I see a lot of questions here along the lines of:

“Why would someone pay for ABC if the iPhone already has it built-in?”

It’s a fair question. But the reality is, the App Store isn’t just about features. It’s a marketplace where studios are spending $10K+ per day on Apple Search Ads, and $100K+ on Meta ads. They’re competing for the same users as you and me.

It’s easy to dismiss them as “burning money” - but most of these studios have 100+ employees and have spent years testing thousands of ad creatives. They’ve figured out how to make it work. They know how to get ratings, optimize funnels, and sustain campaigns. When they combine ratings + ads at scale, Apple has little choice but to keep showing them at the top of the store. So, they rank on ASO as well.

That’s why paid ads can feel like a different game altogether - one that’s consistent, predictable, and hard for a solo dev to break into early.

So how should an indie approach this? A few thoughts from my side:

• Look for underserved markets. Example: the App Store is full of Bible apps, but other religious texts and communities are far less represented. Niches like that still exist.

• Get good at organic. TikTok, Instagram, SEO - these are still powerful levers. Even if TikTok doesn’t directly convert, the network effect (traffic, installs, reviews) can push your app up in rankings.

• Delay paid ads until you’re ready. Once you’ve built some revenue, then experiment with ASA. Don’t jump into web-to-app funnels too early just because big studios are doing it. They have good history with Apple and spending on ASA. so they can afford to send a little percentage of traffic to bypass apple fee. If you do it early, Apple will clip your reach, discoverabiluty and conversion.

I hope this helps set expectations. The App Store isn’t “broken” - it’s just tilted heavily in favor of those who’ve learned to play the long game with ads. As an indie, your edge comes from creativity, focus, and spotting gaps they overlook.

How the F*CK can you rename a variable?
Ok sorry my enum is called Licensed just like all the comments.
But then at least let me deselect all comments. I only want to f*cking rename the f*cking enum.
Ok Ok i am lucky only 5 places in code but this makes me want to f*cking **sleep forever** myself its f*cking 2023 and i cant f*cking rename a f*cking variable literally WHAT THE F*CK.
Does this f*cking program actually want me to go deselect all 414 checkboxes. What the f*ck is this regarded sh*t. We need government regulations to ban this torture device.

:)

If your have an iOS app with Video Editing features, this is for you.

Apple is replacing `AVMutableVideoComposition` with a brand new API: `AVVideoComposition.Configuration`.

But don't be scared. The migration is a breeze, and honestly using the new API just feels more natural and kinda makes sense.

Senior iOS dev (13 years). I naturally reached for Swift and SwiftUI to solve my nutrition problem.
The app is fast, private (on-device data), and uses on-device math to check AI results.
I realized too late that building an MVP or prototype needs to be easily accessible and needs fast feedback loops. iOS is powerful, I love it even today, but experiments can cost a lot of time and energy. One reason might be the small space available for the UI, which forces you to think about UX from day 1.

I ignored the Web because I was comfortable in Xcode. Now I have a friend who helps me with guidance. It is a wild west world out there and guidance is a must for me.
I'm now learning React/Next.js/Vite/Zustand and more to break out of the walled garden.

Has anyone else here successfully transitioned a Native-Only mindset to a Web ecosystem? How painful was the switch?

I wanted to share a small paywall experiment that had a much bigger impact than I expected. In Dec 2025, my ios app was doing around ~$100 MRR. I removed the free trial and instead added a simple label on the weekly plan “Try for Week”. No discounts, no price changes, no redesign. Just that one copy change. Afterward, MRR gradually climbed to around ~$700. Same traffic, mostly organic, no paid ads.

What surprised me most was how much framing matters. “Free trial” sounds good in theory, but some users seem more comfortable making a clear, short commitment instead of opting into something that converts later. This tiny wording change ended up improving conversion more than any feature I shipped.

Not promoting anything here. Happy to discuss the reasoning or I can share app link in DMs or check my profile, if it helps others experimenting with pricing.

Hi everyone,

I’m an indie developer, and I recently launched my very first app on the App Store. It’s a super simple app that interacts with two widely used APIs (millions of apps use these same APIs). The app is just a creative concept I came up with to solve a niche problem. It’s straightforward, has no shady functionality, and doesn’t do anything that violates Apple’s guidelines (at least not intentionally).

