Submit your iOS apps to the App Store
Learn how to optimize your apps for the latest version of iOS and distribute them on the App Store. Build your apps with Xcode 14.1, update your product pages, and submit today.
Build with Xcode 14.1
Deliver great experiences by seamlessly integrating with the latest advances on Apple platforms. Build your apps using Xcode 14.1, which includes SDKs for all the latest Apple platforms.
Please note, starting April 2023, all iOS and iPadOS apps submitted to the App Store must be built with Xcode 14.1 and the iOS 16.1 SDK.
Optimize for iOS 16
The SDK for iOS 16 provides an abundance of exciting new APIs and capabilities that help you empower people to do more, more easily. Bring widgets to the Lock Screen, take advantage of enhancements in Maps, let people conveniently complete tasks using Siri with new App Shortcuts, make it simpler to share your content, and so much more.
Swift and SwiftUI
Swift is a powerful programming language now features built-in support for regular expressions, all-new regex builders, and package plugins to create and share custom tooling. The latest updates also include improvements to generics syntax and under-the-hood performance improvements when building and launching apps.
SwiftUI is the modern way to build great-looking user interfaces across all Apple platforms. You can learn it once and apply it everywhere. This year, SwiftUI is more powerful, flexible, and easier to adopt. Take control of your app’s navigation with a new stateful navigation API, build the layout that works best for your app with all-new custom layouts, and use SwiftUI more seamlessly in UIKit apps with new UICollectionView custom cell support.
WidgetKit
Now you can use WidgetKit to build complications for Apple Watch and widgets on the Lock Screen for iPhone, embracing SwiftUI and extending the glanceable experience. Write your code once for iOS 16 and watchOS 9, and share infrastructure with your existing Home Screen widgets.
App Intents
Help users quickly accomplish tasks related to your app by voice or tap. App Intents is a new Swift-only framework designed to make it faster and easier to build great actions — and you can use it to build new App Shortcuts. With no user setup required, App Shortcuts are available as soon as your app is installed in iOS, iPadOS, or watchOS, and can be run from the Shortcuts app, Spotlight, and Siri. With support for parameters and synonyms, App Shortcuts let people interact with your app through Siri more naturally.
Maps
Get the most out of the All-New Map, including the highly detailed 3D City Experience. Visualize data using overlays that seamlessly integrate with the 3D map. Create interactive, immersive experiences with the new Selectable Map Features and Look Around APIs. Use the new Maps Server API to increase performance, lower data usage, and improve battery life.
In-app purchase
Use new APIs and the latest enhancements to create even better in-app purchase experiences. You can now sync in-app purchase products from App Store Connect into Xcode, control when StoreKit message sheets appear in your app, present offer code redemption sheets within your app, and much more. Take advantage of new testing features, like the ability to request test notifications and test additional in-app purchase scenarios in the sandbox environment and Xcode, so you can be sure to provide great experiences for your users.
Learn about in-app purchase enhancements
Metal 3
Metal powers hardware-accelerated graphics on Apple platforms by providing a low-overhead API, rich shading language, tight integration between graphics and compute, and an unparalleled suite of GPU profiling and debugging tools. Metal 3 introduces powerful features that help your games and pro apps tap into the full potential of Apple silicon. Now you can render high-resolution graphics in less time, load resources faster, train machine learning networks with the GPU, and more.
Test on devices
All-screen support
Apps should look great on all models of iPhone, regardless of display size or aspect ratio. With features like Xcode storyboards, Auto Layout, and SwiftUI, your app’s interface elements and layouts automatically fit the display. Test your apps with the latest devices or the simulator in Xcode 14.1 to make sure they’re ready to take advantage of the edge-to-edge displays by respecting safe areas, supporting adaptive layouts, and more. Find and address UI issues in your app before testing on a device to make sure your app looks great. App updates must use an Xcode storyboard to provide the app’s launch screen. In addition, new apps that run on iPhone must support all iPhone screens.
View related Human Interface Guidelines
Required device capabilities
The App Store is designed to provide users with apps that work seamlessly with their devices‘ capabilities. Verify that your information property list (info.plist) is compatible with any device requirements when submitting a new app that takes advantage of the latest technologies.
View “Required Device Capabilities”
TestFlight beta testing
Before finalizing your app for release, get valuable feedback with beta testers. Upload your app to App Store Connect and use TestFlight to test on a device and easily invite other testers.
Submit for review
Before submitting your app for review, make sure it’s ready to be publicly released and that you’re making the most of your product page.
App Review
Learn about the review process, view the App Store Review Guidelines, and receive advice on how to avoid common issues before you submit.
Product page
Make sure your app’s name, icon, description, screenshots, app previews, and keywords are ready for your product page. You can also take this opportunity to update your subtitle and promotional text, and choose to promote any new in-app purchases. If your app supports Dark Mode, consider including at least one screenshot that showcases what the experience looks like for users.
View details on creating a great product page
App privacy details
Enter all necessary information about your app’s privacy practices, including the practices of third-party partners whose code you integrate into your app, in App Store Connect. These details inform the app privacy label on your App Store product page and are required to submit new apps and app updates to the App Store.
Learn about providing app privacy details
iPhone apps on the Mac App Store
Your iPhone apps will be published automatically on the Mac App Store on Apple silicon Macs, unless you update their availability in App Store Connect.
Learn about managing your app’s availability
Submission
Once your app is updated for the latest platform versions and devices, submit for review. Get step-by-step instructions how to submit your apps for distribution on the App Store.
