Ukraine-based developer MacPaw is set to close Setapp Mobile, its alternative app store for iOS devices in the European Union, next month.
The service will officially cease operating on February 16, 2026. Setapp Mobile launched in open beta in September 2024.
In a support page, MacPaw said Setapp Mobile is being closed because of app marketplaces' "still-evolving and complex business terms that don't fit Setapp's current business model," suggesting it was not profitable for the company.
For users in the EU who accessed iOS apps through Setapp's subscription store, those apps will be removed from the platform after the shutdown date. Setapp advises users to back up any important data before then, as the apps will no longer be available once the service ends. Setapp's separate subscription-based Mac app store will continue to operate as normal.
MacPaw is not alone in trying its hand in the EU market for alternative app stores, which came in the wake of the Digital Markets Act (DMA) that mandates support for third-party app marketplaces on iOS in the EU. There are five other alternative marketplaces available at this time, but the most prominent is the Epic Games Store.
These alternative app marketplaces, as Apple calls them, are a relatively new frontier for app distribution on iOS, but they face hefty challenges, such as navigating Apple's controversial Core Technology Fee, and competing with its established App Store ecosystem.
Epic Games currently pays the Apple fees that EU developers incur when distributing their apps through the Epic Games Store. However, Epic CEO Tim Sweeney has said it is "not financially viable" for Epic Games to pay Apple's fees in the long term, but it plans to do so while it waits to see if the European Union requires Apple to further tweak its rules for third-party marketplaces under the DMA.
Sweeney has criticized Apple's Core Technology Fee and app distribution guidelines many times, and has described the fee as "ruinous for any hopes of a competing store getting a foothold." Whether it is the main reason for Setapp Mobile's closure remains unclear.
