Publishing to App Stores

Guide to submitting Capacitor apps to Apple App Store and Google Play Store.

When to Use This Skill

• •User is ready to publish app
• •User asks about app store submission
• •User needs app store screenshots
• •User has app rejection issues
• •User needs to update app listing

Pre-Submission Checklist

Universal Requirements

• • App icon in all required sizes
• • Splash screen configured
• • App name and bundle ID set
• • Version and build numbers set
• • Privacy policy URL
• • Terms of service URL
• • Support email/URL
• • Age rating content questionnaire
• • App description (short and long)
• • Keywords/tags
• • Screenshots for all device sizes
• • Feature graphic (Android)
• • App preview video (optional)

iOS-Specific

• • Apple Developer Program membership ($99/year)
• • App Store Connect app created
• • Signing certificates and profiles
• • Info.plist usage descriptions
• • App Tracking Transparency (if applicable)
• • Sign in with Apple (if social login used)
• • Export compliance (encryption)

Android-Specific

• • Google Play Developer account ($25 one-time)
• • App signed with release keystore
• • Target SDK level (API 34+)
• • 64-bit support
• • Permissions declared in manifest
• • Data safety form completed
• • Content rating questionnaire

App Store Configuration

Version and Build Numbers

// capacitor.config.ts - Not stored here, just for reference

// iOS: Info.plist
// CFBundleShortVersionString = "1.2.3" (user-visible)
// CFBundleVersion = "45" (build number, increment each upload)

// Android: build.gradle
// versionName = "1.2.3" (user-visible)
// versionCode = 45 (must increment each upload)

iOS Info.plist

<!-- ios/App/App/Info.plist -->
<key>CFBundleDisplayName</key>
<string>My App</string>

<key>CFBundleShortVersionString</key>
<string>1.0.0</string>

<key>CFBundleVersion</key>
<string>1</string>

<!-- Privacy descriptions - REQUIRED for permissions -->
<key>NSCameraUsageDescription</key>
<string>Take photos for your profile</string>

<key>NSPhotoLibraryUsageDescription</key>
<string>Select photos from your library</string>

<key>NSLocationWhenInUseUsageDescription</key>
<string>Find nearby locations</string>

<key>NSFaceIDUsageDescription</key>
<string>Secure login with Face ID</string>

<key>NSMicrophoneUsageDescription</key>
<string>Record voice messages</string>

<!-- App Tracking Transparency -->
<key>NSUserTrackingUsageDescription</key>
<string>Allow tracking for personalized ads</string>

<!-- Export compliance -->
<key>ITSAppUsesNonExemptEncryption</key>
<false/>

Android build.gradle

// android/app/build.gradle
android {
    defaultConfig {
        applicationId "com.yourcompany.yourapp"
        minSdkVersion 22
        targetSdkVersion 34
        versionCode 1
        versionName "1.0.0"

        // 64-bit support
        ndk {
            abiFilters 'armeabi-v7a', 'arm64-v8a', 'x86', 'x86_64'
        }
    }

    buildTypes {
        release {
            minifyEnabled true
            shrinkResources true
            proguardFiles getDefaultProguardFile('proguard-android.txt'), 'proguard-rules.pro'
        }
    }

    bundle {
        language {
            enableSplit = true
        }
        density {
            enableSplit = true
        }
        abi {
            enableSplit = true
        }
    }
}

App Icons

iOS App Icons

Required sizes (place in Assets.xcassets):

Android App Icons

Required sizes (place in res/mipmap-*):

Also needed:

• •Adaptive icon (foreground + background layers)
• •Play Store icon: 512x512

Generate Icons

# Use capacitor-assets
bun add -D @capacitor/assets
bunx capacitor-assets generate --iconBackgroundColor '#ffffff'

Screenshots

iOS Screenshot Sizes

Android Screenshot Sizes

Feature Graphic (Android)

