App stuck in "Waiting for Review": how long is normal, and when to worry
Short answer
"Waiting for Review" means Apple has your build in the queue but no reviewer has opened it yet. It is normal for it to sit there 2 to 3 days: across 64 real App Review decisions on our 21 iPhone apps, the median wait from "Submitted" to Apple's decision was 73 hours, and 17 of our 24 approvals landed within 72 hours. Past 5 days it gets worse: 22 of the 24 submissions that waited that long were rejected under guideline 4.3 (spam).
Part of the article App Store review time: 64 real decisions, median 73 hours. This page answers one question from it in depth.
On this page · 10 sections
So if you are on day 2, relax. If you are on day 6 with a new app on a new account, start writing your answers to Apple now.
Key numbers
| What | Number | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Apple's claim | "at least 50%" in under 24 h, "90%" in under 48 h | Apple, App Review (read Oct 23 2026) |
| Our median wait, all 64 decisions | 73.1 hours | Our App Review emails, Sep 10 to Oct 12 2026 (data) |
| In-app purchases submitted alone | 12.2 h median, 5 of 5 approved | same |
| Updates to live apps | 64.4 h median, 11 of 16 approved | same |
| New apps, approved | 69.9 h median (51 to 121 h) | same |
| Decided inside 24 h / 48 h | 19% / 27% | same |
| Decisions on a Saturday (Pacific) | 0 of 64 | same |
| Waits past 5 days that ended in approval | 2 of 24 | same |
What each status means
Apple lists every status in its app and submission statuses reference. The ones you meet while waiting:
| Status | What it means (Apple's words, shortened) | What you should do |
|---|---|---|
| Waiting for Review | "Apple received your submission, but hasn't started the review." | Nothing. Check your review notes and demo login are complete. |
| In Review | "App Review is reviewing your app." | Keep your email open; questions often come within hours. |
| Pending Developer Release | Accepted; you chose to release it yourself. | Press Release when ready. |
| Ready for Distribution | Accepted and ready for the App Store. | Ours appeared on the store within minutes. |
| Rejected / Unresolved Issues | Not accepted (or one item was rejected). | Read the Resolution Center message and reply there. |
| Developer Rejected | You pulled it from review yourself. | Resubmitting starts a new wait. |
One thing the statuses hide: App Store Connect does not show how long you sat in each one. We rebuilt the timeline from Apple's decision emails, which carry a "Submitted:" timestamp in the body; the method is in our full App Store review time study.
Still waiting? What our 64 decisions say
The question people actually have is "I have been waiting X hours, is that bad?" Here is what happened to every one of our submissions that was still undecided at each point:
| Still waiting after | Submissions | Ended approved | Ended rejected or with a question |
|---|---|---|---|
| 24 hours | 52 | 18 (35%) | 34 |
| 48 hours | 47 | 17 (36%) | 30 |
| 72 hours | 33 | 7 (21%) | 26 |
| 96 hours | 25 | 3 (12%) | 22 |
| 120 hours (5 days) | 24 | 2 (8%) | 22 |
Two patterns explain the table. First, quick answers are usually questions, not approvals: on new apps the reviewer stops at the first problem, so our fast replies (median 27.8 hours) were mostly guideline 2.1 "Information Needed" requests. Second, the long tail was one thing: two batches of 11 new utility apps from the same new account, each batch rejected under guideline 4.3 spam inside a 30 second window after 7 to 9.3 days. The two long waits that ended well were a new app approved at 5.0 days and a game update approved at 8.5 days after a long written explanation.
Our sample is one developer account and 34 days, so read it as a field report, not Apple's statistics. It is still more than App Store Connect will show you.
Why the wait is longer than Apple's 24 hours
Apple's number and ours can both be true. The wait includes the queue, not just the minutes a reviewer spends, and three things stretched ours:
- Batches move together. Seven of our 16 updates were decided within 32 minutes of each other on a Monday night, after being submitted together on Saturday morning. The wait was set by when the queue reached them.
- Saturdays were dead. Pacific time, our decisions fell Monday 35, Friday 10, Thursday 7, Wednesday 5, Sunday 4, Tuesday 3, Saturday 0. Submit early in the week if a date matters.
- New accounts get questions. All 21 of our new apps came back on the first round; 10 of those were routine 2.1 questions (screen recording, feature list, login details). Answering them adds a full round.
How to get through faster
- Ship in-app purchases on their own. Our five IAP-only submissions were all approved in 11.7 to 13.4 hours. If you need a new price or pack live, leave the binary alone.
