How to Make App Store Screenshots (2026)
A start-to-finish workflow: capture real UI, write captions, frame at exact sizes, export without alpha, and upload in App Store Connect.
Quick answer
How do you make App Store screenshots in 2026?
Lock one product promise, capture filled real UI, write a 5–8 word caption per frame, build the set with device frames, and export the exact sizes Apple lists for 6.9-inch iPhone — 1260×2736, 1290×2796, or 1320×2868 — as JPEG or PNG with no alpha. Upload one to ten screenshots in App Store Connect. Highest-resolution shots scale down. The first one to three frames appear in search when there is no app preview.
- Capture realistic, filled UI — not empty states or splash screens
- Write one short caption per frame; put the story in the first three
- Export a required 6.9" iPhone size; add 13" iPad (2064×2752) if you ship iPad
- JPEG, JPG, or PNG; Apple and Google both reject alpha
- Play still needs at least two screenshots to publish and four at 1080px+ to be recommendation-eligible
On this page
Store screenshots are not a gallery of every tab in your app. They are a short argument that a stranger should install. Most indie sets fail in boring ways: empty simulator chrome, captions nobody can read at thumbnail size, a 6.5-inch export uploaded into a 6.9-inch well, or a transparent PNG that App Store Connect rejects. The workflow below is the whole job, in order.
Pixel rules come from Apple’s screenshot specifications and the upload guide . If you only need dimensions, use the size reference. If you already have frames and they do not convert, start with screenshot best practices instead of recapturing the same empty UI.
What Apple actually accepts
You can upload a minimum of one and a maximum of ten screenshots in .jpeg, .jpg, and .png. Images cannot include alpha channels or transparencies. If the UI is the same across sizes, provide the highest-resolution screenshots required and they scale down; Media Manager is how you override scaled versions for other device sizes and localizations.
| Device class | Accepted portrait sizes (px) | When it is required |
|---|---|---|
| iPhone 6.9" | 1260×2736, 1290×2796, or 1320×2868 | Required for iPhone apps |
| iPad 13" | 2064×2752 (also 2048×2732 in current specs) | Required if the app runs on iPad |
Apple’s current 6.9-inch iPhone class accepts 1260×2736, 1290×2796, and 1320×2868 portrait. If you support iPad, add a 13-inch screenshot. Do not invent other pixel sizes; quote the specification table when a new display class ships.
Play is a second export, not a second product story
Google Play will publish a listing with two screenshots. Recommendation surfaces that use screenshots ask for four frames at 1080px or larger — 1080×1920 portrait or 1920×1080 landscape — JPEG or 24-bit PNG, no alpha. That gap is documented in our Play four-screenshot guide. Same captions, same UI, different pixel box. Do not design two unrelated brands.
Lock the promise before you open a camera
Write one sentence a shopper could repeat: who it is for, and what changes after install. “Track habits that actually stick” is a promise. “AI-powered lifestyle OS” is a feature bucket. That sentence becomes screenshot one, the title, and the first caption. If those three disagree, you are making marketing, not a listing.
| Frame | Job | Caption length |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The outcome, proved in the real UI | 5–8 words |
| 2 | The mechanism — the one action that creates the outcome | 5–8 words |
| 3 | Proof over time: streak, invoice sent, report exported | 5–8 words |
| 4 | Play’s fourth 1080px frame, or iOS depth: a second flow | 5–8 words |
| 5–10 | Only if each frame earns its slot | Still one idea |
The first three frames have to stand alone in App Store search. Frame four is how a Play listing leaves the publish minimum. Extra frames after that are optional depth, not a place to hide settings screens.
Capture filled UI, then build the frames
Shoot from the binary you will submit, with realistic data. Empty onboarding, lorem invoices, and a 0-day streak tell the shopper the product is unfinished. Dark Mode is worth one frame if you support it — Apple suggests including at least one. Then put those captures into a layout system that keeps captions, background, and device chrome on separate layers so a headline change does not mean a Figma rebuild.
