Amazon’s App Store is going—as quietly as it came

Be honest—did you even remember that Amazon had its own app store? If not, you’re not alone.

After 14 years of trying (and mostly failing) to compete in the mobile app space, Amazon is officially pulling the plug. On August 20, 2025, the Amazon Appstore will shut down for good, marking the end of yet another one of the company’s experiments.

And honestly, it’s not a huge surprise. The store has been struggling for years, overshadowed by Google Play and Apple’s App Store. Now, Amazon is admitting what most people already knew: it just wasn’t working.

If you happen to be one of those who actually used Amazon’s Appstore, you’ll still have access to your apps for now, but after the shutdown, it's gone.

As part of this retreat, the company is also discontinuing Amazon Coins, its digital currency used for app purchases. If you have any leftover Coins, you can still spend them—but honestly, on what? Most worthwhile apps are long gone. The good news? Amazon says it’ll refund any unused Coins when the shutdown happens, so at least you won’t be stuck holding valueless virtual currency.

Back in March 2011, when the Amazon Appstore first launched, it positioned itself as a serious alternative to Google Play (then Android Market), but only housed close to 500,000 apps.

As of today, Google Play dominates the market with 70.46% share, while Apple’s App Store holds 28.83%, according to Statista. That leaves… well, a tiny market share for Amazon.

Aside from the strong competition, the Amazon Appstore had its woes. Getting the store on your phone was a hassle. Unlike Google Play, which comes pre-installed on Android devices, Amazon’s Appstore required manually sideloading an APK. That was enough of a roadblock to turn most people off.

But Amazon isn’t entirely walking away from the app business. The company is keeping the Appstore alive on its own Fire tablets and Fire TV devices, which makes sense since those devices don’t have access to Google Play.

Amazon’s App Store always felt like an afterthought, and now, the company is making it official. If you somehow still have the app installed on your phone, it's time to say goodbye.