Release Screenshots

Automate capturing App Store screenshots across all required device sizes.

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when:

•Preparing screenshots for App Store submission
•Updating screenshots after UI changes
•Capturing screenshots for multiple device sizes
•Creating a consistent screenshot set across devices

App Store Required Sizes

iPhone Screenshots (Required)

Display Size	Devices	Resolution	Simulator Name
6.9"	iPhone 16 Pro Max	1320 x 2868	iPhone 16 Pro Max
6.7"	iPhone 16 Plus, 15 Plus, 14 Plus	1290 x 2796	iPhone 16 Plus
6.5"	iPhone 11 Pro Max, XS Max	1242 x 2688	iPhone 11 Pro Max
5.5"	iPhone 8 Plus	1242 x 2208	iPhone 8 Plus

iPad Screenshots (If Universal App)

Display Size	Devices	Resolution	Simulator Name
12.9" (6th gen)	iPad Pro 12.9"	2048 x 2732	iPad Pro 12.9-inch (6th generation)
12.9" (2nd gen)	iPad Pro 12.9" (older)	2048 x 2732	iPad Pro 12.9-inch (2nd generation)

Workflow

Phase 1: Setup

•Confirm screens to capture

Ask the user which screens they want to screenshot:

code

Which screens do you want to capture? (e.g., Home, Item Detail, Settings, etc.)

•Confirm device sizes

code

Which device sizes do you need?

iPhone (select all that apply):
[ ] 6.9" - iPhone 16 Pro Max (required for new submissions)
[ ] 6.7" - iPhone 16 Plus
[ ] 6.5" - iPhone 11 Pro Max (required)
[ ] 5.5" - iPhone 8 Plus (required)

iPad (if universal app):
[ ] 12.9" iPad Pro (6th gen)
[ ] 12.9" iPad Pro (2nd gen)

•Create output directory

bash

mkdir -p ~/Downloads/AppStoreScreenshots/{iPhone-6.9,iPhone-6.7,iPhone-6.5,iPhone-5.5,iPad-12.9}

Phase 2: Capture Screenshots

For each device size, follow this process:

Step 1: List available simulators

code

mcp__XcodeBuildMCP__list_sims({ enabled: true })

Step 2: Set session defaults for target device

code

mcp__XcodeBuildMCP__session-set-defaults({
  simulatorName: "iPhone 16 Pro Max",
  scheme: "<APP_SCHEME>"
})

Step 3: Boot simulator

code

mcp__XcodeBuildMCP__boot_sim()

Step 4: Build and run app

code

mcp__XcodeBuildMCP__build_run_sim()

Step 5: Wait for app launch, then navigate to first screen

•Use mcp__XcodeBuildMCP__tap() to navigate
•Use mcp__XcodeBuildMCP__snapshot_ui() to see current UI state
•Use mcp__XcodeBuildMCP__type_text() if needed

Step 6: Capture screenshot

code

mcp__XcodeBuildMCP__screenshot({ returnFormat: "path" })

Step 7: Move screenshot to organized folder

bash

mv /path/to/screenshot.png ~/Downloads/AppStoreScreenshots/iPhone-6.9/01-Home.png

Step 8: Navigate to next screen and repeat

Step 9: Switch to next device and repeat all screens

Phase 3: Automation Script

For hands-off capture, create a navigation script:

swift

// Define screens to capture with navigation steps
let screens = [
    ("01-Home", []),  // No navigation needed, starts here
    ("02-ItemList", [.tap(id: "tab-items")]),
    ("03-ItemDetail", [.tap(id: "item-row-0")]),
    ("04-AddItem", [.tap(id: "action-add")]),
    ("05-Settings", [.tap(id: "tab-settings")])
]

Then for each device:

code

1. Boot simulator
2. Build and install app
3. For each screen:
   a. Execute navigation steps
   b. Wait for animations (0.5s delay)
   c. Capture screenshot
   d. Save with proper name
4. Shutdown simulator
5. Move to next device

Phase 4: Output Organization

Final folder structure:

code

~/Downloads/AppStoreScreenshots/
├── iPhone-6.9/
│   ├── 01-Home.png
│   ├── 02-ItemList.png
│   ├── 03-ItemDetail.png
│   ├── 04-AddItem.png
│   └── 05-Settings.png
├── iPhone-6.7/
│   └── ...
├── iPhone-6.5/
│   └── ...
├── iPhone-5.5/
│   └── ...
└── iPad-12.9/
    └── ...

