App press kit: how to get press coverage for your iOS or Android app

An app press kit is the page a journalist, blogger or YouTuber opens when they are deciding whether to write about your app, and it is the page they use to write the piece once they have decided. If it is missing, out of date, or a zip file that will not open on a phone, the story often does not happen. If it is good, a writer can cover your app without ever emailing you back, which is how a lot of small-app coverage actually gets written.

This guide shows what to put in an app press kit, the App Store and Google Play badge and trademark rules your assets must follow, a page template you can copy, how to find the right people to pitch, a short pitch email that respects what journalists say they want, and how to time it all around your launch. The journalist survey numbers come from Muck Rack's State of Journalism research and the store rules from Apple's and Google's own guidelines, linked throughout.

Key takeaways

• Make the press kit a web page on your own site, linked from the footer, with downloadable high-resolution assets. Not a zip, not a Google Drive folder that needs permission.
• Include a fact sheet, a short and a long description, screenshots, your icon and logo, a demo video, founder bio and photo, store links and a real contact address.
• Follow the store rules: Apple says to use its preferred black App Store badge and never translate "App Store"; Google requires a Google Play badge at least 28px tall on screen.
• Pitch one person at a time: Muck Rack found 62% of journalists prefer a 1:1 email, 69% prefer pitches under 200 words, and 78% prefer them before noon.
• Expect a low hit rate and follow up once. Half of journalists say one follow-up is ideal, and 51% say 3 to 7 days later.

What an app press kit is, and why a page beats a zip#

A press kit (or media kit) is a single place with everything someone needs to write about your app accurately: what it is, who made it, what it costs, where to get it, and images they are allowed to publish. The audience is wider than newspaper journalists. Niche bloggers, newsletter writers, podcast hosts, YouTubers, app directory editors and the people who curate "best apps for X" lists all use one.

Indie developer Curtis Herbert's guide to the press, written after interviewing several app journalists, makes the case for a web page over a downloadable archive: zip files are awkward to open on iOS, and a writer working from a phone should be able to see your app at a glance. He also points out that writers sometimes cover an app without contacting the developer at all, so accurate, high-resolution assets protect you from a blurry screenshot or an outdated logo in print.

Rami Ismail of Vlambeer built the free presskit() tool for game developers on the same idea, and its rationale applies to any app: when press can't find the information or media they need, "they can't write about it."

Coverage of a small app rarely starts with a big feature. It starts with a writer who could find the facts in thirty seconds. Photo: Suzy Hazelwood / Pexels

What to put in your app press kit#

Everything below should be on one page, in this order, with each asset downloadable on its own and in one "download everything" archive for people at a desk.

A few details make a big difference:

• Write the description for a stranger. The copy that works on your store listing (see writing a store listing that converts) is a good start, but drop the keyword phrasing and say plainly what the app does.
• Date the fact sheet. "Updated October 2026" tells a writer the price and version are current.
• Use the same screenshots as your store listing, at full resolution. If you need the exact sizes, our App Store screenshot sizes guide lists every current spec.
• Do not inflate numbers. If you say "10,000 users", be ready to explain what that means. A writer who catches one wrong number stops trusting the rest.

Follow the App Store and Google Play badge rules#

Your press kit is marketing material, so Apple's and Google's brand rules apply to it.

Apple. Apple's marketing guidelines say to "use the preferred black badge in all marketing communications promoting your app", and when other platforms' badges appear, to "place the App Store badge first in the lineup of badges." Minimum badge height is 40 px on screen and 10 mm in print, with clear space equal to a quarter of the badge height. "Don't modify, angle, or animate the App Store badge." Localized badges are available, but "the service mark App Store always appears in English."

The text rules are just as specific. Apple says it is correct to say your app is "available on the App Store" or "can be downloaded from the App Store", not "at the App Store", and never "Apple App Store" or "iPhone App Store". Name your app for the device, as in "Recipe Box for iPhone", not "iPhone Recipe Box". If you show your app on a device, Apple asks you to use its official product bezels "as is", and to show only Apple devices in the image. Apple's marketing tools generate the official badge, a QR code and short links for your product page.

Google. Google's Google Play badge guidelines say "the badge height must be a minimum of 28px" on screen (0.3 inches or 7.6 mm in print), with clear space of a quarter of its height. When it appears with other store badges, "make sure the Google Play badge is the same size or larger than the other badges." Use the "Get it on Google Play" badge for downloads and the "Pre-register on Google Play" badge for pre-registration, and download the current artwork rather than reusing an old file.

