App Store Screenshot Sizes and Design Guide (2026)

App store screenshots have two jobs. They need to meet Apple’s or Google’s technical requirements, and they need to quickly show someone why the app is worth downloading.

For most iPhone apps, Apple accepts one to 10 screenshots and requires a 6.9-inch or 6.5-inch set. Google Play requires at least two screenshots across device types and allows up to eight for each supported device type.

The exact dimensions vary, particularly across Apple devices. This guide covers the current requirements, verified in August 2026, along with the design decisions that make screenshots useful rather than merely compliant.

App Store Screenshot Requirements at a Glance

Don't assume a saved template will stay current forever. Check the official specifications before every major submission or redesign.

Apple App Store Screenshot Sizes

Apple lets you upload one to 10 screenshots in JPEG, JPG, or PNG format. Images cannot contain transparency or an alpha channel.

If your app runs on iPhone, provide an accepted 6.9-inch set or, if you don't provide that, a 6.5-inch set. App Store Connect scales eligible screenshots for smaller display sizes.

Current 6.9-Inch iPhone Dimensions

Apple currently accepts three portrait sizes for the 6.9-inch display class:

These sizes cover current large-screen devices including iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro Max, and several earlier Pro Max and Plus models.

Current 6.5-Inch iPhone Dimensions

If you don't provide 6.9-inch screenshots, Apple requires an accepted 6.5-inch set:

Apple can scale these images for the 6.9-inch display class.

iPad Screenshot Dimensions

If the app runs on iPad, a 13-inch set is required.

Apple lists additional accepted dimensions for older iPhone and iPad display classes, as well as Apple Watch, Apple TV, Mac, and Apple Vision Pro. Use the full screenshot specification when your app supports those devices.

What Apple Screenshots Can Show

Screenshots should accurately represent the app in use. Apple allows text and image overlays, but the underlying experience must be genuine.

Avoid using a splash screen, login screen, or title art as the entire screenshot set. Apple’s review guidelines say screenshots should show the app in use and accurately reflect its core experience.

You're also responsible for the rights to everything shown. Use fictional account information instead of exposing a real user’s personal data.

Google Play Screenshot Requirements

Google Play’s base requirements are more flexible than Apple’s.

To publish a store listing, you need at least two screenshots across device types. For standard screenshots:

• Use JPEG or 24-bit PNG with no alpha channel.
• The minimum dimension is 320 px.
• The maximum dimension is 3840 px.
• The longest side cannot be more than twice the length of the shortest side.
• You can upload up to eight screenshots for each supported device type.

Phone, tablet, Chromebook, TV, Wear OS, Automotive, and XR listings have additional device-specific guidance.

Recommended Google Play Phone Dimensions

Meeting the base upload requirement doesn't necessarily make the app eligible for every promotional surface.

For apps, Google highly recommends at least four screenshots at a minimum 1080 px resolution:

This is the safest starting point for a standard phone listing. It also helps make the app eligible for recommendation formats that use screenshots.

For tablets and Chromebooks, Google recommends at least four screenshots between 1080 and 7680 px, using 9:16 portrait or 16:9 landscape.

What Google Play Screenshots Can Show

Google says screenshots should demonstrate the actual in-app or in-game experience, with the core features and content easy to recognize.

Promotional text and visual treatments can be useful, but they should not overwhelm or misrepresent the interface. Different form factors have stricter rules. Wear OS screenshots, for example, should show only the app interface without device frames, added text, or decorative backgrounds.

Check the current preview asset guidance for every device type your app supports.

Plan the Screenshot Set Before Designing It

A good screenshot set works like a short visual landing page. It should answer the user’s questions in a deliberate order.

Before opening Figma or Canva, decide:

1. What is the strongest reason to download the app?
2. Which two or three benefits matter most after that?
3. What evidence or differentiator builds confidence?
4. Which part of the actual interface proves each point?

For an ecommerce app, a sequence might be:

1. Shop the full range more easily
2. Get early access to new products
3. Earn and use loyalty rewards
4. Check out with the payment options customers already use
5. Receive useful order and offer notifications
6. Finish with a credible rating, customer quote, or app-only benefit

You don't need to fill every slot with a weak or repetitive frame. Use enough screenshots to explain the app properly. If you've got strong material for every slot, use it. If not, a tighter sequence is better than repetition.

Seven App Screenshot Design Principles

Once the story is clear, use these principles to make each frame work at the size users will actually see.

