When Will 'Fortnite' Be Back on iOS? The Wait Is Almost Over

For five years, Fortnite players who wanted to log into the game from their Apple products were out of luck. Apple, fiercely protective of its App Store and in-game purchase options, nixed the game from iOS back in 2020.

However, Fortnite maker Epic Games never gave up on trying to get its game back on the operating system.

So when will it be back on iOS? Luckily for players and fans the world over, the wait is almost over. Maybe. Here's what we know about the roadblocks to returning, Epic's promise, and how the game is keeping people happy even after eight years.

The bad news for iOS Fortnite players came in August 2020 as Apple decided to remove the game from the App Store. At the time, CNN reported that the option to remove Fortnite had implications that reached much further than the game itself.

It reflected a battle between game developers and Apple that had persisted, where developers believed Apple held too tight of a grip on in-game options and, specifically, the ability to purchase through the game without going through Apple.

The outlet adds that Epic had encouraged users to purchase in-game currency directly from Epic.

This circumvented the 30 percent profit that Apple usually earned on in-game purchases when iOS users bought through their Apple accounts. Apple then removed Fortnite from the App Store, prompting a landmark antitrust case (Epic Games v. Apple) and efforts from Epic and other game developers to fight back against what they called "monopolistic" moves by the mega-tech company.

The court ordered Apple to find a way to allow players to make purchases for iOS games without going through Apple.

On April 30, 2025, the U.S. Federal District Court in California determined that Apple willfully violated a court order in the Epic Games v. Apple case requiring it to offer alternative purchase options, and IGN reports that the company will now be referred to federal prosecutors for violating the court order.

In early May 2025, Epic CEO Tim Sweeney posted to X (formerly Twitter) that the game would be back on iOS "next week," which would make it sometime in early to mid-May.

Epic planned to re-launch Fortnite on iOS after the injunction determined Apple had violated a court order that made it possible, per IGN. Apple quickly requested an appeal to halt the ruling, according to Fortnite Mobile News shared by Tim on X (formerly Twitter).

However, Epic says that they still have plans to bring the game back to iOS anyway, and are moving ahead as planned. There is no exact re-release date for Fortnite on iOS, but Tim promises it will be "soon."

Of course, even as they battled it out in court, Epic wasn't sitting on their hands when it came to bringing content to other players on other platforms.

The Fortnite crossovers are legendary, with the developers teaming up with major brands and companies to bring sometimes surprising characters, skins, music, and other accessories to players. Crossovers in the past have included Godzilla, Marvel, Sabrina Carpenter, Snoop Dogg, and many more.

Case in point: In May 2025, as the court cases appeared to rise to a crescendo between Epic and Apple, the company released "Galactic Battle II."

This crossover, marking the newest of many Star Wars universe crossovers for Epic and Fortnite, offered a whole new world of villains, characters, skins, and more.

While the ultimate resolution between Apple and Epic remains murky and difficult to predict, things certainly seem to be swinging in favor of the game developer, which is fighting a battle for more than its own right to sell in-game currency.

At its heart, the battle is about just how much control a marketplace company like Apple can have over the games it sells. The consequences of however the case lands will have implications for Apple, Android, and even marketplaces like Steam.

Yet through it all, Epic has continued to put out impressive collabs and updates like the "Galactic Battles" pack, proving that nothing will stop them from serving their customers.

Not even an epic battle with a tech titan.