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The policy has also expanded beyond individuals. Microsoft announced on May 7, 2026, that new company developer registration is free too, replacing the former $99 company-account fee. The practical question is therefore not simply whether the Store is free, but whether its identity checks, certification process, commerce terms and audience are worthwhile for your type of software.
What changed, and when?
Microsoft announced free individual developer registration on May 19, 2025. The new flow waived the previous one-time $19 individual registration fee and removed the requirement to provide a credit card just to begin onboarding. Microsoft says the flow is available in nearly 200 markets, rather than every country or territory worldwide.
On May 7, 2026, Microsoft announced that company registration had also become free, removing the former $99 company-account fee. As of August 18, 2026, Microsoft’s current account-opening documentation describes both individual and company accounts as having no registration fee when created through the new onboarding experience.
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Microsoft’s original announcement framed the individual change as a way to expand opportunities for Windows developers. It is reasonable to interpret the policy as an attempt to reduce onboarding friction and increase Store participation. However, the available Microsoft material does not establish how many additional developers registered, submitted apps or generated revenue because of the fee removal alone.
See Microsoft’s individual developer registration documentation, current account-opening guidance and the company onboarding announcement.
How to register for free
Use Microsoft’s Store-specific onboarding route rather than assuming every Partner Center link will show the new process.
- Go to storedeveloper.microsoft.com.
- Select Get started for free.
- Choose Individual developer (free) if you qualify for an individual account.
- Sign in with a personal Microsoft account, or create one.
- Complete identity verification with a government-issued ID and a selfie.
- Use a mobile device if prompted to capture the original ID and selfie in good lighting.
- Review the profile information Microsoft fills in from the verification process and complete account setup.
- Follow the link to Microsoft Partner Center and open the Apps & Games workspace.
Microsoft warns that older or indirect routes—including some direct Partner Center, Xbox or Visual Studio paths—may still display a legacy process. If the old fee appears, restart from the Store marketing page and use the same personal Microsoft account throughout. Microsoft says the Apps & Games workspace may take about five minutes to appear; refresh Partner Center or navigate directly to the Apps & Games area if necessary.
Who should choose an Individual account?
Microsoft describes an individual account as suitable for people distributing apps outside a business, trade or profession. Typical examples include hobbyists, amateurs, students, small-scale creators making noncommercial content and people building school or personal projects.
A solo developer is not automatically an “individual” for Store-account purposes. If you distribute software as part of a freelance practice, paid business or profession, a company account may be more appropriate even if you work alone.
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| Situation | Likely account |
|---|---|
| Student, hobbyist or personal project | Individual |
| Noncommercial personal app | Individual |
| Freelancer distributing software professionally | Company |
| LLC, corporation, nonprofit or other organization | Company |
| Team that needs Microsoft Entra ID work-account support | Company |
Individual enrollment requires a personal Microsoft account. Microsoft Entra ID work-account sign-in is supported for company onboarding, not individual onboarding. Microsoft also says changing an Individual account into a Company account is not supported, so choose carefully before publishing under an account identity.
Review Microsoft’s account-type definitions and enrollment requirements before starting.
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The new individual flow requires identity verification using a government-issued ID and selfie. Microsoft says the purpose is to reduce fraud and impersonation and improve trust in the developer ecosystem.
That creates a clear trade-off: the financial barrier is lower, but the privacy and verification burden is real. Prepare the original identity document, use good lighting, ensure the details match your Microsoft-account information and use a functioning mobile camera. Blurry images, damaged or expired documents, unsupported document types, mismatched details, camera problems or regional verification limitations can prevent completion.
“Free” therefore means that Microsoft waives the registration charge; it does not mean that developers can sign up anonymously.
What free registration does—and does not—cover
The waived fee covers account onboarding. It does not guarantee that an app will be accepted, discovered or profitable.
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- Submission: You still need a properly configured developer account and a compliant app package.
- Certification: Apps remain subject to Microsoft Store technical, content and policy checks. Certification can delay or reject a submission.
- Metadata and privacy: Store listings, declarations, privacy information and other submission requirements still apply.
- Development: Hardware, software, testing, packaging and engineering time can cost money.
- Operations: Hosting, code signing, analytics, customer support, updates and marketing remain potential expenses.
- Compliance: Taxes, payment processing, business registration and local legal obligations are separate from Microsoft’s registration charge.
- Visibility: A Store listing does not guarantee search ranking, downloads, reviews or sales.
Microsoft lists certification, automatic updates, analytics and security-related checks among the benefits of Store distribution. Those are platform capabilities, not promises of traffic or revenue. Its Store benefits guide explains the available distribution features.
Microsoft Store commerce fees
Registration and commerce are separate decisions. Microsoft’s current published Store guidance says non-gaming developers may use their own commerce platform and retain 100% of revenue under that model. If a developer uses Microsoft Commerce, Microsoft documents a 15% fee for apps and a 12% fee for games.