- No splash screens, permission dialogs, or paywalls as frame one.
- Fill lists, charts, and streaks until the UI looks inhabited.
- Keep type large enough to read when the frame is the size of a search thumbnail.
- Do not cover the product with illustration in the first three frames. Play says to prioritize UI there; Apple wants images captured from the UI.
- Localize captions if you localize the listing. A translated title over English UI is a trust leak.
Upload in Media Manager, then check search
In App Store Connect, open the iOS version, drop files into the iPhone (and iPad) wells, then use View All Sizes in Media Manager if you need non-scaled sizes or extra localizations. After approval, screenshot updates require a new version. On Play, upload at least two phone screenshots to publish, four at 1080px+ if you want the recommendation bar, plus the 1024×500 feature graphic.
Make and upload a store-ready screenshot set
Forty minutes assumes you already know the product promise. If you do not, stop and write that sentence first.
Lock the promise
One sentence: audience + outcome. That line is screenshot one, the title, and the first caption. Everything else supports it.
Capture filled UI
From the shipping binary, shoot 4–6 screens with real data. Skip splash. Include one Dark Mode frame if you support it.
Write 5–8 word captions
One idea per frame. Outcome, mechanism, proof, then depth. Read them at thumbnail size. If you have to squint, shorten.
Build in AppGrowthKit
Drop the captures into AppGrowthKit. Generate AI layouts and copy, then edit every layer — caption, background, device frame — until the UI is honest and the type is readable.
Export exact sizes without alpha
App Store: a 6.9" iPhone size (1260×2736, 1290×2796, or 1320×2868) and 13" iPad 2064×2752 if you ship iPad. Play: four frames at 1080×1920 or larger. JPEG or PNG, no transparency.
Upload in Media Manager
App Store Connect → version → iPhone/iPad wells. Use Media Manager for other sizes and localizations. Play Console → main store listing → phone screenshots, with alt text.
Check the search thumbnail
On a physical phone, search a generic category term and look at your first one to three frames at live size. If the promise is not obvious, recut frame one before you touch frames five through ten.
Making and uploading store screenshots
How many App Store screenshots do I need?
Apple accepts a minimum of one and a maximum of ten screenshots in JPEG, JPG, or PNG, with no alpha. You should still plan a three-frame search story, because the first one to three images can appear in search when no app preview is available.
Which iPhone screenshot size is required in 2026?
Apple’s 6.9-inch display class is the required iPhone set. Accepted portrait sizes in the current specification table are 1260×2736, 1290×2796, and 1320×2868. Highest-resolution screenshots scale down to smaller classes if you do not upload overrides in Media Manager.
Can screenshots have transparent backgrounds?
No. Apple’s screenshot specifications say images cannot include alpha channels or transparencies. Google Play also requires JPEG or 24-bit PNG with no alpha for listing screenshots.
Is the Google Play workflow the same?
The story can be the same; the counts and pixels are not. Play publishes with two screenshots and recommends four at 1080px or larger (1080×1920 or 1920×1080) for screenshot-based recommendation surfaces. Export both stores from one layered set instead of redesigning Android from scratch.
Sources, verified 2026-08-30:
Free tools that help here
App Icon Generator
Drop in one 1024px icon and download every iOS and Android size, ready for Xcode and Android Studio. Runs entirely in your browser - nothing gets uploaded.
ASO Character Counter
Count characters for every App Store and Google Play metadata field against exact store limits. Live counts and over-limit warnings - nothing gets truncated at submission.
Screenshot Beautifier
Add polished backgrounds, padding, shadows, and rounded corners to any screenshot in seconds. Perfect for social posts, docs, and portfolios.
Make the set once. Export every store size from the same layers.
AppGrowthKit is the AI App Store screenshot maker: layouts and copy from your real screens, editable layers, device frames, and store-ready export for App Store and Google Play.
Try AppGrowthKit for Free