Different Ways To Bake A Cake

Approaches: Creating App Store Screenshots

Congratulations on building your app - a significant achievement in itself! However, the journey doesn't end here, the next crucial phase is releasing your app through the App Stores. This involves not only adhering to all requirements, but attempting to ensure the maximum impact of your app launch or update. Without engaging visuals to capture attention, even the most well-crafted apps can be overlooked.

Whether you're an indie developer who’s poured hours into coding your vision or a key player in a app team strategising the launch, this guide is tailored for you. It aims to explore the various methods for creating app store screenshots, evaluate their advantages and drawbacks, and steer you towards the most effective solution for your app’s success.

Contents

• Requirements: Screenshots
• Basic: Just Device or Emulator
• Complex: Graphic Design Software
• Pricey: Hiring Designers
• Techy: Process Automation
• Savvy: App Store Screenshot Creation Tools auto_awesome

Requirements: Screenshots

What Screenshots Do I Need?

To release your app, you need screenshots in an assortment of shapes and sizes, each showing your app in use on a number of devices. Here is an example of the requirements for releasing a multi-platform, universal app to the Apple App Store and Google Play Store and their official guidance:

iPhone 6.7": 1290x2796

iPhone 6.5": 1284x2778 or 1242x2688

iPhone 5.5": 1242x2208

iPad 12.9" (3rd+): 2048x2732

iPad 12.9" (2nd): 2048x2732

Watch: 410x502 or 396x484 or 368x448 or 312x390

Official docs open_in_new

Phone: Recommended: 16:9 (minimum 1920x1080px)

Tablet 7": Recommended: 16:9 (minimum 1920x1080px)

Tablet 10": Recommended: 16:9 (minimum 1920x1080px)

Wear OS: 384 x 384 with no frame / text

Official docs open_in_new

Tricky huh? We keep a handy FAQ up to date on these requirements for Apple (App Store Connect) and Android (Google Play Console) so bookmark these if you are ever looking to work out what is needed for a new or upcoming release.

So, where do I get screenshots of my app in these sizes?

Basic: The Bare Minimum

Capture Screenshots

Capturing screenshots directly from your device or simulator and uploading them is the most straightforward method. Device emulators and simulators are useful for developers working in virtual environments like Android Studio or Xcode, simulating various devices and resolutions. This method is quicker and doesn't incur any costs (if you have the equipment), making it suitable for those on a tight budget. You, or your team, will likely need to collect some images using this approach to complete any of the following approaches anyway.

Free: Immediate and cost-free

As Is: Exact representation of what users will see!

Basic: No creativity needed!

Sizes: You need to find, read and understand App Store requirements.

Boring: Lacks the marketing flair of customised graphics.

Ineffective: Does not leverage ASO strategies, which are crucial for discoverability and conversions in app stores.

Equipment: Requires lots of devices, or source code & software emulators to export requirements.

Best For: An internal app, not available to the public.

Complex: Graphic Design Software

Photoshop, Figma, Sketch

Graphic design software like Photoshop, Figma, and Sketch are powerful tools for those with design expertise. These programs offer extensive editing features, collaborative design, and UI/UX capabilities. Creating screenshots with these tools allows for custom, brand-centric designs but requires proficiency in the software, and significant time to cater to different device specs. Each screenshot must also be tailored to various device specifications manually.

Freedom: Total creative freedom.

Precision: Access to a plethora of editing tools for precision and detail.

Detailed: High-quality, detailed designs (if you have the know how).

Sizes: You need to find, read and understand App Store requirements.

Manual: Each size, layout, font, etc. all require manual configuration.

Expertise: Requires design expertise and significant time investment.

Time: Time-consuming, especially when updating screenshots for app changes.

Cost: Costs associated with software licenses and updates.

Best For: Designers, with time, skills and a love for the finer details

Pricey: Hiring Designers

Freelance Designers or Internal Teams

For a more hands-off approach, you can hire freelance graphic designers from platforms such as Upwork or Fiverr. These professionals can deliver bespoke designs that align with your app's branding. This method can save you time and effort if you lack design skills, but it's important to consider that hiring designers will incur higher costs and for that higher cost, a lot of designers use AppScreens anyway!

