App Store review process: publishing an app and common rejections
To publish an app on the App Store you need an Apple developer account, a store listing prepared in App Store Connect and a build that passes Apple’s review, which is carried out by people. Review checks whether the app works, whether its descriptions are accurate and whether it follows the privacy rules. Most rejections are not technical — they come from gaps in preparation, and you can check for them in advance.
Below we walk through the process from start to finish, and share what we watched for when releasing our own apps, Tako and Mümin 360.
The App Store review process, step by step
The process has roughly five steps. Each depends on the one before it. If one is incomplete, the submission either cannot be sent or is rejected.
1. Developer account
An app is published under an Apple Developer Program account, which is an annual membership. If you are publishing as a company, the account must be opened in the company’s name too. That requires organisational identity verification, which can take time. For client projects we always recommend opening the account in the client’s name. The app lives in your account, and ownership stays with you even if the developer changes.
2. Setting up in App Store Connect
App Store Connect is the panel where the store side of an app is managed. Here you prepare:
- The app name, subtitle and description
- Keywords and category
- Screenshots for different device sizes
- The age-rating questionnaire
- A link to the privacy policy
- Pricing and the countries where it will be sold
3. Privacy labels
Apple asks every app to declare what data it collects and what it uses that data for. The declaration appears on the store listing under “App Privacy”. Every third-party library you add — advertising, analytics, crash reporting — affects it. The declaration and the app’s actual behaviour must match.
4. Testing with TestFlight
Before reaching the store, builds are tested through TestFlight, Apple’s official way of distributing test versions to real phones. On our projects, weekly test builds go to the client’s phone this way, so nobody sees the app for the first time in the store.
5. Submitting for review
Build ready, listing ready, declaration ready. The final step is submitting for review, where you can leave notes for the review team. Do not underestimate those notes — we explain why below.
How does review work?
Alongside automated checks, App Store review is carried out by a person. The reviewer opens the app, tries the main flows and compares the claims on the store listing with the app itself. The assessment follows Apple’s published App Review Guidelines.
There are three possible outcomes:
| Outcome | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Approval | The build is ready to go live | Release now or on a date you choose |
| Rejection | One or more rules were not met | Read the reason, fix it, resubmit |
| Request for information | The reviewer could not verify something | Reply through App Store Connect |
Review time is not fixed. It can stretch during busy periods, ahead of major operating-system releases or over the end-of-year holidays. If your release date is tied to a campaign or launch, leave room in the schedule. Mümin 360’s first version, for instance, reached the App Store on 30 December 2025 — in the week before New Year, exactly when a generous schedule pays off.
Common reasons for rejection
Rejection messages cite the relevant guideline. In our experience, these come up most often.
An incomplete app
If the app crashes during review, a screen is empty or buttons say “coming soon”, expect a rejection. Apple expects the submitted build to be complete. Test data, placeholder text and broken links fall under the same heading.
A reviewer who cannot sign in
If the app requires an account, you must give the reviewer a demo account. Without one, review stalls. Putting the username, password and, if needed, brief instructions in the review notes solves this from the start.
Account deletion
If people can create an account in the app, they must also be able to delete it from within the app. This rule is often missed. A design that needs no account removes the burden entirely: Tako has no accounts, and its data stays on the device.
A listing that does not match the app
If the description mentions a feature the app lacks, or the screenshots do not show the real interface, the app is rejected. Screenshots can be styled, but every screen shown must exist in the app.
In-app purchase for digital content
If the app sells a digital feature, content or subscription, as a general rule it must use Apple’s in-app purchase system. Sending users to an external payment page is grounds for rejection, apart from specific exceptions. Physical goods and services fall outside this rule. Subscription apps are also expected to show price, renewal period and cancellation details clearly.
Privacy and permissions
When asking for permissions such as camera, location or notifications, explain clearly why. Requesting permissions you do not need, or shutting out users who decline, causes problems. If users are tracked across apps for advertising or analytics, Apple’s tracking-permission prompt must be shown.
Minimum functionality
Wrapping a website unchanged in an app shell, or submitting a single-screen app of unclear value, can be rejected on grounds of minimum functionality. An app needs a reason to exist on mobile.
Our pre-submission checklist
Before every store submission, we go through this list:
- Has the app been tried end to end on a real device, from a clean install?
- What does it do with no connection, or a slow one?
- Is any placeholder text, test data or “coming soon” button left?
- Are the demo account and review notes ready?
- Does the privacy declaration match every library added?
- Is there explanatory text for every permission requested?
- Do the screenshots show the current version?
- Does the purchase screen state price, period and cancellation clearly?
- Does the privacy policy link work?
- For a multilingual app, are there store texts and screenshots in every language?
The last point matters to us in particular. Tako has been available in 11 languages since its first release; Mümin 360 is in Turkish, English and Arabic. Each language means separate store copy and a separate check.
We also recommend testing offline behaviour on its own. Review can take place under varied network conditions, and an app that keeps its data on the device has a natural advantage here — we explain why in what is a local-first app.
After launch: updates are reviewed too
Approval is not the end of the process. Every new version is reviewed as well. Mümin 360 has received several updates since its first release, including the Ramadan Centre and the Prayer Habit Panel. Each new version should go back through the same checklist.
Apple also releases a new operating system every year, and after a while requires submitted builds to be compiled with the newer development tools. An app without maintenance can eventually lose the ability to ship updates at all. That is why we offer monthly maintenance on mobile projects after launch. For the whole journey, from idea to release, read our guide to commissioning a mobile app.
Frequently asked questions
How long does App Store review take?
There is no fixed time. Most submissions are settled fairly quickly, but review can take longer during busy periods, over holidays or when extra information is requested. If your launch date depends on review, leave room in the schedule.
What happens if my app is rejected?
A rejection is not final. Apple states the reason and the guideline concerned. You can fix the issue and resubmit, or, if you disagree, reply with an explanation through App Store Connect.
In whose name should the developer account be opened?
In the name of whoever owns the app. For a company app, that means the company. We always recommend the client’s name, and run the submission and review through their account.
Can I put my website on the App Store as an app?
Wrapping a site unchanged in a shell is usually rejected on grounds of minimum functionality. The app needs to offer something specific to mobile — offline use, notifications, device features or a faster flow.
Is the Google Play process the same?
The logic is similar: developer account, store listing, privacy declaration and review. The rules and the way review is carried out differ. For projects released on both platforms from one codebase, we prepare the two submissions together.
If you are planning to bring your app to the App Store or Google Play, you can see how we run the process on our mobile app development page, or write to us.
