Free App Store optimization tools for indie developers
Seven free browser tools and guides for improving your App Store keywords, pricing, metadata, reviews, screenshots, icons, and press kit.
App Store Optimization can be a complicated process, but for many developers the most important thing is just to start – do something that makes your App Store presence stronger, then come back later and do some more.
I built Kickstart to make all this important work as easy as possible, but I’ve also released a whole bunch of free App Store optimization tools and guides so everyone can get the work done – there really is no excuse.
There are seven tools and reference guides in total, covering keywords, metadata, price parity, review links, screenshots, icons, and even press kits. Best of all, you can start using them straight away, for free.
Each of the tools focuses on one small job, runs right in your browser, and is also entirely private – there’s no tracking or server-side work monitoring you.
1. Find wasted keyword space
The App Store Keyword Optimizer analyzes your app name, subtitle, and keyword field as one, and helps you avoid common problems such as when your name or subtitle is unusually short, when your keyword field has valuable room unused, and when the same term appears more than once. It also spots spaces around commas, words that are ignored by App Store search, singular and plural pairs, and more.
If you want to go further, follow this tool up with my complete 7-step App Store keyword pipeline.
2. Check price parity in seconds
The App Store Price Parity Calculator starts with your US price, then suggests prices for dozens of countries using the Big Mac index, Netflix pricing, Spotify pricing, or a blended average.
If you’re a stage earlier, still trying to figure out the right starting price for your app or in-app purchase, you should start with my guide on how to price your app.
3. Send people straight to a review
Lots of positive ratings and reviews are a critical part of ranking well on the App Store, but happy users still need a convenient path to leave one. The App Store Review Link Generator takes an App Store URL or numeric app ID and creates a direct link for users to write an App Store review – it’s the only way to reliably trigger a review request in apps.
Yes, there are many times using the requestReview() API is a better choice, and my guide explains when to ask for an App Store review. However, that prompt may or may not be shown, so it’s not the kind of thing you want to trigger from a button press.
4. Stop re-searching screenshot sizes
The App Store Screenshot Sizes reference is a short and to the point guide to the current screenshot and preview video sizes for iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, Apple Watch, and Apple Vision Pro, all in one place.
This one is a reference rather than a generator, so you can bookmark it, check the table before your next export, then get back to the actual creative work.
5. Count every metadata field live
The App Store Metadata Checker gives you live character counts for the app name, subtitle, keyword field, promotional text, and description. Each field has a built-in character limit, so you can draft the whole listing without bouncing between a text editor and App Store Connect.
6. Keep app icon sizes straight
The App Icon Sizes reference covers iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, tvOS, and visionOS, with all the platform differences kept together on one page.
It’s especially useful when you’re preparing assets for more than one Apple platform, where there are things like layering to take into account.
7. Build the press kit while the details are fresh
Strictly speaking, a press kit sits just outside ASO, but getting someone to your product page is part of the same job. The free App Press Kit Template gives you a Markdown file containing the sections journalists actually need: a one-line pitch, fact sheet, app story, key features, developer bio, contact details, assets, and existing coverage.
I spent eight years working full-time as a tech journalist, so I care a lot about making this useful rather than decorative. For more details, check out my guide to building an app press kit journalists actually open.
Stop reading, start doing
- Paste your current name, subtitle, and keywords into the keyword optimizer, then fix any waste it finds.
- Put the price of your app or in-app purchases into the parity calculator and compare the result with what you currently charge internationally.
- Generate your app’s direct review link, then add it somewhere one happy user will actually see it.
- Bookmark the asset references and download the press kit template; it will come in handy when you’re getting close to shipping.