- Write review notes a stranger can follow in a minute. Include a demo login if you have accounts and the exact taps to reach every paid screen. This is what ended our 2.1 rounds; the Windows build pipeline guide shows how ours pushes notes automatically, and the App Store Connect API key guide covers the key it uses.
- Ask for an expedited review only when it fits. Apple accepts requests for "a critical bug" fix (include steps to reproduce) or an event you are "directly associated with" (Apple). It is not a general fast lane.
- Do not cancel and resubmit to "bump" the queue. Pulling the build (Developer Rejected) ends that submission, and resubmitting starts a new wait; nothing in our data suggests a resubmission is faster.
- Space out new apps. Eleven similar single-purpose apps from one new account, submitted the same morning, is the pattern that drew our 4.3 rejections.
Common misconceptions
"Waiting for Review for 3 days means something is wrong."
The recordOur median update waited 64 hours and our approved new apps 70. Three days was normal for us.
"A fast response means approval."
The recordOn new apps it usually meant a question: our 13 normal first-round issues came back in a median 27.8 hours, while none of our 8 first-version approvals came back inside 48.
"Apple does not review on weekends."
The recordHalf true in our data: 4 decisions on Sundays, none on Saturdays.
"Long waits are random."
The recordOurs were not: past 5 days, 22 of 24 ended in a 4.3 spam rejection.
Related
- App Store review time: 64 real decisions, median 73 hours: the full study and method.
- Apple's 4.3 spam check is a 30-second batch job
- App Store Connect API key: create it and use it in CI
- Build an iOS app on Windows: how 21 apps shipped with no Mac
FAQ
What does Waiting for Review mean on the App Store?
Apple has received your submission but no reviewer has started on it yet. Apple's own definition: 'Apple received your submission, but hasn't started the review.' The status changes to In Review when a reviewer opens it.
How long does Waiting for Review take?
Apple says it reviews at least 50% of submissions in under 24 hours and 90% in under 48. In our 64 decisions the median from Submitted to decision was 73 hours: about 12 hours for in-app purchases alone, 64 hours for updates and 70 hours for approved new apps.
Does Apple review apps on weekends?
Partly. Four of our 64 decisions landed on a Sunday, Pacific time, but none on a Saturday, and a batch submitted on a Saturday morning was decided on Monday night.
When should I worry about a long Waiting for Review?
In our data, once a submission passed 5 days without a decision, 22 of the 24 that got there were rejected, all under guideline 4.3 spam. Only 2 were approved. A wait past 5 days is worth preparing for, not panicking about.
Can I speed up App Store review?
You can request an expedited review in App Store Connect for a critical bug fix or a time-bound event you are directly tied to. Submitting in-app purchases on their own also moved much faster for us: 5 of 5 were approved in 11.7 to 13.4 hours.
Sources
All checked October 23, 2026.
Apple
- Apple Developer, App Review: "App Review works around the clock, typically reviewing at least 50% of submissions in less than 24 hours and 90% in less than 48 hours", and the expedited review criteria (critical bug fix, event you are directly associated with).
- Apple Developer, App and submission statuses: definitions of Waiting for Review, In Review, Pending Developer Release, Ready for Distribution, Rejected, Developer Rejected and Unresolved Issues.
- Apple, App Review Guidelines: guideline 2.1 (App Completeness) and 4.3 (Spam).
Our data
- 64 App Review decision emails for 21 iPhone apps on one developer account, September 10 to October 12, 2026, pulled October 17, 2026. Wait = the "Submitted" timestamp in the email body to the email's sent time. Method and caveats: App Store review time: 64 real decisions. Every decision is in the data file (app, kind, outcome, timestamps, hours, weekday).
- "Still waiting after" table: for each threshold, the decisions whose wait exceeded it, split by outcome. Our calculation from the same file.
Images
- Hero: rendered by Tensorust with the Proof Engine from the data above.
- Calendar GIF, claim chart and App Store screenshot: made by Tensorust for the parent article.
Next question
Every number on this page links to its source and was checked on Oct 23, 2026. Spot an error or a newer figure? Email matt@tensorust.com and it gets fixed. Related: iPhone app cost calculator, App Store fee calculator.
Read next
- Article · Oct 18, 2026App Store review time: 64 real decisions, median 73 hours
- Article · Oct 19, 2026Apple's 4.3 spam check is a 30-second batch job. 22 rejections prove it
- Article · Oct 16, 2026Build an iOS app on Windows: how 21 apps shipped with no Mac
- Explainer · Oct 23, 2026UUIDv7 vs UUIDv4: which should you use?
- Guide · Oct 23, 2026How to deploy to Vercel from the CLI
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