App Store Promotional Text: The 170-Character Evergreen Field

App Store promotional text is the iOS App Store’s only updatable-without-review field. 170 characters that sit above the description on your product page and can be swapped out any day of the week. Yet most indies either leave it empty, treat it as a second subtitle, or fill it with time-bound promotions that Apple rejects under guideline 2.3.1.

This post covers what makes promotional text different from every other metadata field, the 170-character formula that actually converts, five worked examples across categories, and the four rejection traps that catch 90% of failures. Primary keyword in first 60 words.

Pair with the Apple App Store keywords field deep-dive and the ASO playbook for indie developers for the broader metadata context.

What promotional text actually is

Promotional text is a 170-character field in App Store Connect that appears on your product page abovethe description, visible before the user taps “more.” It is one of six iOS metadata fields that affect what users see on the listing, but it is unique in four ways:

• Updatable without review. Save in App Store Connect, live in minutes. No binary submission, no reviewer queue, no 24-hour wait. The only App Store field with this privilege.
• Not indexed for ranking. Apple does not read promotional text for search ranking. Your title, subtitle, keywords field, and IAP names do the ranking work. Promotional text works on conversion — does the user install after they reach the page.
• 170 characters maximum. More room than subtitle (30) or keyword field (100), but less than the full description.
• Always visible. Unlike the description, which cuts off after roughly the first 170 characters on the product page and requires a tap to expand, promotional text is shown in full above the fold.

The practical effect: promotional text is your conversion one-liner for the users who scroll past the first screenshot but haven’t decided yet. It’s read by almost everyone who reaches the product page; it costs almost nothing to iterate on; and most indies leave it empty or stale.

Promotional text vs subtitle — the difference

Both short. Different jobs. Treating them interchangeably is the most common metadata mistake.

Use the subtitle to carry your highest-value ranking keyword in a benefit-shaped 30-character sentence. Use promotional text to expand that benefit with 170 characters of conversion copy. They’re two different levers, not duplicates. The subtitle helper covers the subtitle side; this post covers the promotional text side.

The 170-character formula

The structure that works for most indie apps:

1. Sentence 1 — evergreen positioning.A single clear statement of what the app does and why it’s different, written to work regardless of season, release status, or campaign.
2. Sentence 2 — proof point or specific feature callout. Something concrete that backs up sentence 1. A number, a capability, a user segment the app serves well. Optional if sentence 1 uses all 170 characters.
3. Optional sentence 3 — soft call to action. A single imperative like “Try the free tier” or “See why writers love it.” Avoid anything time-bound, promotional, or priced.

Write 2–3 sentences only if they genuinely fit within 170 characters. Most strong promotional text is 1–2 sentences — padding with a weak third sentence dilutes the first two. Count characters with the free keyword character counter (it covers every App Store metadata field, not just keywords).

5 worked examples across categories

Before-and-after for five indie-category archetypes. The “before” examples are the patterns most indies default to; the “after” examples apply the formula.

1. Markdown notes app (productivity)

Before (weak):“The best markdown app for your notes. Download now and get started!”

After (strong):“A markdown editor built for writers who need to ship words every day. Offline sync across iPhone, iPad, and Mac with zero setup. Free to try for 14 days.”

2. Budget tracker (finance)

Before (weak):“Track your budget easily with our app. Save money and reach your goals!”

After (strong):“Budget tracking for couples who share expenses but not bank accounts. Split bills by percentage, track who paid what, and settle up in one tap. No bank connection required.”

3. Meditation app (health)

Before (weak):“Meditate daily and reduce stress. New meditations added every week!”

After (strong):“Five-minute guided meditations designed for beginners who fell off three other meditation apps. Short enough to fit before bed. No guilt-trip streaks.”

4. Photo editor (creative)

Before (weak):“Edit your photos with professional tools. Easy to use and powerful!”

After (strong):“A photo editor for people who shoot on iPhone but want Lightroom-quality tone curves. 40 presets, 12 tone-curve controls, and a history brush. Works offline.”

5. Puzzle game (casual)

Before (weak):“Fun puzzle game! Play now and challenge your brain!”

After (strong):“A daily word puzzle for people who finished Wordle and want something harder. One new puzzle every morning. No ads, no timers, just the puzzle.”

The pattern across all five: the strong version names the user segment, says what the app does with specificity, and avoids superlatives. The weak version does the opposite.

The 4 rejection traps under guideline 2.3.1

Apple rejects promotional text that violates the accurate-metadata guideline. Four common traps:

Trap 1 — Time-bound promotions

What triggers it:“50% off until Friday,” “Free for the first 1,000 users,” “Limited-time offer ends December 31.” Promotional text is supposed to be evergreen. Time-bound promotions go out of date and mislead users who visit the listing after the promotion ends.

The fix: use in-app banners or push notifications for time-bound campaigns. Keep the promotional text field focused on positioning that holds up regardless of date. See the full rejection reasons index for the exact rejection phrasing.

Trap 2 — Misleading claims

What triggers it:“The #1 productivity app on the App Store,” “Used by 10 million people,” “Featured by Apple” — when any of these aren’t verifiably true. Apple specifically bans rank claims that aren’t current and user counts that aren’t accurate.

The fix:only cite numbers you can defend. “Featured in TechCrunch” is fine if it actually happened. “#1 in Productivity” is only fine if you currently hold that rank in the exact territory where the user is browsing.

Trap 3 — External URLs or contact info

What triggers it: Any URL, email address, or phone number in the promotional text field. Apple wants URLs in the Support URL and Marketing URL fields, not in copy that appears inline on the product page.

The fix:move URLs to the Support URL slot. If users need a specific landing page for a feature, link to it from the description’s last line or from an in-app settings screen.

Trap 4 — Content that contradicts the description

What triggers it:Promotional text promising features that don’t appear in the description or in screenshots. Reviewers read the three fields together; a disconnect triggers 2.3.1 rejection.

The fix: before updating promotional text, do a quick audit of the description and subtitle. Anything you promise in promotional text must appear somewhere else in the listing too.

When to actually update promotional text

Updatable-without-review is a feature, not a license to edit constantly. Three legitimate reasons to update:

1. Seasonal relevance. Tax season for finance apps. January for fitness apps. Back-to-school for education apps. Holiday season for gift-buying apps. Update promotional text to foreground the capability that matters most this month.
2. New feature callout before binary ships. Ship the update, then edit promotional text to call out the new feature the day the binary goes live. Apple users checking the product page see the update acknowledged immediately.
3. A/B testing one variant at a time.App Store Connect doesn’t offer native A/B testing for promotional text specifically, but Product Page Optimization covers promotional text variants. Test one change at a time, measure for 14 days, keep the winner.

What to avoid: editing promotional text weekly with no plan. Too much churn prevents you from measuring which change did what. Lock in a version for at least two weeks before swapping it out. The ASO playbook covers the broader metadata iteration cadence.

Frequently asked questions