Saves your time: Saves time if you lack the ability or have resources to design in-house.

Professional: Professional-looking results

Hands-off: You can hand the entire process to someone else to deliver.

Challenging: You need to know what to ask for, to get what you need.

Expensive: Can be expensive, depending on the designer's rates and project complexity.

Liaison: Requires time for back-and-forth communication and revisions.

Updates: The designs will need updates when you update or the app store requirements change, you will need to find the same designer or keep the files safe.

Tools: Often, they are using AppScreens themselves.

Best For: People short of time, who want to hand the process off to someone else at a cost

Techy: Process Automation

Cloud Nine for CI/CD Efficiency

Automation tools like Fastlane can significantly streamline the creation and deployment of app store assets. Fastlane, specifically designed for mobile development, automates repetitive tasks across iOS and Android such as taking screenshots across different devices and languages. Fastlane offers some functionality to frame, add text, modify layout and more with frameit. It's especially useful for teams that regularly update their apps and need to generate new screenshots frequently.

The setup requires time, existing CI/CD processes and a lot of technical know-how, but once in place, it can save countless hours. We think Fastlane is a great tool.

Automation: Saves time in the long run by automating repetitive tasks.

Scale: Ideal for large-scale projects with multiple languages and device types.

Accuracy: Reduces human error, ensuring a consistent output every time.

Inefficient: May not be the most effective for small projects or single-app developers.

Setup: Initial setup involves a learning curve, CI/CD and coding requirements.

Customisation: Options are limited unless you delve into coding requiring additional scripts or plugins, adding complexity.

Tricky: Can be challenging to keep in sync with apps that have large changes, or new sections added regularly.

Best For: Large companies & teams, who release often, and want automated processes that save time in the long run

Savvy: Dedicated App Store Screenshot Creation Tools

Automated Screenshot Creation

Dedicated App Store screenshot creation tools like AppScreens are created to specifically address the needs of app developers and marketers when creating app store screenshots. They are designed to be intuitive and require minimal design skills, providing a variety of templates and features such as text and graphics integration, and the ability to export all required sizes simultaneously. This focused approach to ASO means you're not just getting screenshots; you're getting a marketing tool designed to help increase your app's visibility and appeal.

Easy: No design skills required to get professional results.

Auto Resize: Certain tools allow you to design once and export to all necessary formats and sizes, saving invaluable time.

Up-to-date: Designed to stay up-to-date with the latest app store requirements and trends.

Efficient: Time and cost-efficient compared to other advanced methods.

No Creativity: Feature tried and tested professional templates to get started with.

Free: Often have free tiers with certain limitations.

Cost: There can be a cost, to access all areas.

Limitations: There might be some limitations compared to fully-featured graphic design software.

Updates: You still need to collect screenshots and update these for major releases, unlike automated approaches.

Best For: Everyone to save time, money and keep those grey hairs at bay.

Try AppScreens now →    Read more about tools →

Assistance At All Levels

Conclusion

In the world of app development, a picture is worth a thousand downloads and your screenshots are the gateway to user engagement and conversions. Each method provides a solution but which do we think is best?

Basic capture methods are quick and free but lack the ASO impact. Graphic design software gives full creative control at the expense of time and resources. Hiring freelance designers offers custom designs but may become costly. Process automation is efficient but may not suit those without technical.

Dedicated app store screenshot creation tools like AppScreens, offer the most balanced solution, combining professional-quality design, up-to-date standards, time and cost efficiency, and ease of use. By opting for a dedicated tool, you ensure your app store presence is not only visually appealing but also optimised for performance, without the need for constant updates or design expertise.

Explore AppScreens for a streamlined, developer-focused approach to app store screenshots. Discover how AppScreens stands out from other dedicated app store screenshot tools and find out why it's the preferred choice for developers who value quality, efficiency, and effectiveness.