How to Publish Your App to the App Store and Play Store

Publishing an app to the Apple App Store or Google Play Store is the most intimidating part of mobile development for many founders. Code signing, provisioning profiles, keystores, screenshots, metadata — the list goes on. This guide breaks it down step by step.

Apple App Store Requirements

• Apple Developer Account ($99/year) — required for all App Store submissions
• Code signing certificate — a digital certificate that proves your app comes from you
• Provisioning profile — ties your app to your developer account and device capabilities
• IPA binary — the compiled iOS application file
• App Store Connect listing — screenshots, description, keywords, privacy policy URL
• TestFlight upload — Apple requires apps go through TestFlight before store submission

Google Play Store Requirements

• Google Play Developer Account ($25 one-time fee)
• Android App Bundle (AAB) — the production binary format Google requires
• Signing keystore — your private key for signing the app
• Play Console listing — screenshots, descriptions, content rating, privacy policy
• Service account — for automated API access to upload builds

Top Reasons Apps Get Rejected

Apple rejects roughly 40% of app submissions on the first try. The most common reasons:

1. Guideline 4.2 (Minimum Functionality) — your app must do something useful beyond what a website can do
2. Crashes and bugs — test thoroughly before submitting
3. Incomplete metadata — missing screenshots, privacy policy, or descriptions
4. Privacy violations — collecting data without proper disclosures
5. Misleading content — app behavior must match its description

The Manual Process (Without Automation)

If you are doing this manually, here is what the process looks like for iOS alone:

1. Install Xcode (50+ GB download)
2. Create certificates in the Apple Developer portal
3. Generate provisioning profiles for your app
4. Configure your project with the correct bundle identifier, team ID, and entitlements
5. Build the IPA using Xcode or xcodebuild
6. Upload to TestFlight using Transporter or altool
7. Wait for processing, fill in compliance info
8. Submit for App Store review
9. Address any rejection feedback and resubmit

For Android, add: generating a keystore, configuring Gradle signing configs, building an AAB, and uploading via the Play Console UI.

This process takes experienced developers hours. For first-timers, it can take days of troubleshooting.

The Automated Approach with Mobiforge

Mobiforge automates the entire pipeline:

1. Enter your Apple Team ID and API key — one-time setup
2. Click “Build iOS” — Mobiforge compiles the IPA with proper code signing via Fastlane
3. Click “Submit to TestFlight” — automatic upload and processing
4. Click “Submit to App Store” — sends to Apple for review

For Android, the process is similar — enter your Play Store service account JSON, click Build AAB, click Submit. Mobiforge handles the keystore, signing, and upload.

After Publishing: Keeping Your App Updated

Publishing is not the end — you will need to push updates regularly. With Mobiforge, you have two options:

• Full rebuild — for changes that affect native code (new permissions, native modules). Requires a new store submission.
• OTA updates — for JavaScript-only changes (UI tweaks, bug fixes, content updates). Pushes instantly to users without store review.

Read our Play Store guide and iOS build guide for detailed setup instructions.