Apple's guidelines also ask for a trademark credit line wherever you give legal notices, and say that "when the App Store badge is used, credit both Apple and the Apple Logo." One line at the bottom of the press page, in the format Apple gives (for example, "Apple and the Apple logo are trademarks of Apple Inc."), covers it.

An app press kit page template#

Copy this structure into your site at /press and fill it in. Keep it as plain HTML or Markdown so it loads fast on a phone.

# [App name] press kit
Updated: [month year] · Press contact: [email protected]

## In one sentence
[App name] is a [category] app for [who] that [does what].

## Fact sheet
- Developer: [name], based in [city, country]
- Platforms: iPhone, iPad, Android
- Price: Free, with [Pro] at [price]/month (at the time of writing)
- Released: [date] · Current version: [x.y]
- App Store: [link] · Google Play: [link] · Website: [link]

## About [app name]
[50-word description]

[200 to 300-word description]

## Key features
- [Feature, one line]
- [Feature, one line]
- [Feature, one line]

## The story
[Two or three paragraphs on why you built it]

## Screenshots and video
[Thumbnails, each linking to the full-resolution file] · [Download all (zip)]
[Demo video link] · [Download video file]

## Logo and icon
[App icon PNG] · [Logo on light] · [Logo on dark]

## Team
[Photo] [Name], [role]. [Two-sentence bio.]

## For reviewers
Email us for a free copy or a premium code.

Apple and the Apple logo are trademarks of Apple Inc. Google Play is a trademark of Google LLC.

Link the page from your site footer with the word "Press", and from your App Store and Google Play support or marketing URL if you have room. Apple's featuring nomination form accepts up to five supplemental URLs, a natural place for your press kit link.

Find the right people to pitch#

Muck Rack's State of Journalism 2026 survey, as summarized by the University of Minnesota's communications team, found that 43% of journalists said it was rare to get pitches relevant to their beats, and that the thing they most valued in a pitch was "clear relevance to their beats (70%)." It also found that 86% of journalists say at least some of their work began with a PR pitch. So pitches work, when they reach the right person.

For an indie app, "the right person" is rarely a national tech reporter. Build a list of 20 to 40 names from:

• Writers who covered a similar app in the last six months. Search for your category plus "app" and read the bylines.
• Niche publications and newsletters in your users' world: a running app belongs in running media, a recipe app in food blogs.
• App-focused sites and roundups, including "best apps for" lists that are updated every year.
• YouTubers and podcasters who review tools in your category. They often want early access more than a press release.
• Directories and launch sites, which we cover in where to submit your app.

For each name, note one recent piece they wrote and why your app fits it. If you cannot write that sentence, they are not on the list.

Write each pitch to one person, about something they cover, in fewer than 200 words. Photo: Kaboompics.com / Pexels

Write a pitch email journalists will read#

Muck Rack's numbers give you the format. In the 2026 survey, 62% of journalists preferred to be pitched in a 1:1 email, 69% preferred pitches under 200 words, and 78% preferred them sent before noon. In Muck Rack's 2025 follow-up Q&A, half of journalists said one follow-up is ideal, and 51% said it should come 3 to 7 days later.

The same Q&A has the pet peeves in the journalists' own words. VentureBeat's Emilia David: "My biggest pet peeve is when I get an email that clearly doesn't understand what I write about." The Guardian's Michael Sainato: "One of the biggest pet peeves is something that's obviously going out everywhere." And on follow-ups: "I have had people follow up with me within three hours, and that really annoys me."

Here is a template that fits in about 150 words:

Subject: [App name]: [what it does] for [who], launching [date]

Hi [first name],

I read your piece on [specific article] last month. [One sentence on why
it connects to your app.]

I'm [name], the solo developer behind [app name], a [platform] app that
[does what] for [who]. [One sentence on what is different or new, with a
concrete detail, not an adjective.]

It launches on [date]. I'd be happy to give you early access before then,
and a free premium code so you can try everything.

Press kit with screenshots, video and facts: [link]
App Store: [link] · Google Play: [link]

Thanks for reading,
[Name]
[One-line signature with website]

Rules that matter more than the wording:

• One person per email. No BCC lists, no mail merge that leaves "[first name]" in the greeting.
• No attachments. Link to the press kit; large attachments get filtered.
• One follow-up. After 3 to 7 days, reply on the same thread with one new detail, then stop.
• Never phone. Emilia David again: "My biggest, biggest, biggest, biggest pet peeve is people calling me to pitch me."

