What does it take to publish an app on the App Store and Google Play?

What does it take to publish an app on the App Store and Google Play?

You need a developer account on each store, a tested release build, complete privacy declarations, a store listing with screenshots, and an app that passes review; on Google Play, new personal accounts must also run a two-week closed test before they can go live. None of it is difficult, but it takes calendar time, and it is the part of an app project that first-time founders most often leave out of the plan. This is the checklist we work through when we take an app from its last build to both stores.

It applies whether the app is written in Swift and Kotlin or built with a cross-platform framework. If you are still choosing one, see our comparison of React Native and Flutter.

Which developer accounts do you need, and what do they cost?

Apple and Google both charge for publishing access, and both check who you are before you can ship.

• Apple Developer Program: a $99 annual membership (Apple Developer Program). An organization must be a legal entity (Apple does not accept DBAs or trade names), needs a D-U-N-S Number and needs a working public website on its own domain. The organization name becomes the seller name shown on the App Store (Apple enrollment requirements).
• Google Play Console: a one-time US$25 registration fee plus identity verification (Google Play Console help). Organization accounts need a D-U-N-S number as well. Getting one from Dun & Bradstreet is free but can take up to 30 days (Google Play organization verification).

Open both accounts in your company's name, not your developer's. Whoever holds the account holds the listing, the ratings and the download history, and moving an app between accounts later is extra work. Start this in the first week of the project, because the D-U-N-S step alone can hold up a launch.

How do you test a release before it goes public?

Both stores have built-in beta channels. Use them before every release, not only the first one.

• TestFlight on iOS: up to 100 internal testers from your team and up to 10,000 external testers. The first build you share with external testers has to be approved by App Review for TestFlight (TestFlight).
• Google Play testing tracks: internal, closed and open testing. Personal developer accounts created after November 13, 2023 must run a closed test with at least 12 testers who stay opted in for 14 consecutive days before they can apply for production access (Google Play app testing requirements).

That closed-test rule surprises founders who registered as individuals. It is written for new personal accounts, so a business that plans to publish under its own name should usually register an organization account from the start, with the D-U-N-S number described above.

What privacy information do the stores require?

Both stores ask you to declare what data your app collects, and that includes data collected by third-party SDKs such as analytics, crash reporting and advertising libraries.

• App Store: app privacy details in App Store Connect are required to submit new apps and updates, and they must cover the code of third-party partners you integrate (App privacy details). Every app also needs a privacy policy link in App Store Connect and inside the app.
• Google Play: every published app must complete the Data safety form, including apps on closed, open or production testing tracks and apps that collect no data at all, and must link a privacy policy (Data safety section).
• Account deletion: if people can create an account, Apple requires that they can also delete it within the app (App Review Guidelines, 5.1.1). Google Play requires an in-app path and a web link where users can request deletion of the account and its data (Google Play account deletion requirements).

Make an inventory of every SDK before you fill in these forms. The answers are only as accurate as your knowledge of what each library sends, and a mismatch between the declarations and the app's real behaviour can lead to a rejection now or a policy warning later.

How long does app review take?

Apple says it typically reviews at least 50% of submissions in less than 24 hours and 90% in less than 48 hours (App Review). Google Play does not promise a fixed time, and says some reviews can take up to seven days or longer in exceptional cases (Google Play review times).

On a first release, plan for at least one round of rejection and resubmission. The most avoidable delays are:

• No demo account for the reviewer when the app has a login. Apple's guideline 2.1 asks for demo account details and a back end that is switched on during review.
• Placeholder text, broken links or features that are visibly unfinished.
• Privacy declarations that do not match what the app collects.
• Sign-up without a way to delete the account.

What goes into the store listing?

The listing is a small marketing project of its own, and it should be ready before the final build is.

• App name, subtitle or short description, and a full description written for the people who will search for the app.
• Screenshots for each required device size and, on Google Play, a feature graphic. Check the current specifications in App Store Connect and Play Console when you design them, because device sizes change.
• App icon, category and the age or content rating questionnaire.
• Support, marketing and privacy policy URLs that load and match your company name.

Screenshots work best when each one explains a single benefit in a few words instead of showing a raw capture of every screen. Our UI/UX design team usually designs them alongside the app itself.

How should you roll out the first version and later updates?

Release gradually, so a bug reaches a few users instead of all of them.

• App Store phased release spreads a version update over 7 days, to 1%, 2%, 5%, 10%, 20%, 50% and then 100% of users with automatic updates, and you can pause it for up to 30 days in total (App Store Connect help). It applies to updates; the first version is available to everyone once it is released.
• Google Play staged rollouts send an update to a percentage of users that you choose. The percentage does not rise on its own, and you can halt the rollout if something goes wrong (Google Play staged rollouts).

Pair every rollout with crash reporting and a daily look at new ratings, so you see a problem on the first day and can stop it before it spreads.

What keeps an app publishable after launch?

Publishing is not a one-time event. Both stores keep raising the bar, and an app that is not maintained eventually cannot ship updates at all.

• Android target API level: from August 31, 2026, new apps and app updates on Google Play must target Android 16 (API level 36) or higher, with exceptions for Wear OS, Android Automotive OS, Android TV and Android XR (Target API level requirements).
• Apple's yearly cycle: each new iOS and Xcode release brings changes to test against, and Apple announces new submission requirements on its upcoming requirements page.
• Membership renewals: the Apple membership renews every year, and when it lapses your apps are removed from sale, so put the renewal on someone's calendar.
• Policy emails: both stores send policy notices with deadlines to the account owner. Make sure someone reads that inbox.

This is why store upkeep is part of our mobile app development projects and ongoing support, instead of treating launch day as the finish line.

How should you plan time for publishing?

Treat publishing as its own phase of the project and schedule these items from the start:

1. First week: open the Apple and Google developer accounts in your company's name, and request a D-U-N-S number if you do not have one.
2. During the build: keep the SDK inventory current, write the privacy policy, and build account deletion if the app has sign-up.
3. Before launch: run TestFlight and Google Play testing, including the 14-day closed test if you publish from a new personal account.
4. In parallel: prepare the store listings, screenshots and privacy declarations.
5. Launch week: submit, answer reviewer questions quickly, then release updates in stages.

If you are planning a first version, our guide to planning an MVP helps keep the scope small enough to ship, and our SaaS and MVP development service covers the app, the back end and the store release in one plan.

Frequently asked questions

Last updated October 31, 2026