Manage your app's availability

Set distribution methods

There are two options for setting your app’s distribution methods in App Store Connect:

Public: Your app will be publicly available on the App Store in the countries or regions you selected and available to anyone for volume purchase through Apple Business Manager or Apple School Manager. You can request to change your publicly available app to an unlisted app to make your app discoverable on the App Store only with a direct link. Learn about unlisted app distribution.

Private: Your app will be available only on Apple Business Manager or Apple School Manager to specific businesses and organizations that you specify in App Store Connect.

Note: Once your app is approved, the distribution method can't be changed. The only exception to this is to change your publicly available app to an unlisted app. To switch from private to public, or vice versa, you’ll need to create a new app record and resubmit your binary.

Make your app available publicly on the App Store and for volume purchase

Required role: Account Holder, Admin or App Manager. View role permissions.

All apps listed on the App Store are automatically available for volume purchase for the same price in Apple Business Manager and Apple School Manager, which is where businesses and educational institutions download apps for volume distribution.

  1. From Apps, select your app. The page opens with the Distribution tab selected.

  2. In the sidebar, click Pricing and Availability.

  3. Under App Distribution Methods, select Public.

  4. If you'd like to offer educational institutions a discount, check the box next to “Offer a reduced price on Apple School Manager for volume purchases.” Your app will be available for 50% of its listed price for educational institutions purchasing quantities of 20 or more.

  5. On the top right, click Save.

    Once your app is approved, it will be available on the App Store in the countries or regions you selected, and in the Apps and Books section of Apple Business Manager or Apple School Manager.

Make an app available only to specific businesses or organizations

Required role: Account Holder, Admin or App Manager. View role permissions.

If you don’t want individual users to be able to download your app from the App Store, you can restrict the availability of your app to only specific businesses or organizations. This includes the ability to distribute proprietary apps for internal use within your organization.

You can specify one or more organizations that can view and download the app in Apple Business Manager or Apple School Manager. They can then distribute it through Mobile Device Management or redemption codes.

  1. From Apps, select your app. The page opens with the Distribution tab selected.

  2. In the sidebar, click Pricing and Availability.

  3. Under App Distribution Methods, select Private.

  4. Under Type, choose either Organization ID or Apple ID, and enter the required information. Enter the Organization ID to make the app visible in the organization's Apple Business Manager or Apple School Manager account. For businesses still using the legacy Volume Purchase Program, you can assign an app to their volume purchasing Apple ID.

    App Distribution Methods section of the Pricing and Availability page. Public option is selected.
  5. In the top right, click Save.

Make your app available only through a direct link

Required role: Account Holder. View role permissions.

Apps that aren’t suited for public distribution can be made discoverable as unlisted on the App Store with a direct link that anyone can use. Unlisted apps don’t appear in any App Store categories, recommendations, charts, search results, or other listings. The direct link can also be used in Apple Business Manager and Apple School Manager.

  1. From Apps, select your app.

  2. In the sidebar, click Pricing and Availability.

  3. Under App Distribution methods, make sure your app’s availability is set to Public. If your app was already approved for private download on Apple Business Manager or Apple School Manager, you’ll need to create a new app record in App Store Connect, upload your binary, and set the distribution method to Public before completing the next step.

  4. Submit your app for review, if you haven’t already.

    Note: Once your app is approved, the distribution method can't be changed. The only exception to this is to change your publicly available app to an unlisted app. To switch from private to public, or vice versa, you’ll need to create a new app record and resubmit your binary.

  5. Submit a request to receive an unlisted link. If your request is approved, your app’s distribution method will change to Unlisted in the Pricing and Availability section of the app information page. Future versions of your app will remain unlisted.

I currently have an app that is available privately in Apple Business Manager and I’d like to make it available publicly on the App Store, can I change my app’s distribution method?

No. To change your app’s distribution method from public to private, or vice versa, please create a new app and submit it for review.

Where can users download my app in volume?

Downloading apps in volume requires either an Apple School Manager or Apple Business Manager account. Apple Business Manager and Apple School Manager are available in many countries and regions.