1. Make the First Screenshots Do the Heavy Lifting

The first one to three screenshots are the most visible, including in App Store search when no preview video appears.

Lead with the main value, not a login screen or generic welcome page. A user should understand the app’s purpose without opening the full gallery.

2. Use One Clear Message per Frame

Give each screenshot one job. A short headline can explain the benefit while the interface proves it.

“Reorder essentials in seconds” is easier to grasp than a paragraph listing search, favorites, saved payment methods, and subscriptions at once.

Keep type large enough to read at thumbnail size. Test the design on a real phone rather than judging it only on a desktop canvas.

3. Show Benefits Through Real Interface Screens

You don't have to choose between benefits and features. Connect them.

The caption can state the benefit, while the screen shows the feature that delivers it. This makes the promise more credible and helps users recognize what they'll see after installing.

4. Keep the Brand Consistent

Use a consistent color palette, typography, layout system, and tone. The screenshots should feel connected to the app and the wider brand.

Consistency doesn't mean every frame has to look identical. Use enough variation to make the sequence easy to follow while keeping the visual system coherent.

5. Protect the Interface From the Design

Decorative backgrounds, perspective mockups, and device frames can make a listing look polished, but they can also shrink the interface until it's unreadable.

Keep the important in-app content large and clear. Use device frames only when the store allows them and they improve comprehension. Avoid outdated hardware frames that make a current app look old.

6. Use Social Proof Carefully

Credible proof can help, but it must be current, verifiable, and permitted by the store.

Apple requires accurate metadata and prohibits unverifiable claims. Google’s preview-asset guidance restricts language that suggests store ranking, awards, user testimonials, pricing, or promotional offers in some assets and promotional surfaces.

Before adding “#1,” a download count, rating, press logo, or customer quote, check the current platform rules and confirm you can substantiate it.

7. Design for Localization

Text expands and contracts across languages. Cultural references, product priorities, and the strongest selling point may also change by market.

Build flexible templates, keep text separate from the underlying screen capture, and localize the message rather than translating it word for word.

Should You Create a Preview Video?

Use video when motion or interaction is central to understanding the app.

Apple app previews can run for 15 to 30 seconds and should primarily use screen captures of the app itself. Google Play uses a public or unlisted YouTube video for its preview.

Video isn't automatically better than screenshots. A slow, unclear preview can push the strongest images farther back and weaken the listing. Lead with the value immediately, make it understandable without sound, and test the effect when you have enough traffic.

Test Screenshot Ideas With Store Tools

Once the listing receives enough traffic, test meaningful creative differences rather than relying on design opinion alone.

Apple’s Product Page Optimization can compare alternate screenshots, previews, and icons. Google Play offers Store Listing Experiments.

Start with a clear hypothesis, such as:

• A loyalty-led first screenshot will convert better than a general shopping message.
• Showing the product interface at a larger scale will be clearer than using a device mockup.
• A localized benefit sequence will outperform a direct translation.

Avoid stopping a test as soon as one version moves ahead. Let the platform collect enough data to support a decision.

App Screenshot Design Tools

The design tool matters less than the process, but these options cover most teams:

• Figma: Best for reusable templates, design systems, and multi-language variants.
• Canva: Faster for teams without a dedicated designer and useful for template-based production.
• AppScreens: Purpose-built templates and exports for several app stores and device sizes.
• MockUPhone: Useful when you only need a clean device-frame layer.
• Photoshop or Affinity Photo: Flexible for teams already working in raster design tools.

Before relying on a specialist screenshot generator, confirm that it supports the latest dimensions and device classes.

Final App Screenshot Checklist

Before uploading, check that:

• Every file matches a currently accepted size and format.
• PNG files have no transparency where the store prohibits it.
• Screens accurately reflect the current app.
• The first frame communicates the main reason to download.
• Each screenshot has one clear purpose.
• Captions remain readable at thumbnail size.
• The interface is large enough to understand.
• Claims are current, supportable, and allowed.
• No real personal information appears.
• Each localization has been checked by a fluent reviewer.
• The full sequence works on an actual phone.

The Bottom Line

The right dimensions get your screenshots accepted. Clear design helps them do their real job.

Start with the official requirements, then build a short visual argument around the user’s strongest reason to download. Show real app screens, keep the message readable, and test meaningful alternatives when your traffic allows it.

MobiLoud customers get full support with App Store and Google Play submission, including the listing assets and approval process. If you're planning on launching an ecommerce app, book a consultation to see how the launch process works, and whether it's the right fit for you.