• •Size: 1024x500
• •Required for Play Store listing

Generating Screenshots

// Use Playwright for automated screenshots
import { test } from '@playwright/test';

const devices = [
  { name: 'iPhone 14 Pro Max', viewport: { width: 430, height: 932 } },
  { name: 'iPhone 14', viewport: { width: 390, height: 844 } },
  { name: 'Pixel 7', viewport: { width: 412, height: 915 } },
];

test('generate screenshots', async ({ page }) => {
  for (const device of devices) {
    await page.setViewportSize(device.viewport);

    // Screenshot 1: Home
    await page.goto('/');
    await page.screenshot({
      path: `screenshots/${device.name}-home.png`,
      fullPage: false,
    });

    // Screenshot 2: Feature
    await page.goto('/feature');
    await page.screenshot({
      path: `screenshots/${device.name}-feature.png`,
    });
  }
});

App Store Connect Submission

1. Create App

1. •Go to https://appstoreconnect.apple.com
2. •My Apps > + > New App
3. •Fill in:
   • •Platform: iOS
   • •Name: Your App Name
   • •Primary Language
   • •Bundle ID
   • •SKU (unique identifier)

2. App Information

• •Category (primary and secondary)
• •Content Rights
• •Age Rating (complete questionnaire)

3. Pricing and Availability

• •Price (Free or paid tier)
• •Availability (countries)

4. App Privacy

• •Privacy Policy URL (required)
• •Data collection types:
  • •Contact Info
  • •Health & Fitness
  • •Financial Info
  • •Location
  • •Identifiers
  • •Usage Data
  • •etc.

5. Version Information

• •Screenshots (all sizes)
• •Promotional Text (170 chars)
• •Description (4000 chars)
• •Keywords (100 chars, comma-separated)
• •Support URL
• •Marketing URL (optional)
• •What's New (for updates)

6. Build Upload

# Using Xcode
# Product > Archive > Distribute App > App Store Connect

# Using Fastlane
fastlane ios release

# Using xcrun
xcrun altool --upload-app --type ios --file App.ipa \
  --apiKey KEY_ID --apiIssuer ISSUER_ID

7. Submit for Review

• •Answer export compliance questions
• •Add notes for reviewer (if needed)
• •Submit

Google Play Console Submission

1. Create App

1. •Go to https://play.google.com/console
2. •All apps > Create app
3. •Fill in:
   • •App name
   • •Default language
   • •App or game
   • •Free or paid

2. Store Listing

• •Short description (80 chars)
• •Full description (4000 chars)
• •Screenshots (2-8 per device type)
• •Feature graphic (1024x500)
• •App icon (512x512)
• •Video URL (optional, YouTube)

3. Content Rating

Complete the questionnaire for IARC rating

4. Target Audience

• •Target age group
• •Ads declaration

5. Data Safety

• •Data collection
• •Data sharing
• •Security practices
• •Data deletion request handling

6. App Content

• •Ads (yes/no)
• •App category
• •Contact details
• •Privacy policy

7. Release

# Build AAB (required for new apps)
cd android && ./gradlew bundleRelease

# Upload via Play Console or API
# Production > Create new release > Upload AAB

Release Tracks

Common Rejection Reasons

iOS Rejections

Android Rejections

Updates and Versioning

Version Incrementing

# Increment patch (1.0.0 -> 1.0.1)
bun version patch

# Increment minor (1.0.0 -> 1.1.0)
bun version minor

# Increment major (1.0.0 -> 2.0.0)
bun version major

Phased Rollout

iOS:

• •Enable phased release in App Store Connect
• •7-day gradual rollout (1%, 2%, 5%, 10%, 20%, 50%, 100%)

Android:

• •Set rollout percentage in release
• •Monitor crash rate before increasing

Resources

• •App Store Review Guidelines: https://developer.apple.com/app-store/review/guidelines
• •Google Play Policy Center: https://play.google.com/about/developer-content-policy
• •App Store Connect: https://appstoreconnect.apple.com
• •Google Play Console: https://play.google.com/console
• •Capacitor Assets: https://github.com/ionic-team/capacitor-assets