Request Media Kit

Apple Reveals Its Reasons For Rejecting Apps

Apple is now providing the most transparency it ever has when it comes to informing developers why it rejects their apps. While it could certainly be a great deal more transparent, the company has a n...
Apple Reveals Its Reasons For Rejecting Apps
Written by Chris Crum
  • Apple is now providing the most transparency it ever has when it comes to informing developers why it rejects their apps. While it could certainly be a great deal more transparent, the company has a new webpage up for “Common App Rejections,” which not only describes common reasons for rejection, but lists the top ten reasons.

    The top ten list is actually for a seven-day period ending August 28, so this might be something the company intends to update on a weekly basis. During that time, the most common reason for rejection was “more information needed”. That accounted for 14% of rejections. Number two was “Guideline 2.2: Apps that exhibit bugs will be rejected.” In third place at 6% was “Did not comply with the terms in the Developer Program License Agreement.”

    The top ten reasons accounted for 58% of all rejections. Here’s a look at the whole list:

    Apple has a reputation for being very stingy when it comes to accepting apps into the App Store, and has often been criticized for it – especially in cases where it has accepted apps that seem more questionable than others it has rejected. It’s nice to get a little better idea what the thought process for rejection is, but some of the top reasons are still quite vague.

    For instance, “more information needed,” the top reason, could refer to any number of things. Again, the one about not complying with terms in the license agreement could refer to anything. The rest of the top reasons give specific guidelines.

    “Before you develop your app, it’s important to become familiar with the technical, content, and design criteria that we use to review all apps,” Apple says on the page. “We’ve highlighted some of the most common issues that cause apps to get rejected to help you better prepare your apps before submitting them for review.”

    Issues highlighted with a paragraph of explanation each, include: crashes and bugs; broken links; placeholder content; incomplete information; inaccurate descriptions; misleading users; substandard user interface; advertisements; web clippings, content aggregators, or collections of links; repeated submission of similar apps; and not enough lasting value.

    For “incomplete information,” Apple says: “Enter all of the details needed to review your app in the App Review Information section of iTunes Connect. If some features require signing in, provide a valid demo account username and password. If there are special configurations to set, include the specifics. If features require an environment that is hard to replicate or require specific hardware, be prepared to provide a demo video or the hardware. Also, please make sure your contact information is complete and up-to-date.”

    The page also refers you to the App Review page for resources and a list of guidelines.

    Apple said earlier this summer that it has 1.2 million apps in the App Store.

    Image via Apple

    Get the WebProNews newsletter
    delivered to your inbox

    Get the free daily newsletter read by decision makers

    Subscribe
    Advertise with Us

    Ready to get started?

    Get our media kit