How to publish an iPhone app to the App Store
Written by the Fastshot team from the Fastshot user guides. Updated .
Connect your Apple Developer account on the iOS tab of the Publish view, then Publish: Fastshot sets up signing and the App Store Connect app and builds for TestFlight. From the chat the agent can then add testers, write the listing, upload screenshots and submit the app to App Review.
Start building your appPublishing to the App Store starts from a TestFlight build. Fastshot does the setup with Apple and then works on the listing in App Store Connect when you ask.
1. Connect your Apple Developer account
On the iOS tab of the Publish view, connect the Apple Developer account ($99 a year, paid to Apple), with an Apple ID or an App Store Connect API key.
2. Publish a TestFlight build
Publish sets the bundle ID, creates the signing and the App Store Connect app with Apple, and builds for TestFlight. Setting up the first TestFlight build creates the app in App Store Connect.
3. Add TestFlight testers
The agent adds people by email, or turns on a public join link, for the newest build from a TestFlight build. The first build of each version goes through Beta App Review, from hours to a couple of days, which needs a contact name, phone and email.
4. Prepare the listing
Ask the agent for the description, keywords, what’s new, promotional text, support and marketing URLs, name, subtitle and privacy policy URL, in any language. The privacy policy page Fastshot generates can be the privacy policy URL.
5. Add screenshots
Fastshot generates App Store screenshots (a Pro or Enterprise feature, up to 4 per project) and the agent uploads them at the 6.9-inch iPhone size. Apple processes each one for a few minutes.
6. Answer export compliance
Apple holds a build without an export compliance answer from testers and App Review. The answer is yours: whether the app uses encryption beyond standard encryption such as HTTPS (most apps do not).
7. Submit to App Review
The agent submits the version with the newest TestFlight build. A first submission also needs answers given in App Store Connect itself: the age rating questionnaire, the primary category, the content rights declaration, a copyright line, App Privacy, a price (free is a price) and iPad screenshots when the app runs on iPad.
Good to know
- Builds made to install on your own iPhone are for internal testing only and cannot go to testers or App Review.
- Generated privacy policies and terms are AI-generated drafts, not legal advice: review and edit them before use.
- An app that is already released gets a new version number for its next listing.
Frequently asked questions
- How do I publish an iPhone app to the App Store?
- Connect your Apple Developer account on the iOS tab of the Publish view, then Publish to build for TestFlight. After that the agent can add testers, write the listing, upload screenshots and submit the version to App Review.
- Do I need an Apple Developer account to publish?
- Yes. An Apple Developer Program membership ($99 a year, paid to Apple) is needed, connected with an Apple ID or an App Store Connect API key.
- Can Fastshot write my App Store listing?
- Yes. With your Apple Developer account connected and the app in App Store Connect, the agent works on the listing when asked: description, keywords, what’s new, promotional text, URLs, name and subtitle, in any language.
- What does App Review still need after the build?
- A first submission needs answers in App Store Connect: the age rating questionnaire, primary category, content rights declaration, copyright line, App Privacy, a price, export compliance, and iPad screenshots when the app runs on iPad.
Related: Install an IPA on iPhone, iOS app builder
Next lesson: Restore an older app version and export your code
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