Apple's own documentation gives two limits for the same in-app purchase name: 30 characters in App Store Connect Help, 35 in its Creating your product page guide. The numbers look simple, but sources disagree, and "indexed" means something different on every reference page.
This reference puts every limit on both stores in one sourced table, secondary fields included. Each row is graded by what the store ranks, surfaces or merely reads. Then check your copy in the Metadata Character Counter.
Key Takeaways
- In 2026, Apple names four ranking text inputs: app name (30), subtitle (30), keyword field (100) and primary category (Apple, App Store search).
- Promotional text (170) doesn't affect ranking. The 4,000-character description feeds web search, not App Store search.
- Google Play reads the title (30), short description (80) and full description (4,000).
- Screenshot captions and IAP names are contested.
What are the App Store and Google Play character limits in 2026?
As of September 2026, App Store Connect Help sets the app name at 2 to 30 characters and the subtitle at 30. Promotional text gets 170, and the description and What's New get 4,000 each. The keyword field holds 100 characters. On Google Play, Play Console Help caps the title at 30, the short description at 80 and the full description at 4,000.
Each row gets a search status and an evidence grade:
- Confirmed Apple or Google documentation says so.
- Not ranked Official documentation rules it out.
- Reported Third-party reports, no official statement.
- Contested Published claims conflict.
- No evidence Nobody credible claims it ranks.
| Field | Limit | Changes with | Search status | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| App name | 2–30 characters | New app version | Ranked | ConfirmedApple |
| Subtitle | 30 characters | New app version | Ranked | Confirmed |
| Keyword field | 100 characters (Help says "100 bytes") | New app version | Ranked | Confirmed |
| Primary category | One category | Not documented | Ranked | Confirmed |
| Company name | From your developer account | Account details | Ranked | ConfirmedApple |
| Promotional text | 170 characters | Any time | Not ranked | Not rankedApple |
| Description | 4,000 characters | New app version | Web search only | ConfirmedReported |
| What's New | 4,000 characters | New app version | No known effect | No evidence |
| App Review notes | 4,000 bytes | Each submission | Private | Confirmed |
| IAP display name | 30 (Help) or 35 (guide) characters | Its own review | Surfaced if promoted; app-rank effect disputed | ContestedApple |
| IAP description | 45 (Help) or 55 (guide) characters | Its own review | IAP card only | No evidence |
| IAP reference name / product ID | 64 / 100 characters | Internal | Not public | Confirmed |
| Event reference name | 64 characters | Internal | Not public | ConfirmedApple |
| Event name | 30 characters | Event review | Surfaced (events are searchable) | ConfirmedReportedMobileAction |
| Event short description | 50 characters | Event review | Indexing disputed | ContestedAppTweak · MobileAction |
| Event long description | 120 characters | Event review | Reported not indexed | ReportedAppTweak |
| CPP promotional text | No separate limit; plan for 170 | Page review | No known effect | No evidence |
| CPP (custom product page) keywords | 0 new characters (reuses your keyword field) | Page review | Surfaced for assigned keywords | ConfirmedApple |
| Screenshot caption text | None (text is in the image) | New screenshots | Disputed since 2025 | Contested |
| Field | Limit | Changes with | Search status | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Title (app name) | 30 characters | Listing edit, no new build | Ranked | ConfirmedGoogle |
| Short description | 80 characters | Listing edit | Ranked | Reported |
| Full description | 4,000 characters | Listing edit | Ranked | Confirmed |
| Release notes | 500 Unicode characters per language | Each release | No known effect | No evidenceGoogle |
| Promotional content tagline | 80; Spotlight 48 single-byte or 23 double-byte | Each promotion | Promo cards; ranking unknown | No evidenceGoogle |
| Promotional content description | 500 characters (100+ recommended) | Each promotion | Ranking unknown | No evidence |
| Custom store listing text | Same fields, no separate limits; up to 50 listings | Listing edit | Surfaced for assigned keywords | ConfirmedGoogle |
What does "indexed" actually mean on each store?
In 2026, Apple's App Store search page defines text relevance as "matches for your app's title, subtitle, keywords, and primary category." That's one meaning of indexed. Reference tables disagree because they blend it with two others: items that appear as their own search result, and text that other systems read.
- Ranked. Text matched to rank your app: Apple's four inputs plus company name, which App Store Connect Help calls searchable.
- Surfaced. Items shown as their own result: promoted IAPs, in-app events, and custom product pages with keywords, which "can appear in search results for those selected keywords instead of your default product page" (Apple Developer News, October 29, 2025).
- Read. Text used elsewhere. The description "will be used for web engine search results," and app tags "are generated using large language models (LLMs) based on the metadata you've provided."
