App Store review / Guidelines / 2.3.7
App Review Guideline · first-hand cases · checked Oct 24, 2026
Guideline 2.3.7: Accurate Metadata: names, keywords, prices
Short answerGuideline 2.3.7 bans prices, "free", discounts and keyword stuffing in the app name, subtitle, screenshots and previews. Apple counts the word "free" as a price. We got it on 3 updates in one night (Quiver, Ironbook, Fairway Ledger 1.2) because the screenshots said things like "no subscription" and showed the Pro price. Fix: remove every price word from every image, including custom product pages and promo art, then resubmit.
“Metadata such as app names, subtitles, screenshots, and previews should not include prices, terms, or descriptions that are not specific to the metadata type.” Guideline 2.3.7
What it means
Metadata has to describe the app, not sell a deal. The guideline names "pricing information" and says names, subtitles, screenshots and previews "should not include prices". The rejection we got adds: "references to free or discounted services are considered a price reference and are not appropriate for app metadata." Prices belong in the description text, which is the one place Apple suggests for them.
What happened to us
The 1.2 updates of three apps had new screenshots promoting the one-time Pro unlock. All three were rejected on October 11 to 12 (the email for Ironbook and Quiver arrived within 3 minutes of each other), reviewed on an iPhone 17 Pro Max and an iPad Air 11-inch (M3). The email marked it a "Bug Fix Submission" issue: Apple offered to approve the update if we promised to fix the screenshots in the next version.
Every case on our account (3)
| App | Type | Submitted | Decided | Wait | Outcome | What happened |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quiver | Update | Oct 8, 2026 | Oct 12, 2026 | 74.6 h | Not approved | Version 1.2: screenshots mentioned the price |
| Ironbook | Update | Oct 8, 2026 | Oct 12, 2026 | 74.7 h | Not approved | Version 1.2: screenshots mentioned the price |
| Fairway Ledger | Update | Oct 8, 2026 | Oct 12, 2026 | 81.4 h | Not approved | Version 1.2: screenshots mentioned the price |
Wait = from the "Submitted" time in the Apple email to the decision email. Source: our App Review decision emails.
What worked
- We removed "free", "$", "Pro $x", "one-time" and "no subscription" from every screenshot set, custom product page and promotional image, and resubmitted.
- The words we kept were features ("tracks every arrow", "works offline"), which pass.
If you got Guideline 2.3.7: do this
- Search every screenshot caption for: free, $, price, sale, discount, one-time, lifetime, no subscription, trial.
- Check custom product pages and in-app purchase promo images too; they are metadata.
- Move pricing claims into the description.
- If the build itself is fine, you can ask Apple to approve it now under "Bug Fix Submissions" and fix the images next version.
Questions
Can I say "free" in App Store screenshots?
No. Our rejection text said references to free or discounted services count as a price reference.
Related
- Guideline 2.3.2: In-app purchases in metadata and promoted purchases
- Guideline 2.3.13: In-App Events
- Guideline 2.3.6: Age rating answers
- App Store review times, monthly report
- Every guideline and message we hit
Sources
- Apple App Review Guidelines, 2.3.7: developer.apple.com/app-store/review/guidelines/#2.3.7 (read Oct 24, 2026)
- Our decision data (every App Review email, CSV): tensorust.com/reports/app-store-review-times/2026-10/decisions.csv (through Oct 23, 2026)
Need the whole pipeline (signing, screenshots, review notes, fastlane submission from Windows)? Fixed-price iPhone app builds.
Up next
Often comes with this oneGuideline 2.3.2: In-app purchases in metadata and promoted purchasesThe next rule our apps ran into, with the cases and the fix.Read it next →Did this answer your question?