App Store Connect, part 2: screenshots in 2026 and what iPhone Duo requires

In part 1 we covered creative assets and the Asset Library, which are optional. This part is about what’s still required: screenshots.

On October 5, alongside creative assets, three related things happened:

Submissions opened for apps optimized for iPhone Duo, which reaches stores on October 23.
Apple announced that starting April 2027, iPhone Duo screenshots will be required.
App Review published guidance on what screenshots must show to pass review.

What’s required today

To submit an app you need, at minimum:

iPhone: at least one screenshot for iPhone with Dynamic Island (medium display).
iPad: if your app runs on iPad, at least one screenshot for the 13-inch iPad.

Everything else is optional. If your interface looks the same across sizes, uploading the highest required resolution is enough: App Store Connect scales it down for smaller devices. If you prefer, you can upload specific screenshots for each size and language.

The general rules haven’t changed: up to 10 screenshots per size, as .jpeg, .jpg, or .png, with no transparency.

The sizes that matter in 2026

Group in App Store Connect	Includes	Portrait	Required?
iPhone with Dynamic Island (medium display)	iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17, iPhone 16 and earlier models with Dynamic Island	1179 × 2556 or 1206 × 2622	Yes
iPhone with Dynamic Island (large display)	iPhone 18 Pro Max, iPhone 17 Pro Max, iPhone Air, and earlier Pro Max and Plus models	1260 × 2736, 1290 × 2796, or 1320 × 2868	No
13-inch iPad	13-inch iPad Pro and iPad Air	2064 × 2752 or 2048 × 2732	If your app runs on iPad
iPhone Duo, outer display	iPhone Duo closed	1398 × 2034	Not yet
iPhone Duo, inner display	iPhone Duo open	2007 × 2853	Not yet

Every size also exists in landscape, with the values swapped.

iPhone Duo

What “optimized” means

iPhone Duo has two displays: the outer one, when it’s closed, and the larger inner one, when you open it. An app moves from one to the other as you open or close the phone. How it looks depends on the SDK you build with:

Built with	How it looks on iPhone Duo
iOS 26 SDK or earlier	Runs, but when open it sits centered with empty space around it
iOS 27 SDK	Fills most of the inner display, but still leaves the status bar area free
iOS 27.1 SDK or later	Optimized: fills the whole screen on both displays, and toolbars and tab bars rearrange so they don’t collide with the status bar

For your app to look right on iPhone Duo you need to build with Xcode 27.1 and check that the layout doesn’t depend on fixed sizes, on orientation, or on assuming a regular width means iPad. Apple explains it in its three steps for iPhone Duo guide. I covered the device’s new APIs in this post, and for testing there’s Device Hub with Xcode 27.1’s iPhone Duo simulator.

This matters for screenshots: what you show has to be how your app really looks on the device. If you still build with the iOS 26 SDK, it’s worth updating before you take your iPhone Duo screenshots.

Screenshots and app previews

Screenshots: 1398 × 2034 for the outer display and 2007 × 2853 for the inner one, in portrait or landscape.
App previews: uploaded at 886 × 1920 in portrait or 1920 × 886 in landscape. Apple asks you to use that resolution rather than the device’s.

Both are optional today.

The April 2027 deadline

Apple describes it in two ways, and both are worth reading:

In the October 5 news post: “Starting April 2027, any apps or games submitted will need to include screenshots for iPhone Duo.”
On the specifications page: “Starting in April 2027, screenshots will be required for any app using the iOS 27.1 SDK or later.”

The second is more precise: the requirement applies to apps built with the iOS 27.1 SDK or later. In practice that ends up being almost everyone, because Apple usually raises the minimum SDK for submissions every April. There’s no need to wait for the date: if your app already looks right on iPhone Duo, the screenshots can go in your next version.

Getting featured on the App Store

If your app is already optimized, Apple suggests sending a featuring nomination from App Store Connect. In the details section, say that your app is optimized for iPhone Duo, including support for all device poses.

What your screenshots must show: guideline 2.3.3

App Review guideline 2.3.3 isn’t new, but it now comes with guidance and concrete examples. The core idea: screenshots must show the app in use, not just the title art, the login page, or the splash screen.

More than half, in use

For each device type, App Review only approves if more than half of the screenshots show the app in use:

Screenshots per device	Minimum showing the app in use
1	1
3	2
4	3
10	6

The rest can be marketing material: benefits, features, text. This is assessed separately for each language.

What’s allowed

Text and graphics over the screenshot, as long as the app is still visible.
Interaction indicators, like an animated touch point or Apple Pencil.
Screenshots in Dark Mode or other app configurations.
A single image of the app spread across several screenshots, like a panorama.
The app on another Apple platform, when it’s part of the experience.

What isn’t

Sets made up only of login pages or splash screens.
Screenshots showing an interface that isn’t the real one, or misleading promotions.
Graphics or text that cover up the app.
Only the hardware, or a graphic with no app interface behind it.

A detail that’s easy to forget: screenshots should be updated with each version so they match the current interface. If you redesigned a screen, the old screenshot no longer complies.

Checklist before October 23

Build with Xcode 27.1 and test your app in the iPhone Duo simulator, open and closed, in both orientations.
Check your current screenshots against guideline 2.3.3: count how many show the app in use on each device and in each language.
Confirm the required sizes: iPhone medium display and, if it applies, the 13-inch iPad.
Take your iPhone Duo screenshots (outer and inner) with the optimized app, even though they’re not required yet.
Upload them to the Asset Library and look at them in the preview before submitting.
If your app is optimized, send the nomination so the App Store can feature it.

Wrapping up the series

That covers the full picture of what changed in October:

Part 1: creative assets, the Asset Library, and how to get approval without shipping a new version.
Part 2 (this one): required screenshots, iPhone Duo, and guideline 2.3.3.

Creative assets are the eye-catching news, but screenshots are still what decides whether your app passes review and, often, the first thing people see of it. If you only have time for one thing this week, make it checking that most of them show your app in use.