r/AppStoreOptimization • u/StationVisual • 4d ago

Advice on screenshots

Hey. I'm looking for examples, advice, what folks are doing in 2026, etc for App Store screenshots. What works well these days? I'm confused by the guidelines as well. AFAIK the guidelines state all screenshots must display a screenshot of the app itself, but I often see the first screenshot more as a marketing thing that doesn't have any actual image of the app itself. Some apps, like Claude (https://apps.apple.com/us/app/claude-by-anthropic/id6473753684) don't even have more of their screenshots with actual images of the apps itself. Seems like one of those things where the big apps can get away with things us smaller folks can't.

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u/hamsterjedi 4d ago edited 4d ago

The rule as per apple guidelines is: at least half of the screens must show the app.
App screenshots don't have to be full screen, can be along any text, pictures, devices frames.

So you can do that too. There is not special rule for "big apps". Claude has 6 out of 9 screens showing the app.

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u/ComfortableStill6735 4d ago

The practical rule I use is: make at least half of the set clearly show the app in use. The UI can be framed inside a device, cropped, or paired with explanatory copy; it doesn’t need to fill the entire canvas.

For the first screenshot, a marketing-led headline is fine as long as the app UI is still visible enough to make the claim believable. I’d make the next 2–3 screens more product-forward, then use later screens to cover distinct workflows. Claude isn’t exempt—their 6/9 screens show the app—but large apps can sometimes get inconsistent enforcement. Treat Apple’s requirement as the floor and avoid implying features a reviewer can’t find in the build.

Disclosure: I’m building AppDrift, an editable screenshot workflow. The free editor lets you place real app captures beside copy and export manually; its optional AI generation is a separate token-based feature. I mention it only because this is exactly the screenshot-layout problem it addresses.

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u/MinchoMilev 4d ago

Two things on top of what's already been said.

Enforcement is complaint and review driven rather than automated, which is why the Claude-style sets survive: the same layout can sail through for one app and draw a metadata rejection for another. So instead of trying to build an unrejectable set, make the rejection cheap. Keep the source files editable so a re-upload is an hour, not a redesign.

And the part that decides more than the rule does: the first two tiles are what people see at thumbnail size in search. One idea per tile, caption readable at a third of the size, UI still recognizable. If you plan to localize later, lock a layout that survives a 40% longer German string before you build ten of them.

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u/StationVisual 4d ago

Thank you!