscriber's first year, and Small Business Program members pay 15% from the start. Google's new fees started on June 30, 2026 in the US, UK and EEA, and on September 30, 2026 in Australia and Japan. Other countries follow later. Read Google's service fees page and Apple's Small Business Program page before you set prices.

Simple money math: what can a small mobile game earn?

Two numbers drive mobile game income: how many people play every day, and how much each of them earns you. For ads, networks talk about eCPM, the money you earn per 1,000 ad views. It changes a lot by country, ad type and season, so treat the numbers below as an example, not a promise.

That sounds great, but look at the starting number. Getting 1,000 people to play every single day is the hard part, and most first games never get there. With 50 daily players, the same game earns about 2 dollars a day. Also, usually only a small share of players ever buys anything, often just a few in every hundred.

So the real path to income is more players who stay longer. Ads and purchases only multiply what is already there. That is why fun, updates and promotion matter more than squeezing each player. For ways to grow your audience, read how to promote your indie game, and list your game on our indie mobile games page.

Be fair to players, especially young ones

Many mobile players are kids and teens, and stores and governments protect them. Fair monetization keeps you out of trouble and keeps your ratings high.

• Show loot box odds. A loot box is a paid random reward. Apple and Google both require you to show the odds of each item before the purchase. Some countries, such as Belgium, treat paid loot boxes as gambling, so a beginner should simply avoid them.
• Follow kids' rules. If your game targets children, Google's Families policy limits which ad SDKs you may use. Apple's Kids Category bans most third-party ads and analytics, and purchases must sit behind a parental gate.
• No tricks. Fake countdown timers, confusing currencies and buttons that buy by accident are called dark patterns. In 2022, Epic Games agreed to pay 245 million US dollars after the US Federal Trade Commission said Fortnite's design led to unwanted purchases.
• No pay-to-win against other players. Selling power in competitive modes makes free players quit, and they are most of your players.
• Price items in real money terms. Show what things cost so players, and parents, understand what they are paying for.

Apple's rules on purchases and loot boxes are in the App Review Guidelines, section 3.1.

Monetization mistakes that kill ratings

• An ad after every death. This is the fastest way to get one-star reviews. Space interstitials out or use rewarded ads instead.
• Ads that cover buttons or appear right where the player was about to tap.
• Purchases that do not arrive or vanish after a reinstall. Test buying and restoring with the stores' test accounts.
• A paywall after five minutes. Let players fall in love with the game before you ask for money.
• Misleading ads for your own game that show gameplay your game does not have.
• Privacy forms that do not match your ad SDK. Ad networks collect data, so your Data safety form and App Privacy answers must say so.

What you need an adult for

If you are under 18, earning money from a game is a team effort with a parent or guardian. Only adults can accept the contracts and receive the money for these:

• Store accounts: a Google Play developer account needs an owner aged 18 or older, and the Apple Developer Program needs the age of majority.
• Selling and payouts: a payments profile on Google Play, and the paid apps agreement plus bank and tax details in App Store Connect.
• Ad networks: AdMob requires you to be 18. A parent can apply with their own account, and payments then go to them.
• Taxes: stores handle sales tax in many countries, but the money you receive can still count as income. The adult should check local tax rules.

Never share an adult's passwords. Ask them to sign in themselves, or to give you your own limited access where the service allows it. To publish the game in the first place, follow our guides for Google Play and the App Store, or start from the mobile game roadmap.