What App Review accepts

Screenshots are part of what Apple reviews. A set that breaks the rules gets the whole submission sent back. This page is a short summary in our own words. Apple's own pages decide, and they change:

App Review Guidelines, section 2.3 on accurate metadata
Screenshot specifications
Marketing resources and identity guidelines

Show the real app#

Use real screens of the current version. No mock-ups of features the app does not have, and no screens of an older design.
Show the app in use. A set of title art, splash screens and sign-in pages gets rejected. Most slides should show a screen that does something.
Text around the device is fine. Headlines, backgrounds and device frames are normal. They must not hide or misstate what the app does.
Show what everybody can reach. If a slide shows something that needs a purchase or a subscription, say so on the slide.

Only real numbers#

A badge with a rating, a download count, an award or a review is a claim. So is a figure on a stat slide and a quote on a reviews slide.

Use the figures your app really has, and keep them current.
A review quote must be a real review. Name who said it only with their permission.
"#1", "best" and "most popular" need proof you can show Apple.
Do not show a price. Prices differ by country and change.

appShots has no way to check these, so it is up to you. The skill never invents them.

Other companies' names and logos#

Do not name other platforms. No "also on Android", and no other store's badge.
A logo is a trademark. Show the logo of a service only if your app really works with it, and check that service's brand rules. Many allow "works with" and forbid anything that reads as a partnership or an endorsement.
An icon row labelled "Works with" is the honest form. A logo wall with no label reads as an endorsement.
The brand icons in appShots are there for this one use. That they are included does not give you the right to use them.

Apple's own things#

Device frames must show the right kind of device: iPhone screens in an iPhone, iPad screens in an iPad. appShots picks the frame from the device the screenshot is from.
Do not put the Apple logo, the App Store badge or other Apple artwork on a slide.
Do not write Apple's product names into a headline as if Apple endorsed the app.

Header and search results images#

These have stricter rules of their own:

Copy and the main subject stay inside the safe area. The rest is cropped on some devices.
No other company's logo. Your own logo or app icon is fine.
Keep the copy to one short phrase.

See Header and search results.

Content#

Screenshots must suit everybody, whatever the app's age rating. No violence or adult content in the store images.
Do not show real people's names, messages, addresses or faces without permission. Use made-up content.
Keep the simulator's debug banners, test data and placeholder text out.

A checklist before you submit#

Does every device show a real screen of this version?
Is every figure, award and quote real and current?
Is there no price, no other platform and no Apple logo?
Does your app really work with every logo you show?
Does every language read well, with no cut-off words?
Are the files the right size? See Sizes.

appShots is not affiliated with Apple and cannot promise that a set passes review.