Every app can do this. They just can't say that it is cheaper on the website.

Media streaming services "only" pay a 15% fee on IAP

How much are credit card fees? Chargebacks? Fraud? Server costs to host your app and updates? The shopping cart/private infrastructure? You actually get some value from those percentages, but few people actually run the numbers.

2.9% is the highest you'll pay to accept cards unless you're in a high risk category. And even cheaper with volume

Fraud happens with any payment provider including Apple.

You don't have to pay extra for shopping cart infrastructure if you use Stripe or similar

That's stripe rate. You will pay higher elsewhere.

There are others with similar prices. Adyen: https://www.adyen.com/pricing and Braintree: https://www.braintreepayments.com/se/braintree-pricing for example.

Only if you choose a provider that charges above market rate :)

IIRC, PayPal has offered 2.9% for over a decade

Where do you host your shopping cart? Your download server? “Using Stripe” doesn’t build your system. Stripe isn’t a standalone product. You have to have a developer to run and maintain your system. You have to pay server costs as well. And customer support costs dealing with payments and download and install issues.

And with fraud on Apple, you are never affected directly. For example, a chargeback on Stripe costs you $20, unless you win. If you are doing any sort of volume, that is not only expensive, but time consuming — you have to defend your case. You never touch any of that with Apple. At the very least, you need a developer to both build and “run” your store and all of its associated infrastructure.

~3% or less.

~3% plus some fixed transaction fee.

So for low dollar amount charges, like a $1.00 app purchase, the transaction fee can be > 30% (e.g. 2.9% + $0.30 on Stripe).

So selling an App for a dollar using stripe, you get $0.67. With the App Store, you get $0.70.

And for that stripe fee you still have to have your own store, download infrastructure, and website to sell it on. A website that you also have to build, maintain, and market. And you have to deal with chargebacks and customer support during the buying process.

Right, but that stops there

At 1.2$ you already earn more then the Apple Store.

    $ 1.0 Apple: 0.7 Stripe: 0.671
    $ 1.1 Apple: 0.77 Stripe: 0.7681
    $ 1.2 Apple: 0.84 Stripe: 0.8652

So just make it 1.49 and you are good (you'll earn a full 10% more than with Apple)

Anyway even at 0.99 price tag (I think Apple doesn't allow 1$) it only 4.5% less, on a million unit sold the difference would be about 31,710 dollars (693,000 VS 661,290).