The app was approved by Apple and was live for about two weeks. I even got a few paying users and ran marketing campaigns to promote it. But out of nowhere, I received an email saying my developer account was flagged for “dishonest or fraudulent activity.” Here’s the exact evidence section they cited:

Evidence of Dishonest or Fraudulent Activity

“You provided fraudulent and/or false account information, documentation, or otherwise falsely represented yourself or your submitted app to Apple either during the account enrollment process or after the account was created.”

They also referenced this part of the Developer License Agreement:

Section 3.2(f)

“You will not, directly or indirectly, commit any act intended to interfere with any of the Apple Software or Services, the intent of this Agreement, or Apple’s business practices including, but not limited to, taking actions that may hinder the performance or intended use of the App Store, Custom App Distribution, TestFlight, Xcode Cloud, Ad Hoc distribution, or the Program (e.g., submitting fraudulent reviews of Your own Application or any third-party application, choosing a name for Your Application that is substantially similar to the name of a third-party application in order to create consumer confusion, or squatting on application names to prevent legitimate third-party use). Further, You will not engage, or encourage others to engage, in any unlawful, unfair, misleading, fraudulent, improper, or dishonest acts or business practices relating to Your Covered Products or Corresponding Products (e.g., engaging in bait-and-switch pricing, consumer misrepresentation, deceptive business practices, or unfair competition against other developers).”

I’m completely at a loss. All my account information (name, address, tax details) is accurate and verified. The app does what I described, and I didn’t do anything dishonest or fraudulent. The APIs it interacts with are mainstream, and the app is just a creative concept built around them. I also should have all necessary credits made in description etc but don’t think its necessary to take down an approved app with paying customers?? I’m using RevenueCat for IAP btw.

This was my first app, and it was live for a full 1-2 weeks before getting terminated. We already had paying users and spent a lot on marketing. I’ve submitted an appeal, but I’m not sure how to move forward or what to do if Apple doesn’t reverse the decision.

Has anyone been through something like this? What are my options to get my account reinstated or understand what went wrong? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

It’s sad that Apple Developer is not at all supportive, I have been trying to enrol for program since two months now and they don’t have answer beyond “for one or more reasons we can’t enrol you “ I mean wtf , atleast tell us the issue damn it , idiots. Can’t believe this is the same company who manes brilliant products .

Make this sub real again. Take it out of private and remove the NSFW tag.

We should be above these petty platform feuds.

At least take a vote and see what the members want, and make it not the choice of a few moderators affecting tens of thousands of iOS developers.

I support protest but only when it might have an effect; this protest was good for about a week but plainly will have no effect so why not resume helping people?

There’s this weird thing happening in iOS design right now. We got so obsessed with being clean that everything started looking like the inside of a dentist’s office. White, flat, polite. Minimalism turned into “soulless.”

But the vibe’s shifting again. You can feel designers sneaking depth back in. Buttons with actual texture. Motion that means something. That little bounce that says “yep, this app has a pulse.” It’s like design finally got tired of being quiet and decided to flirt again.

Some trends just didn’t make it. Remember when everything wanted to look like frosted glass? Or when neumorphism had its three-month influencer era? They went to sleep in the same graveyard as skeuomorphism’s stitched leather. The UIs that survived didn’t follow trends, they chased feeling.

The story of design has always been a pendulum. We went from web to app, from realism to flat, then from flat to this new “liquid” feel where the interface almost breathes. Every phase taught us something about attention, motion, and restraint.

Here’s my take. The next decade of iOS design belongs to interfaces that feel alive. The kind of UI where the user forgets to blink because everything moves like it has purpose.

That’s my design philosophy in one line:
Refactor until it’s art.

The app should look so intentional that the user can’t take their eyes off it. Every refactor, every gradient, every 0.3-second animation curve gets you closer to that hypnotic zone where code becomes choreography.

Anyway, that’s my late-night design ramble. What kind of UI do you think will define the next decade? Are we getting a new realism, or are we about to vibe into something completely different?

I'm a veteran Flutter developer with over 4 years of experience. Lately, I've been thinking transitioning into iOS development since compensation would be better, plus I'm a well equipped by having Macbook M3 pro with high specs and physical iPhone.

My question to you guys is should I do that? As I told you my sole purpose is to get better compensation with like in the range of 3k monthly.

I've good portfolio of working with US, European clients in Flutter.

When joining iOS programming I must have missed the point where half post are just hidden ads for shitty , over priced apps.

Hey my fellow iOS developers,

Recently someone contacted me hoping to buy my app. Even though that didn't work out, I thought - I could try this too! I'm too lazy to start coding a new app from scratch so I thought I could use my skills and work on some existing ones and make them better.

