App Store Launch Club

Topic

Apple App Review

16 articles on apple app review for app builders shipping to the App Store and Google Play.

A smartphone lying face-up on a pale oak desk beside a short tower of plain wooden toy building blocks, a small brass magnifying glass resting on a folded cream index card, and a ceramic cup of tea in bright morning window light

Apple App Review App Store Age Rating

App Store Age Rating Questionnaire: How to Answer It Correctly (4+, 9+, 13+, 16+, 18+)

The App Store age rating questionnaire is the required set of questions in App Store Connect that decides whether your app shows as 4+, 9+, 13+, 16+ or 18+. Apple calculates the rating from your answers, and a handful of capability questions (unrestricted web access, social media, medical information) push a plain utility app up two tiers if you answer them loosely. Here is what each question means, which answers move the rating, and how to fill it in for an Expo app.

David

David September 26, 2026 9 min read

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Apple App Review Guideline 3.1.2 In-App Purchases

Guideline 3.1.2 Rejection: How to Fix Your Subscription Paywall for App Review

A Guideline 3.1.2 rejection means App Review found your auto-renewable subscription missing something Apple requires before a user can subscribe: the full renewal price shown prominently, the subscription name and length, what the user gets, a restore path, or working Terms of Use and Privacy Policy links. Here is what each 3.1.2 clause targets and the exact paywall checklist that clears it.

David

David September 25, 2026 9 min read

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Apple App Review Guideline 2.3 Shipping

Guideline 2.3 Rejection: How to Fix Accurate Metadata in App Review

A Guideline 2.3 rejection means App Review decided your listing does not match your app - screenshots, name, keywords, description, or release notes. Here is what each 2.3 clause targets, why most of these are metadata-only fixes that do not need a new build, and how to sweep your listing before you resubmit.

David

David September 21, 2026 9 min read

A smartphone on a pale birch desk showing a single clean sign-in button beside two small brass keys and a folded paper map in soft morning daylight, with empty space in the upper left

Expo Claude Code Apple App Review

How to Add Google Sign-In to Your Expo App

How to add Google Sign-In to your Expo app: create OAuth client IDs in Google Cloud, install the auth module, trigger the sign-in flow, and exchange the token for your own session. Here is the exact flow - plus the Guideline 4.8 rule that means adding Google login forces you to add Apple login too.

David

David September 16, 2026 9 min read

A smartphone on a warm oak desk showing a clean dark sign-in button beside a brass key and a closed padlock in soft morning daylight, with empty space in the upper left

Expo Claude Code Apple App Review

How to Add Sign in with Apple to Your Expo App

How to add Sign in with Apple to your Expo app: install expo-apple-authentication, enable the capability in app.json, render the native button, and exchange the identity token for your own session. Here is the exact flow - and the Guideline 4.8 rule that forces you to offer it whenever you use a third-party login.

David

David September 15, 2026 9 min read

A smartphone lying face-up on a warm wood desk showing a plain generic privacy toggle screen, next to a small stack of blank data-sheet papers with a magnifying glass resting on top, soft natural daylight

Apple App Review Guideline 5.1.2 Expo

Guideline 5.1.2 Rejection: Fixing Data Use and Sharing in Your Expo App

A Guideline 5.1.2 rejection means Apple thinks your app is tracking, sharing, or repurposing user data without the permission it requires, most often because App Tracking Transparency is missing or a new AI feature is quietly sending data to a third party. Here is what the guideline actually covers and how to fix it in an Expo app.

David

David September 1, 2026 10 min read

A smartphone displaying a plain generic padlock icon resting beside a credit card and a small stack of coins on a warm wood desk in soft daylight

Apple App Review Guideline 3.1.1 In-App Purchases

Guideline 3.1.1 Rejection: How to Fix an In-App Purchase Violation

A Guideline 3.1.1 rejection means App Review found a way to unlock content or features in your app that does not go through in-app purchase. Here is what Apple's In-App Purchase rule actually requires, the narrow exceptions that do not apply to most indie apps, and what to change before you resubmit.

