How to prepare App Store screenshots on iPhone

App Store screenshots are the first real look at your app. Before most people read a single word of your description, they’ve already swiped through your screenshots. Those five or six images have to do a lot of work.

Here’s what that work actually is, and how to do it without a complicated toolchain.

What Apple requires

App Store Connect accepts screenshots in specific sizes depending on the device. The ones you need most:

• iPhone 6.7” (iPhone 16 Pro Max, 15 Pro Max, 14 Plus, etc.): 1290 × 2796 px — Apple uses these for all iPhone displays unless you upload smaller sizes separately
• iPhone 6.5” (iPhone 13 Pro Max, 12 Pro Max): 1284 × 2778 px
• iPhone 5.5” (iPhone 8 Plus): 1242 × 2208 px — required if you want to support older devices

You can upload up to 10 screenshots per device size. In practice, three to five strong ones outperform ten weak ones.

If you only want to upload one set, go with 6.7”. Apple scales it down for smaller displays.

What makes a screenshot convert

Raw screenshots of your app’s UI are almost never enough on their own. The store is full of them. What works is context — something that helps the viewer understand what they’re getting before they install.

A clear value statement per screen. Each screenshot in your sequence should communicate one thing: what this screen does and why it matters to the person considering your app. “No more manual exports” lands harder than a screenshot of an export dialog.

Consistent visual treatment. Random screenshots taken at different times, with different background content, look like they came from different apps. A consistent background color or gradient across your sequence signals that someone put thought into this.

Show the UI, don’t just describe it. A screenshot with only text and no actual app UI tells people nothing about what they’re installing. Show the real screen. Let the text explain why it matters.

The first screenshot carries the most weight. It’s visible in search results before anyone taps through. Make it your strongest, clearest statement.

Framing and background

Raw screenshots include the iPhone status bar, which looks different on every device and often has irrelevant time and signal information. Framing the screenshot — placing it on a clean background — removes the noise and gives you control over the composition.

Common approaches:

• Solid color background: clean, minimal, easy to stay consistent across your screenshot set
• Gradient background: slightly more visual interest, still reads well at small sizes
• Device mockup: shows the app inside an iPhone frame — makes it clear you’re looking at a real app, not a web page or illustration

Whatever you choose, keep it consistent across your sequence. The same background throughout reads as intentional. Mixed backgrounds read as assembled from different sessions.

Iterating fast

The screenshots you upload first won’t be the best ones. App Store screenshots need iteration: test a message, change the copy, see if it’s clearer. The faster you can go from “I want to try this” to “here’s the new version uploaded,” the more you’ll improve them.

If your screenshot workflow requires opening Figma, exporting, converting, and uploading, you’ll do it once and leave them unchanged for six months. If you can generate a new set from your phone in ten minutes, you’ll actually iterate.

What to avoid

• Screenshot sequences that don’t tell a story. Don’t just show screens — show a progression. Install curiosity, then answer it.
• Text so small it’s unreadable at thumbnail size. Preview your screenshots at actual search-result size before uploading.
• Misleading screens. Don’t show UI that doesn’t exist in the current version. App Store review will catch obvious cases, but beyond that, people will leave negative reviews.
• Generic stock backgrounds. They look like you used a template. They’re also used by dozens of other apps.

The goal is simple: someone who sees your screenshots should immediately understand what your app does and want to try it.