Three meanings of "indexed" on the App Store
So "not ranked" never means "doesn't matter": the description still feeds Google and Apple's tags. For how much each ranked field weighs, see the ranking-factors breakdown.
Which App Store fields count toward search ranking?
As of 2026, four fields rank your app by Apple's own account: app name, subtitle, keyword field and primary category. App Store Connect Help adds that "your app is searchable by app name and company name," so repeating either in your keywords wastes space. That leaves 160 characters of ranked text per localization (30 + 30 + 100).
Promotional text is the one field Apple rules out by name. It "doesn't affect your app's search ranking so it should not be used to display keywords" (Apple, Creating your product page). It's for timely messages; it updates without a new version.
The description sits in a grey zone. In June 2025, Appfigures said it hadn't "found any indication that app descriptions are being indexed" (Appfigures, App Store algorithm update). Apple, meanwhile, says descriptions feed web search. What's New has no credible evidence of ranking either.
The keyword field holds 100 characters, commas included, with each keyword "greater than two characters" and no competitor names. Plurals and spacing rules live in our guide to the App Store keyword field.
Is 160 characters tight? Yes, and it's per localization, across 50 metadata languages, 11 added on March 31, 2026 (App Store Connect Help). Start with how to spend the 30-character name, then see why Apple rewards precision and Google rewards coverage.
What are the limits for in-app purchases, in-app events and custom product pages?
In 2026, App Store Connect Help caps an in-app purchase display name at 2 to 30 characters and its description at 45. Apple's product page guide says 35 and 55. In-app events allow a 30-character name, a 50-character short description and a 120-character long description. Custom product pages add zero keyword characters.
Apple contradicts itself twice. IAP names are 30/45 in App Store Connect Help and on its Promoting In-App Purchases page, but 35/55 in the product page guide. The keyword field is "100 bytes" in Help and "100 characters total" elsewhere. Write to the lower number; the console decides.
In-app purchases. Promote up to 20 at a time, but "consumable Apple In-App Purchases will not appear in search results" (Apple, Promoting In-App Purchases). Apple's advice: "Avoid generic names like '100 gems.'"
In-app events. Up to 10 published and 15 approved at once, each lasting up to 31 days and promoted up to 14 days early (Apple, In-App Events). The short description appears "in places like the Today tab and Search" (App Store Connect Help).
Whether event text helps you rank is disputed. AppTweak (2024) says Apple considers keywords in the event name and short description, and that "keywords in the long description are not indexed." MobileAction's 2026 guide names only the event name as searchable. More on planning in-app events and promotional content.
Custom product pages. Up to 70 since October 29, 2025. Keywords come "from your latest approved app version" (App Store Connect Help), so a page re-routes existing keywords, not new budget. Promotional text has no separate stated limit; plan for 170. More on assigning keywords to custom product pages.
Which Google Play fields are indexed, and what are the limits?
As of 2026, Google Play caps the title at 30 characters, the short description at 80 and the full description at 4,000. There's no keyword field. Google says "the text in your store listing helps users discover your app." It also tells you to "use SEO best practices in your 'Description'" (Google, Get discovered on Google Play search).
Release notes take "up to 500 Unicode characters per language," with no evidence they rank. Promotional content gets an 80-character tagline (48 single-byte or 23 double-byte in Spotlight) and a description of up to 500 characters. Google suggests at least 100, with the offer's value "in the first 40 characters" (Play Console Help).
The metadata policy bans emojis in the title, icon and developer name, and ALL CAPS unless it's your brand. It also rules out ranking or price claims and "repetitive or unrelated keywords." Google's store listing best practices add: avoid emojis and special characters "that are irrelevant to your app."
Custom store listings (up to 50) reuse these fields and can target search keywords: surfaced, not extra ranked text. See how Google Play weighs title, short and full description.
Are screenshot captions and in-app purchase names indexed?
Neither is confirmed. In June 2025, Appfigures wrote that Apple "is now extracting text from your app's screenshot captions and treating that text as part of your keyword metadata." ConsultMyApp then tested 64 caption phrases across 8 US apps and found one ranking that existing metadata couldn't explain. Apple hasn't said either way.
Appfigures "analyzed thousands of keywords" but published no dataset. ConsultMyApp's June 16, 2025 test named its apps, from Audible to PayPal, and found "no strong evidence Apple is broadly indexing screenshot titles" (ConsultMyApp, 2025).
Is Apple indexing screenshot captions? 64 phrases tested
IAP names are similar: promoted purchases appear in search, but whether their names lift your app is unclear. Incipia's iOS 11-era analysis (now dated 2023) reported partial-match ranking. Asodesk's 2019 test of 50 subscription apps saw them appear for app-title queries and their own names, not for keyword-field terms.
