Browser Extensions and Mobile Apps as a Side Hustle in Canada: Store Fees, Commissions and Break-Even Math

A browser extension or mobile app side hustle in Canada builds one small tool, publishes it on the Chrome Web Store, Google Play or the App Store, and charges once or by subscription. Publishing costs are small (a one-time Chrome Web Store fee, US$25 once for Google Play, 99 USD a year for Apple), and both app stores offer a 15% commission tier on the first US$1 million of a developer’s yearly earnings. Every fee below was read on the store’s or processor’s own page on October 19, 2026.

Related reading: micro-SaaS is the web-app version of the same idea, Apps Script automation builds small tools for clients instead of the public, and Notion templates sells a digital product with no code.

Quick fact	Figure (read October 19, 2026)
Chrome Web Store registration	One-time fee, per account
Google Play registration	US$25, one time
Apple Developer Program	99 USD per membership year (local currency at enrollment)
Apple Small Business Program commission	15% for up to US$1M prior-year proceeds
Google Play 15% tier (Canada and other remaining markets)	15% on the first US$1M a year, 30% above
Stripe Canada domestic cards	2.9% + CA$0.30

How do browser extensions and mobile apps make money?

Browser extensions and mobile apps make money from a one-time price, a subscription, or in-app purchases, and the store you sell through decides who takes the fee. The three routes:

Route	Who takes payment	Fee you pay (October 19, 2026)
Chrome extension with your own checkout	You, through a processor	Stripe Canada: 2.9% + CA$0.30 per domestic card payment
Android app or in-app purchase on Google Play	Google Play billing	15% on the first US$1M a year (15% tier), 30% above; 15% on auto-renewing subscriptions
iPhone or iPad app on the App Store	Apple In-App Purchase	15% in the Small Business Program up to US$1M; the standard rate above that

Google’s page says 97% of developers distribute on Google Play at no charge, and that of those subject to a fee, 99% are eligible for 15% or less. It also lists different, newer fee tables for users in Australia, the European Economic Area, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States, with rollout dates of June 30, 2026 (EEA, UK, US) and September 30, 2026 (Australia, Japan). If many of your buyers are in the U.S., read that table: it uses 10% to 25% plus a 5% billing fee, depending on the transaction type and install date.

What does it cost to publish?

Publishing costs a registration fee per store and nothing per listing. What each store’s own page says:

• Chrome Web Store. You register as a developer and pay a one-time registration fee before publishing. Google suggests a new email address used only for publishing, because the account email cannot be changed later.
• Google Play. A US$25 one-time registration fee, paid by Mastercard, Visa, American Express or Visa Electron (outside the U.S.); prepaid cards are not accepted.
• Apple. 99 USD per membership year, listed in local currency during enrollment. Nonprofits, accredited educational institutions and government entities that meet requirements can request a fee waiver.

So the first-year platform cost of shipping on all three is the Chrome fee, plus US$25, plus 99 USD. Your computer, test devices and design tools are the larger costs; price them from your own receipts.

Which small tools suit a Canadian side hustle?

Small tools that suit a side hustle solve one repeated task for a group you can reach. These 15 ideas are starting points, each with why it fits:

1. A CRA mileage logger. Side hustlers need a log; see the mileage log guide for what the record holds.
2. A GST/HST quarter tracker. Adds sales by calendar quarter against the $30,000 test.
3. A bilingual (English/French) text helper for forms. A Canadian-specific need.
4. A tab and reading-list organizer for students. Large, easy-to-reach audience.
5. A price tracker for one retailer category. Narrow and testable.
6. A Kijiji or Marketplace listing template filler. For resellers who post often.
7. A snow-day or school-closure notifier for one region. Seasonal, local.
8. A tip and fee calculator for delivery couriers. Uses the platforms’ published fees.
9. A recipe scaler for home bakers. Pairs with home baking.
10. A habit tracker for one sport (running, hockey drills). Community-driven.
11. A screenshot-to-invoice tool for freelancers. Saves a repeated step.
12. A transit-schedule widget for one city. Check the transit agency’s data licence first.
13. A study timer with Canadian exam calendars. Seasonal demand.
14. A clipboard manager for customer-service agents. A paid team tool.
15. A Shopify or Etsy order-note helper. Sellers pay to save minutes.

Illustrative example: when do store fees and memberships break even?