Quick Capture Commands

Single Device Quick Capture

code

# Boot and run on iPhone 16 Pro Max
mcp__XcodeBuildMCP__session-set-defaults({ simulatorName: "iPhone 16 Pro Max" })
mcp__XcodeBuildMCP__boot_sim()
mcp__XcodeBuildMCP__build_run_sim()

# Wait for app to launch, then capture
mcp__XcodeBuildMCP__screenshot({ returnFormat: "path" })

Navigate and Capture

code

# See current UI
mcp__XcodeBuildMCP__snapshot_ui()

# Tap element by accessibility identifier
mcp__XcodeBuildMCP__tap({ id: "tab-items" })

# Wait briefly for animations
# Then capture
mcp__XcodeBuildMCP__screenshot({ returnFormat: "path" })

Capture All Required Devices (Sequential)

bash

# Define devices
DEVICES=("iPhone 16 Pro Max" "iPhone 16 Plus" "iPhone 11 Pro Max" "iPhone 8 Plus")
FOLDERS=("iPhone-6.9" "iPhone-6.7" "iPhone-6.5" "iPhone-5.5")

# For each device, Claude will:
# 1. Set simulator defaults
# 2. Boot and run app
# 3. Navigate through screens
# 4. Capture and organize screenshots

Tips for Best Results

Before Capturing

•
Reset simulator state (optional, for clean screenshots)
bash
```
xcrun simctl erase "iPhone 16 Pro Max"
```

•

Set appearance mode

bash

xcrun simctl ui "iPhone 16 Pro Max" appearance light
# or: appearance dark

•

Set status bar (clean time, full battery)

bash

xcrun simctl status_bar "iPhone 16 Pro Max" override \
  --time "9:41" \
  --batteryState charged \
  --batteryLevel 100 \
  --cellularMode active \
  --cellularBars 4

•
Disable keyboard autocorrect bar for cleaner shots

During Capture

•Wait 0.5-1s after navigation for animations to complete
•Use snapshot_ui() to verify correct screen before capturing
•Check for any alerts or dialogs that might appear

After Capturing

•Verify all screenshots have correct dimensions
•Check for any UI cut-offs or issues
•Consider adding device frames with fastlane frameit or Rotato

Adding Device Frames (Optional)

After capturing raw screenshots, add device frames:

Using fastlane frameit

bash

# Install
gem install fastlane

# Add frames
cd ~/Downloads/AppStoreScreenshots
fastlane frameit

Using Rotato (Mac App)

•Open Rotato
•Import screenshots
•Select device frame
•Export with frame

Localization Support

For localized screenshots, repeat the process with different locale settings:

bash

# Set simulator locale
xcrun simctl spawn "iPhone 16 Pro Max" defaults write \
  -globalDomain AppleLocale -string "fr_FR"
xcrun simctl spawn "iPhone 16 Pro Max" defaults write \
  -globalDomain AppleLanguages -array "fr"

Then organize by locale:

code

~/Downloads/AppStoreScreenshots/
├── en-US/
│   ├── iPhone-6.9/
│   └── ...
├── fr-FR/
│   ├── iPhone-6.9/
│   └── ...

Troubleshooting

Simulator won't boot

bash

xcrun simctl shutdown all
killall Simulator
# Then try again

Wrong screen captured

•Use snapshot_ui() to verify current state
•Add longer delays between navigation steps
•Check for unexpected alerts/dialogs

Screenshots too small/large

•Verify correct simulator is running
•Check xcrun simctl list devices for device names

Example Session

code

User: /release-screenshots

Claude: I'll help you capture App Store screenshots. First, which screens do you want to capture?

User: Home screen, Item list, Item detail, and Settings

Claude: Got it. Which device sizes do you need?
- iPhone 6.9" (iPhone 16 Pro Max) - recommended
- iPhone 6.5" (iPhone 11 Pro Max) - required
- iPhone 5.5" (iPhone 8 Plus) - required
- iPad 12.9" (if universal)

User: All iPhone sizes, no iPad

Claude: I'll capture 4 screens across 3 iPhone sizes (12 total screenshots).
Starting with iPhone 16 Pro Max...

[Proceeds to boot sim, build app, navigate, and capture each screen]
[Then repeats for iPhone 11 Pro Max and iPhone 8 Plus]

Claude: Done! Screenshots saved to:
~/Downloads/AppStoreScreenshots/
├── iPhone-6.9/ (4 screenshots)
├── iPhone-6.5/ (4 screenshots)
└── iPhone-5.5/ (4 screenshots)

Would you like me to add device frames using fastlane frameit?

Notes

•Always capture iPhone 6.5" and 5.5" - these are required by App Store
•iPhone 6.9"/6.7" screenshots can be reused (same aspect ratio)
•Status bar override resets when simulator restarts
•Consider creating a test account with sample data for consistent screenshots