Microsoft Store expands opportunities for Windows app developers

The Windows developer platform continues to evolve, bringing more quality, performance and innovation through Copilot+ PC. This translates into a tremendous opportunity for app developers that are looking to scale their user acquisition strategies, to deepen engagement, to invent on larger form factors where immersive experiences thrive. It’s been exciting to witness the momentum and innovation across the Windows app ecosystem in recent months - from AI breakthroughs like ChatGPT and Perplexity, to best-in-class productivity tools like Fantastical and Day One, creative apps like CapCut and djay Pro that continue to push boundaries, and new mobile apps and games in China through our partnership with Tencent. As previewed at Build, we’re thrilled to welcome even more experiences in the weeks ahead, including Notion, the all-in-one workspace for notes and collaboration, and Raycast, a collection of powerful productivity tools. We are committed to helping the developer ecosystem thrive, and we thank you for the feedback you continue to give us. The Microsoft Store is now used by over 250 million monthly active users, and because of its open policies - it is the most trusted and scalable PC distribution channel across both consumer and commercial devices.

“Microsoft Store seamless integration with Windows allowed us to focus on app development rather than building a separate distribution and code signing infrastructure.” - OpenAI

“With 99% of enterprise users not running the latest version of Docker Desktop, the Microsoft Store’s and Intune automatic update capabilities directly address compliance and security concerns while minimizing downtime.” – Docker 

“We saw a meaningful lift in key metrics after participating in the Microsoft Store AI Hub, including a 13% growth in installs, and a 24% rise in new active users.” – Grammarly  Today we have some exciting announcements for developers – across onboarding, discovery and user acquisition, and analytics.

Onboarding

• Free developer registration for individual developers Starting later next month, individual developers will be able to publish apps to the Microsoft Store without paying any onboarding fees - making it the first global digital storefront to eliminate such charges. Developers will no longer need a credit card to get started, removing a key point of friction that has affected many creators around the world. By eliminating these one-time fees, Microsoft is creating a more inclusive and accessible platform that empowers more developers to innovate, share and thrive on the Windows ecosystem.Visit https://aka.ms/microsoftstoredeveloper to get started.

[caption id="attachment_57462" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Free registration for individual developers[/caption]

• Microsoft Store FastTrack program for companies If you're a qualified company that hasn’t yet published to the Microsoft Store, we invite you to join the new Microsoft Store FastTrack program, a free preview initiative designed to help you submit your app. We’ll waive your program registration fee, streamline app certification and advise you through every step of your submission. Sign up for our FastTrack program at https://aka.ms/msstorefast.
• Transparent and faster certification We’ve significantly improved the certification experience - giving you faster turnaround, clearer guidance and fewer resubmissions on your path to publishing. With detailed reports including crash logs, policy guidance and screenshots, you can now resolve feedback with confidence and speed. We are also making it easier to meet privacy policy requirements, by adding the ability to host your privacy terms securely and at no cost – removing the need to setup external domains.

Discovery and user acquisition

• Microsoft Store Web Installer With the latest Web Installer, you can now enable a streamlined download and install experience for your Win32 or MSIX packaged apps across any browser, delivering a better conversion funnel than traditional flows. The Store Web Installer can be embedded directly on your website; it will work also on enterprise-managed devices where the Microsoft Store app might be disabled.Visit https://apps.microsoft.com/badge and generate the link to your app using the launch parameter “mode=Direct”.
• Discovery in Windows Search and Store Search Listing your app in the Store is the best way to get discovered through Windows Search and Microsoft Store Search. Starting this month, we are making it easier for users to launch apps they already installed, or to find and install new apps when they search for them in  Windows Search. Furthermore, Store search is evolving to become more intent-aware, powered by vector embeddings and semantic ranking to better match users with the apps they’re looking for and including new signals like app updates.

[caption id="attachment_57463" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Discover Store apps through Windows Search.[/caption]

• Enterprise distribution via Intune The Microsoft Store has expanded its integration with Intune, now supporting distribution of Win32 apps (Preview), AI apps and age-restricted apps as well. This update enhances enterprise app deployment by enabling secure, scalable distribution - while offering developers deep OS integration and automatic updates.
• Create campaigns to promote your apps Last year we introduced the App Campaigns program, and since then received great feedback from developers growing their user acquisition or reducing their customer acquisition costs. Over the next weeks, we will open this program to all Store developers – giving you the ability to create campaigns for your apps and games across Microsoft Store and other Microsoft surfaces. With built-in analytics, you can track post-install actions and optimize growth.

Apply to join the Open Beta of this program at https://aka.ms/appcampaigns. [caption id="attachment_57464" align="alignnone" width="1024"] App Campaigns program now open to all Store developers.[/caption]

Analytics

• Acquisition Reports. We’ve rolled out an enhanced Acquisition Reports experience in Partner Center, featuring an improved funnel view and addressing top developer feedback. This includes the highly requested Install Success Rate metric. We’ve also refined how install failures are reported and introduced a new User-Initiated Aborts trend chart to provide deeper insights into user behavior.
• Health Reports. Over the next two months, we’re expanding the Health Report in Partner Center to give you deeper visibility into app quality. New metrics like crash rate, hang rate and affected device counts will help you prioritize fixes based on user impact. You’ll also be able to compare quality across versions, architectures and devices.

[caption id="attachment_57465" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Gain new insights into the health of your apps.[/caption]

Ready to publish?

Get started at https://aka.ms/microsoftstoredeveloper. To learn more about the announcements above, check-out the Store session at Build. We can’t wait to see what you will build next.