How long does App Store review take in 2026? Review times, statuses and what to do when you are stuck

App Store review time is the gap between pressing Submit for Review and seeing your app approved, and it decides whether a launch date holds. Apple's own target is that App Review reviews "at least 50% of submissions in less than 24 hours and 90% in less than 48 hours." Most updates land inside that window. Some new apps, as threads on Apple's developer forums show, sit in Waiting for Review for a week or more.

This guide covers how long App Store review takes in practice in 2026, what each status in App Store Connect means, why some submissions take longer, how to ask for an expedited review, and how to plan a launch so a slow review does not move your date. If you also ship on Android, our companion guide to how long Google Play review takes covers the other store.

Key takeaways

• Apple's stated goal: at least 50% of submissions reviewed in under 24 hours, 90% in under 48 hours. It is a goal, not a guarantee.
• One vendor's data, measured over two weeks to October 6, shows about 7 hours waiting and 2 hours in review on average.
• New apps and incomplete submissions are where long waits cluster. A complete submission is the one thing you fully control.
• Submit early and release on your own schedule with Manually release this version or a no earlier than date.

How long does App Store review take?#

There are three numbers worth knowing, from three kinds of source.

Read together: most submissions, especially updates to established apps, clear review within a day or two. A minority, more often new apps, wait much longer, and Apple does not publish why or how often.

The forum posts are worth reading for the phrasing alone. One developer who submitted a new app on July 31, 2026 wrote twelve days later that it was still in Waiting for Review, and that the wait "seems unusually long". Another reply in the same thread said their Android version was approved "in 1 day" while they waited on Apple to launch both together. A separate thread from July describes ten days without moving to In Review, after checking for missing metadata, App Privacy, age rating and export compliance issues and contacting App Review.

Most of an App Store review is queue time, not review time: in Runway's data, waiting for review takes several times longer than the review itself. Photo: Towfiqu barbhuiya / Pexels

What each App Store Connect status means#

The statuses tell you which side of the process you are on. These definitions are from Apple's app and submission statuses reference.

Two statuses cause confusion:

• Pending Apple Release means Apple is "holding your app version until the corresponding Apple operating system version releases to the public", for example a build that targets an OS that is not out yet.
• Waiting for Export Compliance means your encryption documentation is in Apple's export compliance review, a separate queue from App Review.

Why App Store review time varies#

Apple does not publish its queue logic, so treat this as a list of the factors Apple itself names, plus the patterns that show up repeatedly in developer reports.

Incomplete submissions#

Apple is explicit: "If your submission is incomplete, review times may be delayed or your submission may not pass." The usual gaps:

• no demo account, or one that has expired or needs two-factor authentication;
• features that need hardware, a location or a paid subscription, with no explanation in the review notes;
• a back end that is down or still pointed at staging;
• in-app purchases that are not submitted with the build.

Our guide to App Store rejection reasons has a full pre-submission checklist; the same list that avoids rejections also avoids delays.

New apps versus updates#

Forum reports of multi-week waits are almost all for new apps, while developers in the same threads describe updates being approved within a day or two. Apple has not said whether new apps are queued differently, but a first submission has more to check: the concept, the business model, the account setup and every screen.

Busy periods#

Waits tend to grow when many developers submit at once, such as around new OS releases and new devices. With iPhone Duo going on sale on October 23, 2026, Apple's iPhone Duo submission notice asks developers to recompile with Xcode 27.1 and says submissions are open now. If you are shipping an iPhone Duo update, submit early rather than in the last days before launch; our iPhone Duo app checklist covers what to test.

Extra items in the submission#

In-app purchases, In-App Events, custom product pages and the new creative assets can all go to App Review. Apple's new Asset Library lets you submit creative assets for approval ahead of when you want to use them, so a seasonal header does not have to ride along with a build at the last minute.

How to request an expedited App Store review#

If the date really cannot move, Apple offers expedited review for "extenuating circumstances, such as fixing a critical bug or timing your release to coincide with an event."

1. Submit the app for review first. "Only submissions that have already been sent to App Review can be expedited."
2. Put the reason in the Notes field. For a critical bug, include steps to reproduce it on the current version. For an event, include the event, its date and how your app is associated with it.
3. Make sure the build is reviewable: demo account or demo mode, and all required information in the notes.
4. Open the Request an Expedited App Review form, select the app and platform, and submit.

Apple says requests "should be reserved for matters of genuine urgency" and that it expedites "as allowed by availability and demand". A launch date you picked yourself is not an event in this sense. A bug that blocks sign-in for all users is.

A template that gives the reviewer what they need:

Critical bug fix: version 3.4.1

Version 3.4.0 crashes on launch for users on iOS 27.0.2 who
signed in with Apple (about 40% of daily users, per our crash
reports).