Time your pitch around news#

Writers need a reason to cover your app this week. Curtis Herbert's advice from his interviews was to tie your app to a larger story the press is already covering, such as new Apple hardware or a new platform feature. Good hooks for an app in late 2026 include:

• Your launch date, pitched one to two weeks ahead with an offer of early access, and a clear embargo if you want coverage to land on the day.
• A new device or OS feature you support on day one. iPhone Duo ships on October 23, and our iPhone Duo app checklist covers what to ship for it.
• A meaningful update, not a bug-fix release.
• Seasonal angles such as back to school, New Year resolutions or the holidays.

Give reviewers free access#

A reviewer should never have to pay to try your app. On iOS, App Store Connect still lets you create promo codes for free downloads of a paid app, and offer codes cover In-App Purchases and subscriptions; our guide to App Store offer codes explains both and the Google Play promo code equivalent. Apple notes that people who redeem an app promo code cannot rate or review the app, so codes for press do not affect your rating.

Set expectations and measure what works#

Most pitches get no reply. One prominent indie developer told Curtis Herbert there's "basically only about a 20% chance I'll get something written about an app when I pitch it," and that was someone with good contacts. Plan for a small number of pieces from a list of 30, and treat each one as a backlink and a source of social proof for your press page.

Measure it like any other channel. Give each pitch a tracked link: an App Store link with a campaign token, or a Google Play link with a referrer parameter. Our guide to App Store Connect analytics shows how campaign links show up in your download sources. When the coverage drives people to your listing, fresh reviews help convert them; on Android, the Google Play In-App Review API is the cleanest way to collect them.

App press kit checklist#

• A /press page on your own site, linked from the footer.
• Fact sheet dated, with price, platforms, release date and store links.
• Short and long descriptions in plain language.
• Full-resolution screenshots, icon, logo on light and dark, demo video.
• Founder bio and photo, and a monitored press email.
• Official App Store and Google Play badges at the right size, with a trademark credit line.
• A list of 20 to 40 relevant writers, each with one recent piece noted.
• 1:1 pitches under 200 words, sent before noon, one follow-up after 3 to 7 days.
• Promo or offer codes ready for reviewers.
• Tracked links on every pitch.

Press is one channel among several. Our launch-week visibility checklist and how to promote your app for free cover the rest. And while you wait for replies, you can list your app on the AppRanker leaderboard: a pay-to-rank listing board and Outbid alternative for mobile apps and browser extensions, where the order is a plain sort on what each listing has paid, every row links straight to your App Store or Google Play page, and there is no editor to convince.

FAQ#

What should an app press kit include?#

A one-line pitch, a dated fact sheet (developer, platforms, price, release date, store links, contact), a short and a long description, key features, full-resolution screenshots, the app icon and logo, a demo video, the founder's bio and photo, any verifiable proof such as awards or reviews, and how reviewers can get free access.

Should my press kit be a zip file or a web page?#

A web page, with downloadable files. Writers often check pitches on a phone, where zip files are awkward. Offer a "download everything" archive on the page for people working at a desk.

How long should a pitch email for an app be?#

Under 200 words. Muck Rack's survey found that 69% of journalists prefer pitches under 200 words. Link to your press kit instead of pasting the details.

When is the best time to pitch journalists about my app?#

One to two weeks before launch, or before an update tied to news. Muck Rack found 78% of journalists prefer pitches sent before noon, and half do not care about the day of the week.

How many times should I follow up with a journalist?#

Once. Half of the journalists in Muck Rack's research said one follow-up is ideal, and 51% said it should come 3 to 7 days after the first email.

Can I use Apple's App Store badge and iPhone images in my press kit?#

Yes, if you follow Apple's marketing guidelines: use the official badge artwork unmodified (the black badge is preferred), keep it at least 40 px tall on screen, use Apple's product bezels as provided, and include Apple's trademark credit line.

Image credits#

• Cover, a vintage typewriter with a page reading News: photo by Markus Winkler on Pexels, Pexels License. Cropped to 1200x630.
• A stack of folded newspapers: photo by Suzy Hazelwood on Pexels, Pexels License. Resized.
• Typing on a laptop: photo by Kaboompics.com on Pexels, Pexels License. Resized.