At Build 2025, Microsoft's annual developer conference, the company announced some important changes to the Microsoft Store, its primary app marketplace on Windows 10 and 11. Since its introduction in 2012, the Microsoft Store has experienced multiple improvements and enhancements, which have made it easier for developers to distribute their projects using a trusted platform. Now, Microsoft is making its store even more accessible.
Every individual developer will soon be able to register a developer account for free. Right now, Microsoft requires a one-time $19 registration fee, but that payment is going away starting next month. However, this only applies to individual accounts—fees for corporate accounts remain in place.
In addition to free entry for every developer, the Microsoft Store is getting other much-needed improvements. For one, the store will finally display when the app was last updated. This is one of the most-requested features from users and the developer community, and Microsoft is finally delivering it 13 years after the launch of the Microsoft Store. Better late than never.
Microsoft is also improving Health Report insights for app makers, giving them more metrics like crash rate, hang rate, and affected device counts. This data will help developers prioritize bug fixes and address critical issues faster. Partner Center will also send notifications about unusual spikes in failures and allow developers to compare data across different app versions, architectures, and devices.
Another big change that is useful for both developers and users is direct Win32 app updates. The Microsoft Store can host Win32 apps with developer-provided update channels, but once an MSI or EXE is submitted, Microsoft leaves no way for users to update to the latest version from the Microsoft Store. This requires launching the app and using its update mechanisms. Soon, you will be able to download the most recent version of a Win32 app directly from the Microsoft Store so that you can start using it with no need to install additional updates.
Finally, Microsoft is launching app campaigns, which will allow developers to promote their Windows apps in the Microsoft Store and other Microsoft products via the Microsoft Advertising Platform, and the Microsoft Store FastTrack, a new program for qualified companies for faster Win32 app submissions.
Microsoft says the Microsoft Store has about 250 million monthly active users. The list of popular apps available in the store has greatly improved with the launch of ChatGPT, Day One, Docker, Fantastical, and other popular applications. Notion, another popular productivity app, is also coming soon to the Microsoft Store.
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