App Store & Google Play Character Limits (2026)

On the App Store, the app name and subtitle are 30 characters each, promotional text is 170, the keyword field is 100 bytes, and the description and What’s New are 4,000 characters each. On Google Play, the title is 30 characters, the short description 80, the full description 4,000 and release notes 500. The tables below list every field with notes on where it appears and whether it affects search.

App Store character limits

Google Play character limits

Google Play has no keyword field. The words you want to rank for have to appear in the title, short description or full description.

Characters vs bytes: how limits are counted

• Most App Store fields count characters. Spaces and punctuation count. An emoji may count as more than one character.
• The keyword field counts bytes. Plain Latin letters, digits and commas are 1 byte each. Accented letters (é, ü, ñ) typically take 2 bytes, and Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Thai characters typically take 3 — so “習慣トラッカー” uses about 21 of your 100 bytes.
• Google Play counts characters and applies the same limits to full-width and half-width characters.
• Line breaks count in descriptions and release notes on both stores.

Which fields need a new version

Because App Store keywords and subtitle only change with a release, prepare them alongside your next build — not after it’s submitted.

What you can’t put in metadata

Apple

• Guideline 2.3.7: choose a unique app name and accurate keywords, and don’t pack metadata with trademarked terms, popular app names, pricing information or other irrelevant phrases to game the system.
• Guideline 2.3.8: metadata should be appropriate for all audiences — icons, screenshots and previews should follow a 4+ age rating even if the app is rated higher.
• Apple’s keyword help also says not to include your app or company name in the keyword field, or the names of other apps or companies.

Google Play

• No text or images in the title, icon or developer name that indicate store performance or ranking (“#1”, “App of the year”, “Best of Play”, “Popular”).
• No price or promotional information there either (“10% off”, “free for limited time only”), and no suggested ties to Play programs (“Editor’s choice”, “New”).
• No emojis, emoticons or repeated special characters in those elements; avoid ALL CAPS unless it’s part of your brand.
• No repetitive, irrelevant or misleading keywords in descriptions, and no unattributed user testimonials.

Writing tips per field

• Name: brand first, then a core keyword if it reads naturally. Leave room — 25 well-chosen characters beat 30 crammed ones.
• Subtitle: a benefit, not a slogan. Use words that are not already in the name.
• Keywords: commas without spaces, single words rather than phrases, no plurals of words you already have. Full method in the keyword field guide.
• Promotional text: current news — a new feature, an event, a seasonal angle. Update it often.
• Short description (Play): one sentence that says what the app does and for whom.
• Descriptions: the first two or three lines show before “more”. Lead with the main value, then features as short paragraphs or lists.
• Release notes: two to four user-facing changes. Write them once and fit them to both stores with the release notes generator.
• Review replies: thank, address the specific issue, say what changed. The review reply generator stays within each store’s limit.

Checking limits with our tools

Paste drafts into the character counter to see live counts for every field and both stores, including byte counts for the keyword field. The keyword optimizer removes spaces and duplicates and words already in your name. If you’re making screenshots too, the editor has a metadata panel with the same limits per locale, an AI writer that drafts fields within the limit, and exports the text as fastlane metadata files. Preview how name and subtitle are truncated with the store listing preview, and read the ASO guide for how these fields fit together.