So write captions for people, keyword-aligned where natural, never as a keyword-field substitute. Call both claims "contested," not "false." We cover the screenshot-text debate in full elsewhere.
How do the stores count characters, bytes and emoji?
In 2026, Google counts full-width and half-width characters the same. Apple counts characters in every public field, and the keyword field is no exception despite App Store Connect Help's "100 bytes" wording. Apple's product page guide says "100 characters total." Its API has also rejected an over-limit Thai string with "Keywords for Thai cannot be longer than 100 characters."
The byte wording looks like a leftover: iTunes Connect switched to "100 characters (including spaces and commas) for any language" on June 3, 2013 (iBabbleOn). That 2022 API case, from an Apple Developer Forums thread answered by a community member, saved 100 Thai characters and rejected 106. Applyra reported the same in July 2026: 100 Thai characters, 300 bytes, accepted.
So count 100 characters, meaning Unicode code points: a Hindi or Thai vowel sign can cost its own character. To fit your keyword field, let the tool count.
What happens past a limit? Neither store documents it. Developer reports point to a hard stop, not truncation: a 2017 forum post quotes the error "App name can't be longer than 30 characters." On Play, check the console's count before saving.
Emoji are murkier. Google bans them in the title, icon and developer name. Apple's Guideline 4.5.6 allows emoji "in their app and app metadata," yet Applyra reported App Store Connect rejecting them as "invalid characters." Test first.
How have the limits changed over time?
Apple has cut its app name limit twice: from 255 characters to 50 on September 7, 2016, then to 30 in 2017. In 2016, Sensor Tower found 27% of the top 1,500 free US apps had names over 50 characters (Sensor Tower, 2016). Google Play went the other way first, then matched Apple at 30.
Apple's September 1, 2016 notice limited names to "no longer than 50 characters." Phiture dates the cut to 30 to WWDC in June 2017, and Guideline 2.3.7 still says "App names must be limited to 30 characters." The same month brought subtitles and promotional text (Apple, June 27, 2017).
Google Play raised its title limit from 30 to 50 in mid-2017 (Android Police). It announced a return to 30 on April 29, 2021 (Android Developers Blog), and enforced it from September 29, 2021, per AppTweak.
App name limits since 2016: App Store vs Google Play
Every cut targeted keyword-stuffed names. If yours reads like a keyword list, you're writing against a decade of store policy. Planning a change? Read changing your app name safely.
Frequently asked questions
What is the App Store subtitle character limit?
30 characters. The subtitle sits under your app name and is one of the four text inputs Apple names for search relevance. It only changes with a new app version, so use it for words that aren't already in your name.
Is the App Store description indexed for search?
Not for App Store search. Apple's search page lists title, subtitle, keywords and primary category as its text inputs, and Appfigures found no sign of description indexing in 2025. Apple does say the description feeds web search results, so write it for people and Google.
Is the App Store keyword field 100 characters or 100 bytes?
100 characters. App Store Connect Help still says "100 bytes", but Apple's product-page guide says "100 characters total". Thai keyword strings of 100 characters, up to 300 bytes, have saved. For English and other Latin-script fields, both readings give the same answer.
What is the Google Play short description character limit?
80 characters, with full-width and half-width characters counted the same. Google says store listing text helps users discover your app. So the short description works for search alongside the 30-character title and the 4,000-character full description. Google Play has no keyword field.
Does promotional text help App Store ranking?
No. Apple states that promotional text "doesn't affect your app's search ranking so it should not be used to display keywords." Use its 170 characters for timely messages, like a sale or a new feature, since it updates without a new app version.
Are screenshot captions indexed on the App Store?
Unconfirmed. Appfigures reported caption indexing in June 2025 without publishing data. ConsultMyApp then tested 64 caption phrases across eight US apps and found one ranking that existing metadata couldn't explain. Apple hasn't commented, so write captions for people first, not for rank.
Are in-app purchase names indexed on the App Store?
Contested. Promoted in-app purchases can appear as their own search results, though Apple says consumables won't. Whether an IAP name lifts your app is unproven: Asodesk's 2019 test of 50 subscription apps saw them appear for app-title queries and their own names, not keyword-field terms. Name each one clearly; Apple warns against generic names like "100 gems."
What happens if metadata goes over the character limit?
Neither store documents it. Developer reports suggest App Store Connect stops you with an error, such as "App name can't be longer than 30 characters", rather than truncating. Its API also rejects over-limit keywords. Check the count in each console before you submit.
The bottom line
Apple ranks about 160 characters per localization, Google reads three fields, and everything else surfaces content or feeds other systems. When Apple's pages disagree, the console decides.
Paste your metadata into the free Metadata Character Counter to see what fits. To check your ranked characters carry the right keywords in every market, book a free 30-minute call or start with the fixed-price ASO audit.
