Which metadata fields matter for app store search?
Apple says App Store search uses the app name, subtitle, keyword field and primary category. Google Play has no separate keyword field, so its app name and descriptions carry relevant search terms. Field limits and policy guidance help you prepare metadata, but they cannot predict whether a listing will rank or convert.
On the App Store
- Limits for the app name and subtitle, and for the keyword field, promotional text and description, from App Store Connect Help.
- Keyword field: spaces around commas, keywords of two characters or fewer, repeated words, words already in your app name, subtitle, category or company name, plurals of words you’ve used, generic words such as “app”, filler words such as “the”, and special characters such as # or @. This follows Apple’s advice on App Store search.
- App name and subtitle: prices and pricing words such as “free”, and claims such as “best” in the subtitle, under guideline 2.3.7 of the App Review Guidelines.
- Every field: mentions of Android or Google Play, under guideline 2.3.10.
On Google Play
- Limits for the app name, short description and full description, from Play Console Help.
- App name: emojis, emoticons, repeated special characters such as “!!”, and words in capitals, under Google’s metadata policy.
- App name and short description: words that can suggest a ranking, a price or promotion, or a Google Play program, such as “#1”, “free” or “New”.
- Full description: review the text for repeated words. Google’s metadata policy says to avoid repetitive keywords.
What are the App Store and Google Play character limits?
On the App Store, the app name can be 2 to 30 characters, the subtitle up to 30, the keyword field up to 100 bytes, promotional text up to 170 characters and the description up to 4,000. On Google Play, the app name can be up to 30 characters, the short description 80 and the full description 4,000.
| Field | App Store | Google Play |
|---|---|---|
| App name | 2 to 30 characters | Up to 30 characters |
| Subtitle | Up to 30 characters | No such field |
| Keyword field | Up to 100 bytes | No such field |
| Promotional text | Up to 170 characters | No such field |
| Short description | No such field | Up to 80 characters |
| Description | Up to 4,000 characters | Up to 4,000 characters (full description) |
Apple says App Store search uses the app name, subtitle, keyword field and primary category. Promotional text doesn’t affect search ranking. Google Play has no keyword field, so its name and descriptions carry your keywords.
Why does the App Store keyword field count bytes?
Apple limits the keyword field to 100 bytes, not 100 characters. In UTF-8, the web’s standard encoding, an English letter takes one byte, an accented letter such as é takes two, and a Chinese, Japanese or Korean character takes three. So a keyword field in those languages holds far fewer than 100 characters.
Apple doesn’t say how App Store Connect counts the bytes. If a field is close to 100, check it in App Store Connect before you submit.
What can metadata limits and policy guidance tell you?
They can help you keep text within field limits and spot wording that may conflict with published platform guidance. They cannot tell you whether a keyword is worth targeting, whether a word is someone else’s trademark, or whether your listing makes people want to install. Those take research and judgment.
A warning in a store policy is not always a definite violation: a word in capitals may be your brand, and “new” may be part of a place name. For keyword research, see how to choose app store keywords and the ASO checklist. For the whole listing, see how to optimize a Google Play listing.
How should you use this guide?
Start with the fields and limits for the store where your app is listed. Check the official Apple or Google resource linked below before submitting, since platform requirements can change. Then review your wording for clarity and relevance; meeting a character limit alone does not make metadata useful.
Apple and Google make the final decisions about how their stores apply their published rules. If a field is close to its limit or a policy point is unclear, confirm it in the relevant store console and read the linked guidance.