So... I'd love to buy your iOS apps! If your native iOS app has good ratings, low maintenance (ideally no server), and is already profitable (even $1 counts) then feel free to send me a DM. As a fellow dev, I will try out your app and extend an offer (around 3X-5X annual profit depending on the risk factors and how much I like it).

If it didn't work out, I will send you my notes and feedback and maybe it will give you some ideas if you want to improve on it.

Edit: Thank you to the people who reached out. I will reply to you one by one. Unfortunately, my post is getting downvoted. Maybe it was my requirements? No, I'm not looking for the perfect app and not trying to low-ball. There are a lot of apps that haven't been updated since iOS 12 that fit my requirements. I removed all the details in the post and made it simpler to see if that's better. And yes, I'm already on Flippa and Acquire.com.

I’m an avid Bible journaler, and for years I used the only Apple Pencil-friendly Bible app out there — but it always felt like it was missing obvious stuff.

Zooming? Nowhere to be found. Customizing font size or layout? Only possible if you created a whole new Bible. And most frustrating of all: a lack of a true free version. That never sat right with me. I believe anyone who wants to study the Bible should have access to it, period.

So I built what I wished existed — a better Bible app for iPad and iPhone. I read a lot of user reviews from other Bible apps and narrowed it down to the “must haves”:

• Full Apple Pencil tools (lasso, crayon, ruler, etc)

• Smooth zooming and gestures

• Typed notes + Scribble support

• Bookmarks, dark mode, dynamic fonts

• Reliable backups + double tap undo gestures

• Split screen support + on-page guidelines

• And a better way to navigate

That last one sounds small, but it drove me crazy. Every app I used buried book/chapter selection behind like five menus and sub menus. I missed the simplicity of those old, colorful Bible tabs from VBS — quick, & intuitive. So I made a digital version of that.

Bible Tiles was designed from the ground up for iPad, and the drawing experience is currently exclusive to iPad with full Apple Pencil support — but finger drawing on iPhone is coming soon, along with Shared Bibles, export features, extra journaling space, and more.

After a ton of sleepless nights, support from my incredible wife (couldn’t have done it without her), and by the grace of God — Bible Tiles is live. 40+ translations, 10+ languages.

Fully offline. Fully free. Forever.

Bible Tiles a California nonprofit pending 501(c)(3), and this app will always be 100% free. No subscriptions, no accounts. No catches. Just the Bible, reimagined.

The app has improvements to be made, more languages to be added, and the available Bible translations need to grow. But we’re just getting started (reach out if you’re interested in helping us!).

Quick anecdote on translations; I won’t share the translation name because it isn’t my place, but a MAJOR translation flat out rejected our non-commercial/free request due to their need to keep their commercial license agreements happy and told me to “get back to them when it has more users and we’ll consider it giving it away”.  Basically, get more users if you want it to be free. 

Here is my promise, forever saved in internet archives: no matter what even if Bible Tiles has to pay for every single added version, this app, translations, languages, you name it, will always be 100% free.

Check it out or say hi at www.bibletiles.org

Download Bible Tiles today for iPad, iPhone, and Mac. Share it with your friends, Bible study, or anyone! Happy Easter: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/bible-tiles-draw-type-notes/id6744547991

I've been programming for 30 years. This thing is crap. Is this what happens when you have a monopoly in charge of your device? never mind. I answered my own question.

Hi guys, we published an article with 1 min guide to iOS development best practices.

Please have a look and provide us with your valuable suggestions and feedback. The list is a starting for you to get inspired by and should not be used as it is for all apps. Usage differs depending on app size, type, complexity and other requirements.

https://blog.canopas.com/1-min-guide-to-ios-development-best-practices-in-2022-e3f1d009cfa1

If you think we missed something, let us know. We will update it to make it more meaningful for other iOS devs out there.

Trying new XCode 27 Beta and the new Device Hub. Any way to remove those ugly white frames around the phone/watch simulators? Couldn't find an option anywhere. This is really bad, why did they do it? Apple, where's your design sense?!!

I'm doing app development for 8 years now and I'm using Cursor for 2 months now. It feels like cheating. You just say what you want and Cursor will build it. I'm in the entertainment / music field and enjoyed to built music visualizers. This simple one was mainly created utilizing Cursor. Sometimes I check the code it produces and fine-tune something, but most of the time I just accept the changes and see if it works out. I'm just blown away and at the same time I feel like I'll need to find another job in some years as it becomes more and more accessible to develop apps. How do you guys feel about it?