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Apple announces 2025 App Store award winners: Here are the best apps and games of the year

From Tiimo to Pokémon TCG Pocket, Apple’s 2025 App Store awards celebrate the year’s most innovative and influential digital experiences.

3 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Dec 6, 2025 08:55 AM IST

AI companies and providers such as OpenAI, Anthropic and Alphabet's Google would be able to release ‌CarPlay versions of their apps that include a voice-control mode, the report added. (Image: reuters)

Apple has announced the winners of the 2025 App Store Awards, celebrating 17 apps and games that stood out for their creativity, technical achievement, and cultural influence over the past year. Selected from a pool of 45 finalists, this year’s honorees represent a broad range of developers whose work pushed the boundaries of design, innovation, and user experience across Apple devices.

“Every year, we are inspired by how developers transform their ideas into experiences that enrich people’s lives,” said Apple CEO Tim Cook. “This year’s winners embody the creativity and excellence that define the App Store, and they highlight the powerful impact world-class apps and games can have globally.”

The winners of the 2023 Apple App Awards highlight the versatility of Apple’s ecosystem. Key accolades included Tiimo as iPhone App of the Year for its AI-powered task guidance, Detail as iPad App of the Year for advanced editing, and Essayist for streamlining academic writing on Mac.

Apple Vision Pro featured Explore POV for immersive experiences, while Strava won Apple Watch App of the Year for enhancing athlete community tracking, and HBO Max on Apple TV for improving accessibility with ASL.

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In gaming, Pokémon TCG Pocket was named iPhone Game of the Year, followed by DREDGE on iPad, Cyberpunk 2077 on Mac, and Porta Nubi on Apple Vision Pro for its puzzles.

In its recognition of Cultural Impact winners, Apple showcased six titles that promote positive change and inclusion. Notable highlights include Art of Fauna, which transformed accessible game design with wildlife puzzles; Chants of Sennaar, which explores communication barriers through storytelling; and Despelote, which captures national identity via childhood and football memories. Additionally, Be My Eyes utilises AI to assist individuals with low vision, Focus Friend addresses digital distractions, and StoryGraph emphasises diverse authors and voices for readers.