The short version
Apple says App Review typically reviews at least 50% of submissions in under 24 hours and 90% in under 48 hours. Most updates go from Waiting for Review to live within a day or two. Missing review information, a missing demo account, new in-app purchases or a busy period can stretch that. For a critical bug or a dated event, you can ask for an expedited review.
Take these with you
- Apple aims to review at least 50% of submissions within 24 hours and 90% within 48 hours.
- Waiting for Review is the queue. In Review means a reviewer has your app now.
- A demo account, clear notes and a tested build prevent most delays. Save expedited reviews for real emergencies.
What Apple says
Apple’s App Review page says reviewers work around the clock and typically review at least 50% of submissions in less than 24 hours and 90% in less than 48 hours.
Those are Apple’s figures across all submissions, not a promise for yours. They also cover review only. Once an app is approved it can sit in Processing for Distribution, which Apple says should take no more than 24 hours, before it’s ready on the App Store.
What each status means
| Status | What’s happening | What you can do |
|---|---|---|
| Waiting for Review | Apple has your submission but hasn’t started. | Edit some details or remove the build. Screenshots are locked. |
| In Review | A reviewer is working on it. | Wait, or cancel the submission. |
| Pending Developer Release | Approved. You chose to release it yourself. | Release it when you’re ready. |
| Processing for Distribution | Approved and on its way to the store. | Nothing. Apple says it should be ready within 24 hours. |
| Ready for Distribution | Approved and available. | Tell people. |
| Rejected or Metadata Rejected | Something needs fixing. | Read App Review’s message, fix it, then reply or resubmit. |
| Developer Rejected | You removed it from review. | Resubmit when you’re ready. |
Apple’s status reference lists a few rarer ones too, such as Waiting for Export Compliance and Pending Apple Release.
Why some reviews take longer
- Missing information. If a feature needs a sign-in and there’s no demo account, the reviewer has to stop and ask. Apple says over 40% of unresolved issues relate to guideline 2.1, App Completeness, which covers crashes, placeholder content and incomplete information.
- New in-app purchases. Your first in-app purchase goes to review with an app version, and each one needs its own details and review screenshot.
- A first submission. A new app has more to check than an update: the whole listing, the privacy answers and every feature.
- Busy periods. Submissions pile up around major software releases and the end-of-year holidays. Apple posts notices on its developer news page when it expects delays.
- Questions from the reviewer. If App Review sends a message, nothing moves until you answer it.
What it looked like for us
We ship Perch on iPhone and Mac under one App Store record, so we submit to both queues every release. Through October and November 2026, our iPhone updates usually went from submitted to live within a day or two. Our Mac updates were slower, and one waited more than a week before it went live.
Each platform version is its own submission. If the iPhone version of your update is live and the Mac one is still waiting, nothing has gone wrong.
The fastest review is a complete one. Give App Review everything before it has to ask.
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How to help your review go smoothly
- Test the exact build you’re submitting on a real device running the latest software.
- Fill in App Review Information: contact details, notes and a working demo account or demo mode for anything behind a sign-in.
- Use the Notes field for anything a reviewer could miss, such as hardware, special settings or where a feature lives.
- Check your links. The support link and privacy policy must both work.
- Make sure every screenshot and line of text is final. Placeholder content can’t be approved.
- Choose how to release before you submit. A manual release lets you be approved on Tuesday and launch on Thursday.
When to ask for an expedited review
If you’re fixing a critical bug or launching for a dated event, you can ask Apple to speed things up. Submit the build first: only submissions already with App Review can be expedited. Then use Apple’s Request an Expedited App Review form and choose the app and platform.
For a bug fix, put the steps to reproduce the bug in the Notes field. For an event, include the event, its date and how your app ties in. Apple asks that requests be kept for genuine urgency and grants them as availability allows, so save it for when it matters.
If it’s been waiting more than a few days
First, open the App Review page for your app in App Store Connect and check your email. A question from the reviewer pauses everything until you reply.
If there are no messages and it’s well past 48 hours, contact App Review from the App Review page or Apple’s developer contact page.
Removing a build from review doesn’t speed anything up. It marks the version Developer Rejected and you have to submit again.
Keep watch without refreshing
Apple emails you when a status changes, and the App Store Connect app shows it on iPhone and iPad. In Perch, each app shows its review status as a coloured pill, with one for each platform, and a notification arrives when it moves to In Review, approved or rejected. That way a Mac update still waiting sits right beside an iPhone version that’s already live.
Common questions
Does App Review work on weekends?
Apple says App Review works around the clock, so submissions can be reviewed on any day. Busy periods can still slow the queue.
Why is my app approved but not on the App Store yet?
Check the status. Pending Developer Release means you chose to release it yourself. Processing for Distribution means it’s on its way, and Apple says it should be ready within 24 hours.
Can I change my app while it’s waiting for review?
Some details, yes. Screenshots and app previews are locked while a version waits or is in review. To change the build, remove it from review and submit again.
Will an expedited review always be granted?
No. Apple evaluates each request and expedites as availability and demand allow. Keep requests for critical bug fixes and dated events.
Sources & further reading
Sources checked 13 November 2026. Apple’s reporting and interface can change.
