The approval process, rejections, metadata tweaks, and App Store Connect quirks. Let me talk about my experience and why I think so many are scared of this process when you really should never be!
The Apple App Store has a certain shall we say reputation within the iOS developer community. Notoriously high standards and a rejection rate that is seemingly out of this world. Let’s take a quick dive into that approval process. I want to set the record straight before we look at meta data and App Store Connect.
Why is the rejection rate so high?
Is it Apple being harsh? Is it developers doing a bad job? Is it a bad idea kind of app? When you start to think of the why’s, it’s easy to see that there are so many variables as to what contributes to the decision process. I believe it is the many stories of rejection that puts many developers off of even trying in the first place. Personally I think the review process is very needed. In a world of vibe coding becoming the norm, we need standards to be held and apps that aren’t full of bugs. The rejection rate may be high, but then maybe that means as developers we need to up our game?
When you first send in your app, it is an exciting yet nerve tingling experience. It always will be, you want your app on the App Store. All that hard work to finally be available. Sadly the review process can take a couple of days. The longest wait I have had is a mere 24 hours, I’ve been lucky. I would highly recommended downloading the App Store Connect app so you get the notifications of when you app is in review and then what the outcome is. It’s much better than constantly checking and refreshing for the email notifications.
Should you fear the process?
Absolutely not! I had heard so many of the rejection stories and as a new developer I had be warned so many times to just expect rejection as that’s what Apple does…fact is, I have never had a rejection from Apple. Why? Well I hold myself to a high standard, my code to that same standard. Clean, working and tested throughly before release. I truly work hard at what I create and I believe if every developer can put that passion into their code there would be less rejection.
If your app has a bug, it’s shouldn’t be released. If you are not fully proud of your code, fully proud of your product, then I’m sorry to be the one to point this out, but that baby is not ready for the App Store. If you’re fearing the process, then is it because you know something isn’t quite as it should be in your code?
Why Apple App Store Rejections are a good thing!
Everyone complains about the rejections. I may be a glass half full kind of person, but still I think they are a great way to safeguard users. I mean if your app has a bug that you aren’t aware of, then wouldn’t you rather Apple reject you, give you the chance to fix it before it gets to your user? The same user that will spend their precious money with you, support your work and ultimately use the software you created to enhance their lives. To me, I’d much rather Apple find that issue, than any of my users. As a user of many apps myself, boy is it annoying when I find a bug in an app. I have had some apps simply just not work & i have no idea how they got past the rejection stage but as a user, I would never trust that developer again. So really, when you look at it, Apple has our backs & is helping up to do better.
Metadata Tweaks I Didn’t See Coming
So you have your app ready, that’s only half the battle. Now we have to switch gears from developer to marketing hero. When I first started, I thought once I’d uploaded the build, I was nearly done. Nope. The real battle began with the metadata.
I have lost count of how many times I changed my app description wording — not because I wanted to, but because tiny changes somehow made a huge difference in discoverability. Discoverability within the app store, especially in a crowded market can be one of the hardest things to learn for a developer. Give us code any day of the week over marketing.
I now write descriptions like I’m writing for a very literal robot with trust issues. You really need to learn to get into the head of your target user base, how they would read the description? Will they even read them or just go off the images? Will they want to know all the facts or just the target points? What words help boost your app in the algorithm? There is so much to learn when it comes to metadata, marketing and indeed the App Store algorithm. Sadly it is also forever changing, so like the metadata, you need to update things regularly.
The 30-character subtitle sounds like a bonus line for marketing… until you realise how brutally short it is. It took me an hour to trim mine down without it sounding like I’d just smashed keywords together in panic. Pro tip: Write like a human, but edit like an SEO gremlin.
Here’s another tip, not my story but a lesson to learn from. The screenshots. You spend hours having carefully designed and exported them — only to get them rejected because one said “Free to use”, and apparently even implying pricing can get flagged if not reflected exactly in the pricing settings. I personally now double-check every single word in my screenshots with the paranoia of someone smuggling forbidden phrases past a robot overlord.
App Store Connect Quirks
Let’s talk about App Store Connect. Or as I like to call it: the world’s most confusing filing cabinet with a clean UI.
Starting out as a newbie, it’s a confusing place with so many options and tabs. Pro tip, learn how to use the App Store a good week or so before you need to actually use it!
One quirk for me is the structure of different descriptors. You have your main description box, then you quite rightly have your what’s new description. You also have promotional text and more. It gets so confusing where to put everything. Let alone setting up in app events & the newly added accessibility section. Which I do highly recommend filling out. You don’t need to update your app to publish which accessibility options your app supports, you can publish them straight away.
Also, the version release options are just confusing enough to make you second guess yourself: manual release vs. automatic release vs. phased rollout… I mean what should a developer do? Release to the masses or to a handful to start with. Is it safe enough to automatically go out seeing as its passed review even at 3am with no support awake for unexpected crashes. It can be a minefield. I really cannot recommend enough, take time to learn App Store Connect. I am still confused by working out some of the trends lol.
Conclusion
All in all, like the title suggests…what is it really like submitting to the Apple App Store…well in all honesty its just an emotional rollercoaster, pretty much like the development of your app itself. It needn’t be scary, just best to be prepared. Don’t fear the rejection, take it as positive criticism and a phew, they caught it first kind of situation. Learn how to use App Store Connect almost like it’s a new piece of software. After all it’s our most helpful aid in getting our software to our users. Go forth developers and send in your apps!