David

David August 30, 2026 9 min read

Two nearly identical smartphones lying side by side on a wood desk, both showing the same generic blank grid of app icon squares, one phone overlapping the other like a stamped duplicate

Apple App Review Guideline 4.1 Shipping

Guideline 4.1 Rejection: How to Fix a Copycat App Store Rejection

Guideline 4.1 covers three separate things: copying an app's idea, impersonating a real service, and reusing another developer's icon or brand name. Here is what each clause actually says, why fast Claude Code builds walk into this one specifically, and how to fix it before you resubmit.

David

David August 29, 2026 9 min read

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Apple App Review Guideline 4.2 Claude Code

Guideline 4.2 Rejection: How to Fix Minimum Functionality in a Claude Code + Expo App

A Guideline 4.2 rejection means Apple decided your app does not offer enough beyond a repackaged website to earn a spot on the App Store. Here is what minimum functionality actually requires, why apps built fast with Claude Code and Expo are more likely to trip it, and the concrete features that clear it.

David

David August 27, 2026 10 min read

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Apple App Review Guideline 5.1.1 Expo

Guideline 5.1.1 Rejection: How to Add Account Deletion to Your Expo App

A Guideline 5.1.1 rejection means your app lets someone create an account but does not let them delete it from inside the app. Here is what Apple actually requires, what counts as deletion versus deactivation, and how to add it to an Expo app backed by Supabase or Firebase.

David

David August 26, 2026 9 min read

A smartphone lying face-up showing a plain login screen beside a small gold key and a sealed white identification card on a dark wood desk in soft daylight

Apple App Review Guideline 4.8 Shipping

Guideline 4.8 Rejection: When Your App Actually Needs Sign in with Apple

A Guideline 4.8 rejection means your app offers a third-party or social login without also offering Sign in with Apple as an equal option. Here is when that requirement actually applies, when it does not, and how to add it to an Expo app.

David

David August 24, 2026 9 min read

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Apple App Review Guideline 2.1 Shipping

Guideline 2.1 Information Needed: How to Answer App Review's Most Common Rejection

Apple publishes that over 40 percent of unresolved App Review issues sit under guideline 2.1. Here is what App Completeness actually requires, why the demo account is the usual culprit, and exactly what to send back in Resolution Center.

David

David August 21, 2026 10 min read

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Apple App Review Guideline 4.3 Shipping

Guideline 4.3 Rejection: What App Review Actually Means by Spam

Guideline 4.3 has two separate clauses that get cited for two completely different mistakes. Here is what Apple's spam rule actually says, why template and reskin builds trigger it, and how to answer it in Resolution Center.

David

David August 20, 2026 8 min read

App Store Launch Club - a developer working through the App Privacy questionnaire in App Store Connect before submitting an app

App Store Apple App Review Shipping

How to Fill Out App Privacy Details in App Store Connect

The App Privacy questionnaire is where first-time submissions quietly go wrong. Answer it wrong and you either get rejected or you publish a privacy label that does not match your app. Here is how to answer it accurately in about twenty minutes.

David

David August 16, 2026 9 min read

A laptop and a smartphone on a dark desk with moody blue accent lighting, an out-of-focus code editor glowing in the background

Apple App Review Expo Privacy Manifest

How to Fix Apple's Privacy Manifest Error (ITMS-91053) in Your Expo App

ITMS-91053 shows up the first time a dependency in your Expo app touches an API Apple now requires you to explain. Here is where the declaration actually lives, how to find the dependency causing it, and the loop I run before every submission so it never surprises me at review.

David

David August 8, 2026 8 min read

App Store Launch Club - passing Apple App Review and Guideline 4.3 on your first submission

Apple App Review Guideline 4.3 Shipping

How to Pass Apple App Review (Including Guideline 4.3)

Apple rejects a huge share of first apps, and Guideline 4.3 is the number one reason. Here is what Apple is actually checking, why first-timers get flagged as clones, and the exact fixes that get you approved.

App Store Launch Club

App Store Launch Club July 27, 2026 9 min read

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