Guides

Plain words, no jargon. How the App Store finds your app, and what to do about it.

• Why your app doesn't show up in App Store search

  An app goes missing from search because it is brand new, because you are searching the wrong store, or because its listing gives Apple nothing to match.

• How to pick App Store keywords

  Two questions pick a keyword: do people type it, and can you win it. Apple's search suggestions answer the first; the apps already ranking answer the second.

• App name, subtitle, and the Keyword field

  Three fields decide which searches can find your app: the name, the subtitle, and the Keyword field, holding 30, 30, and 100 characters between them.

• How long App Store Optimization takes

  Changes to your name, subtitle, and keywords go live with your next app update, positions move over days and weeks, and only history tells a trend from noise.

• App Store screenshots that earn the download

  Your screenshots sit above the description, so for many visitors they are the whole pitch: the first one has to show the app doing its job with a caption in plain words.