Those rates depend on the payment route and app category, and commerce policies can change. Check Microsoft’s current Store commerce documentation before setting prices or forecasting net revenue. Microsoft’s “100%” statement should not be generalized to every app or every payment arrangement.
Why Microsoft wants more developers in the Store
Removing the fee lowers the cost of experimenting with Store distribution. That can make the Store more attractive to hobbyists, students and small creators who previously might have avoided a paid account before knowing whether their app would succeed.
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Microsoft can benefit in several ways:
- A larger catalog gives Windows users more reasons to browse and install from the Store.
- More developers may use Microsoft’s certification, update, analytics and distribution infrastructure.
- Store listings can strengthen Microsoft’s discovery and trust proposition against direct downloads.
- Developers using Microsoft Commerce can create additional transaction opportunities.
- A broader developer base may improve the Store’s appeal for both consumer and commercial Windows devices.
Microsoft said in its 2026 company-onboarding announcement that the Store has more than 250 million monthly active users. A separate Microsoft Learn page uses a different “over 1 billion users” audience claim. Because those figures use different wording and may measure different scopes, they should not be treated as interchangeable.
The strongest evidence-based conclusion is that Microsoft has lowered the cost of trying Store distribution. It is not proof that fee removal has already produced a specific number of new developers, published apps or sales.
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Store distribution versus publishing directly
Direct distribution through a website, GitHub Releases, WinGet or another marketplace can give a developer more control over branding, pricing, payment processing, customer relationships, update timing and installation mechanics.
The trade-off is that the developer must usually manage more of the distribution stack: hosting, download reliability, updates, signing, security messaging, support and discovery. The Microsoft Store can reduce some of that operational work, but it introduces Store policies, certification and account administration.
For a small developer, free registration makes a hybrid approach easier: publish a compliant version in the Store for discoverability while maintaining a direct-download option where the product and business model justify it.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Microsoft Store compared with Apple and Google Play
Microsoft’s new $0 registration should not be presented as a direct apples-to-apples comparison with every other marketplace.
Apple’s Developer Program is currently listed at $99 per membership year, with fee waivers for certain eligible nonprofits, educational institutions and government entities. Apple also has a 15% Small Business Program for qualifying developers. Apple’s charge is recurring annually, while Microsoft removed a one-time registration fee.
Google Play’s economics are more dependent on region, transaction type, install status, billing route and program participation. Google’s documentation describes a staggered 2026 rollout in the United States, United Kingdom and European Economic Area beginning June 30, 2026, with different service-fee treatment for new and existing installs and additional billing fees in some cases. A simple claim that Microsoft is “cheaper than Google” would therefore be incomplete without specifying the market and business model.
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Common problems and fixes
The old $19 fee still appears
Start over at storedeveloper.microsoft.com, select Get started for free and choose Individual developer. Use the same personal Microsoft account through onboarding and Partner Center. The old screen may indicate that you entered through a legacy route or that the new flow is unavailable for your market or account. If the Apps & Games workspace does not appear after several minutes and a refresh, contact Microsoft Store support.
Identity verification fails
Retake the ID and selfie in good lighting using the original document. Check that the document is supported and valid and that the personal details match. A mobile browser or camera issue may also interfere. Microsoft’s identity-verification guidance is the authoritative place to check the current process.
You selected the wrong account type
Do not assume an Individual account can later be converted. Microsoft says conversion to Company is not supported. If you are publishing professionally or on behalf of an organization, review the company requirements before creating the account.
Partner Center does not show Apps & Games
Wait roughly five minutes, refresh the page and confirm that you used the same Microsoft account during registration and Partner Center sign-in. Microsoft also advises navigating directly to the Apps & Games page if the workspace is not immediately visible.
What developers should decide before enrolling
- Account identity: Decide whether your distribution is genuinely personal and noncommercial or connected to a business or profession.
- Privacy trade-off: Confirm that you are comfortable submitting a government ID and selfie.
- Distribution strategy: Decide whether Store discovery, managed updates and certification are worth the reduced distribution work.
- Business model: Compare Microsoft Commerce with your own payment system, including fees, taxes and customer ownership.
- Compliance workload: Prepare the package, listing, privacy disclosures and support process before submission.
- Market availability: Verify that your country or territory and intended payment setup are supported; “nearly 200 markets” is not universal availability.
Bottom line
Microsoft has substantially reduced the cost of trying Store distribution: new individual registration is free through the new onboarding flow, and company registration is free as well as of 2026. The former $19 individual and $99 company registration charges are no longer the main barrier.
The remaining decisions are more consequential for many developers: whether to submit identity documents, which account type accurately represents the publisher, whether the app can pass certification, how it will be discovered and whether Microsoft Commerce economics fit the business. Free registration makes experimentation cheaper; it does not make app development, publishing, compliance or selling cost-free.
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