In-App Purchase Promo Image: Size and Rules

I read Apple's page on promoting in-app purchases and its In-App Purchase reference on October 18, 2026. Then I checked the App Store Connect help page that walks through promotion.

Here's what the image needs, where it shows up, and how to turn promotion on.

Promotion puts your in-app purchases in front of people who haven't opened your app yet.

Apple's promoting in-app purchases page lists where they go. Promoted items appear on your product page. They can display in search results, and they may be featured on the Today, Games and Apps tabs.

People can start the purchase right there. If they don't have your app, they're prompted to download it first. The transaction then continues in your app.

So the image works like a small ad for one item. It has to explain that item at a glance.

Apple sets a cap. You can promote up to 20 in-app purchases at a time.

Your approved list can be longer, though. Apple says you can keep more items approved and ready, then choose which ones to promote.

The App Store Connect help page adds two details. Promotion covers all countries or regions, and it works on iOS 11 or later.

Twenty is a ceiling, not a target. Start small.

Pick the items that are easiest to explain with one picture and a short name. Those are the ones a stranger can understand before they've ever opened your app.

Every promoted item needs its own image. Apple calls it a unique promotional image, so one picture can't cover several items.

Apple's In-App Purchase reference gives the specs:

1. 1Size: 1024 x 1024 pixels.
2. 2Files: JPG or PNG.
3. 3Resolution: 72 dpi, in RGB.
4. 4Finish: flattened, with no rounded corners.

Apple's promoting page asks for a high quality JPEG if you don't use PNG.

Flatten the file to one layer before you export. If your design tool also saves an alpha channel, check that setting too. Our guide to PNG or JPG for App Store screenshots explains that alpha channel trap.

The image follows the item around the store.

Apple says it appears on your product page. If Apple features the item, it shows on the Today, Games and Apps tabs too. It can also appear in search results.

There's one exception. Consumable in-app purchases won't appear in search results. Think of coins or extra lives that people buy again and again.

That changes what you promote. If search matters most to you, a subscription or a one time unlock can reach further than a pack of coins.

This image is separate from Apple's new creative assets. Our guide to creative asset sizes covers the header and search art.

The image has jobs beyond promotion.

Apple's reference page says you need it to promote an item on your product page, or to set up win-back offers.

It also shows up with offer codes. For auto-renewable subscriptions, people see the promotional image when they redeem a code on iOS 14 or later.

And one image covers the world. Apple says it represents the item in all countries or regions.

So even if you never promote a subscription, you may still need this image. Make it once, and make it well.

You don't control the whole picture. Apple adds a framing system to your image.

Outside the product page, such as in search results, your app icon also appears. It sits in the lower left corner of the image.

That corner is the danger zone. Apple asks you to keep important details out of the lower left, and to make sure the frame doesn't hide your design.

So place your subject near the center. Leave the edges for background color or texture.

If a corner gets covered, nothing important goes with it.

Apple's guidance says people usually see this image at small sizes. So it has to scale down gracefully.

Test that before you upload. Shrink your 1024 pixel design to the size of a thumbnail on your phone. Can you still tell what the item is?

A few habits help. Use one clear subject. Pick strong contrast between the item and the background. Drop thin lines and fine textures that blur when small.

Apple offers templates for this image in its UI Design Resources. They're a good place to start.

Apple lists three things to leave out.

First, text. Apple recommends no text overlay. Your words belong in the display name and description, which the store shows with the item.

Second, screenshots. The image shouldn't be a screenshot of your app. Show the item, not the screen where people buy it.

Third, your app icon. Apple says the image shouldn't be confused with it. That matters more because your icon already sits in the corner in search results.

A sword, a stack of coins or a premium badge reads faster than a busy scene. Keep it simple.

The display name is the item's title on the store. Apple's reference page allows 2 to 30 characters.

Apple's promoting page adds advice. Make the name easy to understand. Avoid generic names like "100 gems", and tie the name to your app instead.

Subscriptions follow one more rule. For an auto-renewable subscription, include the duration in the name. "Pro Monthly" says how long it lasts, in 11 characters.

If that subscription has an introductory price, eligible customers on iOS 11.2 and later see it when you promote the item.

You'll also set a reference name of up to 64 characters. Customers never see it, so write it for your own team.

The description is even shorter. Apple allows up to 45 characters.

It appears under the item's name on the App Store when you promote it. Apple asks you to use it to show what makes the item different, so lead with the benefit.

Forty five characters is about one short line. "Removes ads and unlocks every filter" uses 36, so there's room for one clear idea.

You can write a different name and description for each language. Apple reviews those changes. Your current text stays live until the new text is approved, and you can revert before review starts.

Don't mix up the promotional image with the App Review screenshot. They're two different files.

The review screenshot is for Apple's reviewers only. Apple doesn't display it on the App Store. It should clearly show the item or service people are buying.

Your file must also meet the screenshot specs for a device your app supports.

One warning. Once you upload it, you can update it, but you can't remove it.

You can add review notes too, up to 4,000 characters. Use them to tell the reviewer where to find the item in your app.

A few things must be in place before an item can show.

Your app must support the PurchaseIntent API. It lets your app receive a purchase that starts on the App Store. Every item you promote, and its metadata, must also be approved by App Review.

Check roles too. The help page lists five that can promote: Account Holder, Admin, App Manager, Developer and Marketing.

You can also tailor what each person sees. Apple's promoting page points to SKProductStorePromotionController for this. For example, you can hide items someone already owns, or show the game levels that are relevant to them.

Here's the process from Apple's promotion help page:

1. 1In Apps, select your app.
2. 2In the sidebar, under Monetization, click In-App Purchases.
3. 3Click the item you want to promote.
4. 4Scroll to the App Store Image section.
5. 5Click Choose File, then upload your image.

Non-renewing subscriptions take a slightly different path. Click Subscriptions, then Non-Renewing Subscriptions, then Manage.

Have your 1024 x 1024 file ready first. Then you can finish this step in one sitting.

Promotion itself is a separate step:

1. 1Go back to In-App Purchases in the sidebar.
2. 2Click Promote on the App Store.
3. 3In the pop up, choose who sees your items.
4. 4Select the Promoted checkbox for each item.
5. 5Drag the reorder control to set the order, then click Save.

The pop up offers two choices. You can show items to all users, even people without your app. Apple notes they won't be visible if your app doesn't implement the PurchaseIntent API. Or you can show them only to people who meet conditions in your app, through the Product.PromotionInfo API.

Give it time. Apple says changes can take up to 24 hours to appear. An item may not show if your app isn't ready for sale, or if the item is still waiting for approval.

App Review checks promoted items against guideline 2.3.2.

If you promote in-app purchases, the display name, screenshot and description must suit a public audience. Your app must also handle the SKPaymentTransactionObserver method properly.

The same guideline covers your main listing. If your app has in-app purchases, your description, screenshots and previews must clearly say whether the items they feature need an extra purchase. Our post on what App Store screenshots can include shows how to say that plainly.

Our free screenshot maker puts your app screens in device frames for the store, with no signup. Build that set once, and your promoted items will lead people to a page that shows the app at its best.