How to Submit an App to App Store Connect
Submitting an app to App Store Connect takes five things: a build uploaded from Xcode, Transporter or an API-driven pipeline; a complete listing (name, description, keywords, support URL, privacy policy URL); screenshots for every required device size; answers to the privacy, age-rating and export-compliance questionnaires; and — if any part of your app sits behind a login — a working demo account in the review notes. When all five are in place you move the version to Waiting for Review, and Apple usually responds within 24 to 48 hours. Widely cited estimates put 2025 rejections at roughly 22% of submissions, so the second half of the job is answering whatever comes back. This guide covers both halves: doing it by hand, and handing either half to AscAuto.
By the AscAuto team — engineers who automate App Store submissions and rejection fixes daily. · Last updated: July 2026
How do I submit an app to App Store Connect, step by step?
- Create the app record. In App Store Connect, add a new app with the bundle identifier you'll ship — it can't be changed afterwards.
- Upload the build. Archive in Xcode and use the Organizer, or upload the .ipa with Transporter. Wait for processing to finish before the build becomes selectable on the version page.
- Complete the listing. Description, keywords, promotional text, support and marketing URLs, privacy policy URL, category, and screenshots for every required device size — taken from the build you're actually submitting.
- Answer the questionnaires. App Privacy (nutrition labels matching every SDK you ship), age rating, export compliance, content rights, and the EU trader declaration where it applies.
- Set up the reviewer. Review notes for anything non-obvious, plus demo credentials that actually work on the day you submit. Missing demo access is the most common first-submission rejection there is.
- Submit for review. Move the version to Waiting for Review, then watch for Apple's response — an approval, a rejection, or a request for more information.
The full pre-submission list, including the account and agreement steps people forget on a first release, is in the App Store submission checklist.
Or skip the manual path entirely
You don't have to do any of the above by hand. Connect a GitHub repository and an App Store Connect API key, and AscAuto builds in the cloud, uploads to TestFlight, checks the version against every requirement above, drafts what's missing for your approval, and takes it to Waiting for Review with one click — see the full pipeline. No Mac required on your side: the build runs on our macOS runners.
If you'd rather keep submitting through Xcode or Transporter yourself, that works too — AscAuto then picks up from the moment Apple responds. Either way you only need the official .p8 API key, never your Apple ID password; it's AES-256-GCM encrypted and revocable from Apple's side at any time.
What happens after you submit
Three outcomes, depending on what Apple sends back:
- Metadata rejection (screenshots, descriptions, keywords): often fully automatic, above the confidence threshold you set.
- "Information needed" request: AscAuto drafts a reviewer reply, including demo credentials from your app profile, and waits for your approval before it posts.
- Code-level guideline issue: a diagnosis plus a proposed GitHub pull request. Nothing merges or ships without you.
If your app is approved on the first try, AscAuto simply has nothing to do — it only activates when Apple responds with something other than approval. The guideline guides cover what those responses usually are and how each one is fixed.
FAQ
Do I still submit my app through App Store Connect myself?
Only if you want to. You can keep uploading your build and filling in metadata exactly as before, through Xcode, Transporter, or App Store Connect directly — AscAuto takes over from the moment Apple responds. Or connect a GitHub repo and let AscAuto build, submit, and take the version to Waiting for Review for you.
Can AscAuto submit the app for me instead of me doing it manually?
Yes. If you connect a GitHub repo, AscAuto can build your app in the cloud, upload it to TestFlight, and submit it to Waiting for Review with your one-click approval — see the full pipeline.
What happens if my app is approved on the first try?
Nothing — AscAuto only acts when Apple sends back a rejection or an information request. A clean approval means there's simply nothing for it to do.
Can I use it just to watch my submissions without any automatic changes?
Yes. Set your confidence threshold above 1.0 and nothing ever applies automatically — every fix, even simple metadata ones, waits in your approval queue.
Does this work for agencies managing many client apps?
Yes, that's the primary use case. Each App Store Connect account and its apps are isolated per tenant, so an agency can monitor every client's submissions from one place.