Steps to reproduce on 3.4.0:
1. Install 3.4.0 on a device running iOS 27.0.2
2. Sign in with Apple
3. Force quit and reopen the app: it crashes on the splash screen

3.4.1 changes only the session restore code. Demo account:
[email protected] / (password in App Review Information)

How to plan an iOS launch around App Store review#

The safest approach is to separate approval from release.

Pick the launch date first, then work backward: approval should arrive days before it, not on the morning of. Photo: RDNE Stock project / Pexels

Use the release options#

Apple's release options let you decouple the two:

• Manually release this version: the app waits in Pending Developer Release until you click release. Apple says it "may take up to 24 hours" to appear on the App Store after that, and sends a reminder if a version stays pending for more than 30 days.
• Automatically release this version after App Review, no earlier than a date and time you choose.
• Automatically release this version as soon as it is approved.

For a launch, submit at least a week ahead, choose manual release or a "no earlier than" date, and release on the day.

Use phased release for updates#

For updates, phased release rolls the version out to users with automatic updates over 7 days: 1%, 2%, 5%, 10%, 20%, 50%, then 100%. You can pause for up to 30 days in total, and release to everyone at any time. It does not shorten review, but it limits the damage if a bug slips through, which means fewer urgent expedite requests.

Get TestFlight approval early#

External TestFlight testing has its own review: "When you add the first build of your app to a group, the build gets sent to App Review." Apple says a review "is required only for the first build", and subsequent builds may not need a full review. Sending a build to external testers a few weeks before launch surfaces review questions early, while there is still time to fix them. See Apple's TestFlight overview.

A launch timeline that absorbs a slow review#

If you plan to ask Apple for featuring, the nomination needs even more lead time: our guide on how to get featured on the App Store recommends three weeks minimum.

What to do when your app is stuck in Waiting for Review#

Developers in the forums ask the same question: is there anything to check before contacting Apple again? A short sequence:

1. Check App Store Connect for anything red: Resolution Center messages, export compliance questions, missing agreements, tax or banking forms, an App Privacy section that is not published.
2. Confirm the demo account still works and that your back end is live. A reviewer who hits a login wall cannot review the app, and that usually ends in a rejection rather than a faster approval.
3. Do not cancel and resubmit just to "bump" the app. Apple's documentation does not say this helps, and removing the app from review sets its status to Developer Rejected until you submit again.
4. Contact App Review through the contact form on the Apple Developer site (you need to sign in), stating the submission date and app ID.
5. Plan around it. If the launch is near and the reason is genuinely urgent, request an expedited review; if not, move the date rather than the quality.

Once approved, an app that is live but not searchable is a different problem: new apps can take up to 24 hours to appear everywhere. Our guide to an app not showing in App Store search walks through it.

Use the waiting time#

A review queue is a few days of idle launch time. Use it to prepare what happens after approval: your store page, your links, and places that send people to the listing on day one. A clear rating strategy matters too; if a new version fixes problems that earned bad ratings, read our guide on whether to reset your App Store rating before you submit, because the option is set per version.

On AppRanker, you can put your iOS app on a pay-to-rank leaderboard as soon as its App Store page is live: the rank is a plain sort on what each listing has paid, there is no review queue, and every row links straight to your App Store page.

FAQ#

How long does App Store review take for a new app?#

Apple's goal for all submissions is 50% in under 24 hours and 90% in under 48 hours. New apps are where developers report the longest waits, sometimes 10 days or more on the forums, so plan for at least a week before a launch date.

How long does App Store review take for an update?#

Usually within a day or two. Runway's data, measured over two weeks to October 6, shows about 7 hours waiting for review and about 2 hours in review on average.

Does App Review work on weekends?#

Apple says "App Review works around the clock" and does not publish separate figures for weekends or holidays.

Can I pay for a faster App Store review?#

No. There is no paid option. The only route is an expedited review request, which Apple reserves for critical bug fixes and event-related releases.

What is the difference between Pending Developer Release and Ready for Distribution?#

Pending Developer Release means the app was accepted and is waiting for you to release it. Ready for Distribution means it has been accepted and is ready, and after a release it can take up to 24 hours to appear on the App Store.

Does removing my app from review and resubmitting speed things up?#

Apple does not say it does. Removing the app sets it to Developer Rejected until you submit again, and you risk losing time rather than saving it.

Image credits#

• Cover, a man at a desk with a laptop and an hourglass: photo by Thirdman on Pexels, Pexels License. Cropped to 1200x630.
• Hourglass with falling sand: photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on Pexels, Pexels License. Resized.
• Writing on a desk calendar: photo by RDNE Stock project on Pexels, Pexels License. Resized.