This is an illustrative example. The fees are sourced from the pages above; prices and sales counts are assumptions. Store amounts are in US dollars, as the stores state them.

iPhone app, one-time price (Apple Small Business Program):

• Assumed price: US$2.99.
• Your proceeds: US$2.99 × (1 − 0.15) = US$2.54 a sale (before any sales tax handling by the store).
• Sales to cover the 99 USD membership: 99 ÷ 2.54 = 39 sales a year.

Chrome extension, subscription through Stripe Canada:

• Assumed price: CA$4.00 a month, paid by domestic cards.
• Stripe fee: 4.00 × 0.029 + 0.30 = CA$0.42. You keep CA$3.58 a month per subscriber.
• 100 subscribers: 100 × 3.58 = CA$358 a month, before tax and hosting.
• An international card adds 0.8% (about CA$0.03 on CA$4.00), and currency conversion adds 2%.

Subscribers (assumed)	Monthly revenue at CA$4	Stripe fees	You keep
25	CA$100.00	CA$10.40	CA$89.60
100	CA$400.00	CA$41.60	CA$358.40
400	CA$1,600.00	CA$166.40	CA$1,433.60

The CA$0.30 fixed fee is why tiny monthly prices hurt: at CA$1.00 a month, the Stripe fee is CA$0.33, a third of the payment. Annual billing (one charge a year) cuts that.

What does a first 90 days look like?

A first 90 days builds one tool, gets it in front of 20 real users, and only then adds a price.

Weeks	What to do
1 to 2	Pick one task; write a one-page spec; check the store’s policies for that category
3 to 6	Build the smallest working version; test it on your own devices
7	Register the developer account(s) you need; prepare screenshots and a privacy policy
8	Publish free or as a free trial; ask 20 people in the target group to use it
9 to 10	Fix the top three complaints; add the paid feature people asked for
11 to 12	Turn on pricing; track installs, trials and paid conversions weekly

A store listing outline you can copy

Name: [What it does] for [who]
Short description (one line): Saves [who] [time/task] by [how].
Long description:
- What it does, in three bullets
- What data it reads and why (and what it never collects)
- Price: free / [price] one time / [price] per month after a [n]-day trial
- Support email and privacy policy link
Screenshots: the before, the action, the result

Which tax rules apply to app and extension income in Canada?

App and extension income is business income reported on Form T2125, with developer fees, processing fees and a share of your computer as expenses. GST/HST registration follows the $30,000 small-supplier test on the CRA’s when to register page. The CRA’s digital-economy page explains that registered distribution platform operators, such as app stores, charge and collect GST/HST on digital products sold to Canadian consumers by non-resident vendors who are not registered under the normal regime. How a store handles tax for a Canadian-resident developer is set in that store’s agreement, so read it before you register for GST/HST. This is not tax, legal, or insurance advice.

What can this guide not confirm?

This guide cannot confirm the Chrome Web Store fee amount (its registration page did not state it when read), the CAD price Apple shows at enrollment, Apple’s standard commission rate above the Small Business Program threshold, or how each store collects GST/HST for a Canadian-resident developer. No publicly documented Canadian extension or app developer income was confirmed for this guide, so the break-even uses assumed prices and sales. Fees were read on October 19, 2026 and Google’s fee tables were changing by region. This is not tax, legal, or insurance advice.

Which guides sit next to browser extensions and mobile apps?

• Micro-SaaS: the web-app version, billed by subscription.
• Apps Script automation: small tools built for paying clients.
• Notion templates: a digital product without code.
• USD platform income and tax: reporting store payouts in US dollars.

What are the common questions?

Which sources support this guide?

The rules, rates, and platform requirements in this guide are checked against these primary sources. Retail price ranges are labelled as ranges to verify locally, and they are not quotes.

• Register your developer account — Chrome for Developers
• How to use Play Console (registration) — Google Play Console Help
• Service fees — Google Play Console Help
• Become a member - Apple Developer Program — Apple Developer
• App Store Small Business Program — Apple Developer
• Stripe pricing (Canada) — Stripe
• Cross-border digital products or services: GST/HST for digital-economy businesses — Canada Revenue Agency
• When to register for and start charging the GST/HST — Canada Revenue Agency
• T2125 Statement of Business or Professional Activities — Canada Revenue Agency