App rejected under Apple Guideline 4.3 (Spam): how to fix it

What does Apple Guideline 4.3 say?

You hit Submit, wait two days, and the note in App Store Connect says Guideline 4.3, Design, Spam. Nothing in your app is broken. Apple is saying it looks like an app the store already has, or like a copy of one of yours. The rule has two parts:

4.3(b) names categories that are already crowded, such as dating, flashlight, sound effects, wallpaper, simple timers and fortune telling, and says Apple won't take new ones unless they offer a meaningfully different or improved experience. Repeated spam submissions can get you removed from the Apple Developer Program, so this is not a rejection to keep resubmitting unchanged.

4.3(a) or 4.3(b): which one did you get?

Read which letter the note cites, because the fix is different. Apps that hit 4.3 often get a related guideline in the same review, so check for these too:

The 4.2.6 row matters for publishing services: Apple wants an app from a template submitted by whoever owns its content. That is why the app should be listed in your own Apple Developer account, under your name or company.

Why do apps built with Lovable, Bolt and Base44 get 4.3?

Because the builder gives thousands of people the same starting point, and the reviewer has seen it before. A habit tracker, a fitness log or an AI chat app made in an afternoon tends to arrive with the same things:

• The builder's default design: the same cards, buttons, fonts and empty states as every other app made with it.
• A name and subtitle that only describe the category, such as "AI Fitness Coach: Track your workouts".
• Screenshots of the template's sample data, or of screens the app doesn't really have.
• A description written by the builder, which reads like every other one it writes.
• A wrapper around the website that shares its native shell with every other app from the same wrapper service.
• A category Apple calls saturated, with nothing that sets it apart.

None of this means your idea is spam. It means the version the reviewer saw doesn't show what makes it yours. Wrapped web apps often get a Guideline 4.2 rejection alongside 4.3, for looking like a website.

How to fix a 4.3 rejection

1. If you got 4.3(a): keep one app. Remove the duplicates from App Store Connect and put the variants inside it, as settings, locations or in-app purchases.
2. Give the app its own identity: a specific name (Apple allows 30 characters), your own icon and splash, and colours and type that aren't the builder's defaults.
3. Replace every template leftover: sample data, placeholder images, "Welcome to your app" text and default onboarding screens.
4. Make the difference real. Add the one thing your app does that the others in its category don't, and put it on the first screens a reviewer sees.
5. Retake the screenshots from the app itself, showing those screens with realistic data, and rewrite the description and keywords in your own words.
6. If the app is a wrapped website, rebuild it with native screens. A shared wrapper shell looks the same to review whatever site is inside it.
7. Resubmit the same app with a reply that explains what changed.

Don't resubmit it as a new app under another Bundle ID or a second developer account. That is exactly what 4.3(a) describes, and repeated attempts are what Apple says can lead to removal from the program.

What to write back to App Review, and when to appeal

Reply in App Store Connect when you resubmit. Reviewers decide 4.3 by comparing your app with others, so tell them what to compare:

• Who the app is for and what it does that similar apps don't, in two or three sentences.
• Where to see it: "Open the app, sign in with the demo account, then tap Plan to see the weekly programme it builds."
• What you changed since the rejection: name, icon, screens and features.
• That this is your only app with this content, if they suspect duplicates.
• A demo account in the App Review information, so the reviewer can reach the parts that are different (Guideline 2.1).

If you believe the reviewer misunderstood the app, you can appeal to the App Review Board from Apple's App Review page. Apple asks for specific reasons the app complies, one appeal per rejected submission, and answers to any open questions from review first. Appeals work when the app really is different and the reviewer missed it; they don't fix an app that looks like a template.

Does Google Play reject apps for spam too?

Yes. Google Play's Spam policy doesn't allow apps that "merely provide the same experience as other apps already on Google Play". Its examples include copying another app's content without adding value, and publishing several apps with highly similar functionality, content and user experience.

The fix is the same as for Apple: one app per product, with its own name, icon, listing and features. For a new personal Play account, keep the 12-tester closed test in mind too: the testers have to try a real version of the app, not a placeholder.

Can you fix a 4.3 rejection yourself?

Often, yes. If it was 4.3(a), deleting the duplicates and resubmitting one app can be done in an afternoon. If it was 4.3(b) and your app already has something unique, new screenshots, a better name and a clear reply are often enough.

It gets harder when the app is a wrapped website or still looks like the builder's template, because then the fix is a real rebuild of the screens. That is the work we do: we turn the web app into a native React Native and Expo app with its own look, then handle the listing and the review replies. The launch checklist covers everything else reviewers check.