App Store Awards celebrate the best apps and games of 2022

 Apple announced the winners of the 2022 App Store Awards, spotlighting 16 apps and games that inspired users to engage more deeply with the world, expand their imaginations, and stay connected to friends and loved ones. This year’s winners represent a diverse community of developers from around the world whose apps and games were selected by Apple’s global App Store editorial team for delivering exceptional experiences and making a profound cultural impact.

“This year’s App Store Award winners reimagined our experiences with apps that delivered fresh, thoughtful, and genuine perspectives,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “From self-taught solo creators to international teams spanning the globe, these entrepreneurs are making a meaningful impact, and represent the ways in which apps and games influence our communities and lives.”  

This year’s winners represent the abundant possibilities across the App Store and Apple’s ecosystem of devices. Innovative social app BeReal gives users an authentic look into the lives of their family and friends, and fitness tracker Gentler Streak helps users balance fitness and rest to maintain a healthy lifestyle. GoodNotes 5 takes digital note-taking to the next level with best-in-class Apple Pencil support. MacFamilyTree 10 sparks the exploration of genealogy through stunning visual family trees and collaboration with loved ones around the world, while the creators behind ViX elevate Spanish-language stories to the forefront of entertainment.

Apex Legends Mobile brings the fast-paced hit battle royale game to iPhone. Moncage’s memorable puzzles brilliantly play with perspective, and the immersive card battler Inscryption draws players in with experimental storytelling. El Hijo, a Wild West tale, is a smartly designed stealth game that looks exceptional on the big screen with Apple TV. Apple Arcade’s unique life sim Wylde Flowers invites players into its charming world of diverse characters and magical spells, and League of Legends Esports Manager allows players to manage the most influential esports leagues in the world.

iPhone App of the Year: BeReal, from BeReal.

iPad App of the Year: GoodNotes 5, from Time Base Technology Limited.

Mac App of the Year: MacFamilyTree 10, from Synium Software GmbH.

Apple TV App of the Year: ViX, from TelevisaUnivision Interactive, Inc.

Apple Watch App of the Year: Gentler Streak, from Gentler Stories LLC.

iPhone Game of the Year: Apex Legends Mobile, from Electronic Arts.

iPad Game of the Year: Moncage, from X.D. Network Inc.

Mac Game of the Year: Inscryption, from Devolver.

Apple TV Game of the Year: El Hijo, from HandyGames.

Apple Arcade Game of the Year: Wylde Flowers, from Studio Drydock Pty Ltd.

China Game of the Year: League of Legends Esports Manager, from Shenzhen Tencent Tianyou Technology Ltd.

In addition to recognizing the best apps and games on Apple devices, Apple’s App Store editors selected five Cultural Impact winners that have made a lasting impact on people’s lives and influenced culture. This year’s winners encourage users to engage more deeply with their emotions, authentically connect with others, and pay homage to their heritage and the generations that came before them while envisioning how to create a better world today.

How We Feel from the How We Feel Project, Inc.
By prompting users to tap into their emotional well-being with the ease of daily check-ins, How We Feel helps users put difficult emotions into words and presents strategies to address these emotions in the moment.

Dot’s Home from the Rise-Home Stories Project
Dot’s Home spotlights systemic housing injustices and the subsequent impact within communities of color through a compelling and thoughtful time-traveling tale.

Locket Widget from Locket Labs, Inc.
Allowing users to send live photos right to family and friends’ Home Screen, Locket Widget drives intimate connection between loved ones, free from traditional social media pressures.

Waterllama from Vitalii Mogylevets
With its colorful design and gentle guidance, Waterllama makes meeting hydration goals fun, using creative challenges, reminders, and cuddly characters to keep users on track.

Inua - A Story in Ice and Time from ARTE Experience
Inua - A Story in Ice and Time provides an engaging, mystical adventure for users to explore historical events that weave in elements of Inuit traditions, folklore, and breathtaking tales.

For more than a decade, Apple has honored the best apps and games at the end of each year. To acknowledge the impact of the winning developer teams, each winner will receive a physical award inspired by the signature blue App Store icon. Developed through meticulous craftsmanship, the award includes the App Store logo set into 100 percent recycled aluminum used to make Apple products, with the name of the winner engraved on the other side.

The App Store, which launched in 2008, is the world’s safest and most vibrant app marketplace. Currently home to 1.8 million apps and visited by more than half a billion people each week across 175 regions, it is an engine of global economic growth, facilitating $643 billion in billings and sales during 2020 alone. The App Store helps creators, dreamers, and learners of all ages and backgrounds connect with the tools and information they need to build a brighter future and a better world. 

Visit the App Store to learn more about the 2022 App Store Award winners. In addition to the App Store editorial picks, charts for the top apps and games of the year, as well as Apple Arcade games, are now available.