These are the best apps of 2024, according to Apple

Key Takeaways

Apple has announced the finalists for the 2024 App Store Awards.
45 apps and games finalists have been nominated in 12 different categories.
Categories include the best games and apps on iPhone, iPad and Mac, and an award for cultural impact.

The App Store is home to millions of apps, and it can be a little overwhelming at times to find what you’re looking for, considering how many choices there are. Luckily, Apple is here to help with its yearly App Store Awards.

Apple has revealed the finalists for the 2024 App Store Awards. There are 45 finalists across 12 different categories. Every year Apple’s App Store Awards aim to recognize apps that offer outstanding design, innovation, and user experience. There are categories for each of Apple’s devices, including the iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, and a new category this year for the Vision Pro.

“We’re thrilled to celebrate this year’s App Store Award finalists, whose imagination and craftsmanship have produced amazing apps that users love,” said Carson Oliver, Apple’s head of Worldwide App Store in a press release.

Siri could get a lot more chatty with this major update

Apple is reportedly working on a more advanced version of Siri that’s capable of back-and-forth conversation like Gemini Live.

Finalists for best iPhone, iPad and Mac apps

The best games and apps on each device

Apple

The iPhone, iPad and Mac have two categories each: App of the Year and Game of the Year. For a list of the rest of the nominations, including those for the Apple Watch and Vision Pro, check out the list at the end of this story. Here are the nominees for the iPhone, iPad and Mac.

Nominated for App of the Year on iPhone are Kino, Runna and Tripsy. Kino is a pro video shooting app, Runna is an app that helps runners better plan their runs, and Tripsy helps travelers plan and organize their itinerary. Nominated for Game of the Year on iPhone are AFK Journey a fantasy RPG, The Were Cleaner a stealth comedy game about a werewolf janitor, and Zenless Zone Zero, a fantasy ARPG.

Nominated for App of the Year on iPad are Bluey: Let’s Play, an interactive learning app for kids, Moises, a music editing app, and Procreate Dreams, a 2D animation app. Best iPad games nominees are Assassin’s Creed Mirage, a AAA action stealth game, Disney Speedstorm, an arcade racing game, and Squad Busters, a brawling game.

Nominated for App of the Year on Mac are Adobe Lightroom, an image editing app with new AI features, Shapr3D, a CAD 3D design app, and OmniFocus 4, which is task management software. The Mac Game of the Year nominees are Frostpunk 2, a strategic city-builder game, Thank Goodness You’re Here, an intriguing comedic game, and Stray, where you play a stray cat untangling a mystery.