App Store In-App Event Images: Sizes & Design Tips

An App Store in-app event needs two pieces of media: a 16:9 event card (1920 × 1080 to 3840 × 2160 px) and a 9:16 event details image (1080 × 1920 to 2160 × 3840 px). Both accept .jpeg, .jpg or .png, and either can be a short video instead. Keep text and logos out of the artwork — the App Store adds the event name, description and badge on top.

Quick answer: event image sizes

Any exact 16:9 or 9:16 size inside the range works. Exporting at the maximum (3840 × 2160 and 2160 × 3840) keeps the media sharp on iPad and large iPhones; 1920 × 1080 and 1080 × 1920 are the safe minimums. As with screenshots, export opaque images with no alpha channel.

Where in-app events appear

• Your product page. All published events are listed, sorted by start time; high-priority events come first.
• Search results. For people who already have your app, the event card can appear in the search result. People who don’t have the app see your screenshots (or, on iOS 27, your search results artwork).
• Today, Games and Apps tabs. Events can be picked for personalized recommendations and editorial collections.
• Event search. People can search for events directly.

Tapping the card opens the event details page, which shows the portrait media full-screen with the long description and a button to open or get the app. Events can be submitted for review independently of an app version.

Event text limits and badges

Each event gets one badge: Challenge, Competition, Live Event, Major Update, New Season, Premiere or Special Event. The badge already says what kind of event it is, so don’t repeat “Live event” in the name. Our character counter covers these fields alongside the rest of your metadata, and the character limits guide lists every App Store field.

Apple’s media guidelines

• No text or logos in the media, especially not your event or app name — the App Store displays them.
• No borders or gradients. The App Store applies its own crops and gradients so text overlays stay readable. Adding your own creates a muddy double gradient.
• Visual continuity. The card and the details page should feel like one event: the same scene, colors or illustration style.
• Only content you own or license. No third-party characters, celebrities or brand marks without rights.
• Check the preview. App Store Connect shows how the card and details page will look; use it to confirm nothing important is covered.

Designing the card and details page

The 16:9 card

The card is small in most placements, and the event name and short description sit over its lower part. That leaves the upper and middle area for your artwork:

1. One clear focal point in the upper two-thirds — a character, a hero item, a key moment of gameplay or UI.
2. Calm lower third. Keep busy detail and faces away from the bottom edge, where the overlay text and the system gradient go.
3. Strong silhouette and contrast. The card needs to read at thumbnail size next to other apps’ events. Test it scaled down to phone width.
4. Leave margins. Crops differ slightly between placements, so keep the subject away from the edges.

The 9:16 details page

The details page is a tall, full-screen canvas — similar in proportion to an iPhone screenshot. The long description and the call-to-action button sit at the bottom, so compose top-heavy: subject in the upper half, open background below. If the card shows a wide scene, the details page can zoom in on its center or continue the scene vertically.

Avoid the classic mistakes

• Reusing a screenshot with a caption — it contains text and looks like an ad, not an event.
• Center-cropping the 16:9 card to 9:16 — the subject often ends up cut in half. Design both separately from the same source art.
• Dates or prices in the image — they’re already in the event metadata and can’t be localized automatically.
• Dark artwork on a dark gradient — the overlay text loses contrast. Check the result in both light and dark mode.

Event videos

Apple recommends video for a more dynamic preview. Event videos use the same orientation and size ranges as the images, run 15–30 seconds at 30 or 60 fps, and can be .mov, .m4v or .mp4. They autoplay and repeat, so build a seamless loop: end on the same framing you start with. Put the most interesting motion in the first seconds, since many people scroll past before the loop finishes, and keep the video meaningful without sound.

Pre-submission checklist

• Card is exactly 16:9 and between 1920 × 1080 and 3840 × 2160; details media is exactly 9:16 and between 1080 × 1920 and 2160 × 3840.
• Files are opaque .png or .jpg with no alpha channel.
• No text, logos, borders or added gradients in the media.
• Focal point stays clear of the lower area and the edges.
• Name ≤ 30, short description ≤ 50, long description ≤ 120 characters; the badge matches the event type.
• Localized metadata for every market you promote the event in.
• Checked in the App Store Connect preview on both card and details page.

Make them with our tools

The editor includes In-App Event Card (1920 × 1080, 16:9) and Event Details (1080 × 1920, 9:16) board presets that export flattened, alpha-free images. Because pages sit side by side on one canvas, you can design the card and details media from the same artwork and keep them consistent. Browse templates and device mockups for a starting point, use the screenshot checker to verify exact sizes, and remember to leave the text to the App Store.