yourapp.lovable.appWhy was my app rejected under Guideline 4.2?
Because the reviewer saw a website inside an app. You hit Submit, and a day or two later the note cites Guideline 4.2. AI builders make web apps, and the quickest route into the store is a wrapper that loads your site. That route often ends here.
“Your app should include features, content, and UI that elevate it beyond a repackaged website.”
What gives it away: pages that reload like a browser, no native back gesture, a cookie banner or website footer, sign-in that bounces through a web page, and nothing the website doesn't already do.
The fix: native screens and navigation (a tab bar, stack navigation, back gestures), no web leftovers, and phone features where they fit your product, such as push notifications, the camera or the share sheet. If a wrapper keeps coming back with 4.2, converting the app to React Native and Expo removes the cause. The Guideline 4.2 guide walks through it step by step.
What does Guideline 2.1 App Completeness mean?
It means Apple wants a finished app it can fully test. Guideline 2.1(a) asks for "final versions with all necessary metadata and fully functional URLs", tested on a device, with demo account details if the app has a login. Apple says it will reject "binaries that crash or exhibit obvious technical problems".
AI-built apps hit it in four ways:
- A crash on launch or on a key screen, often because an environment variable or API key only exists in the web preview.
- Placeholder content: "Lorem ipsum", sample data, "Welcome to your app" or empty screens the builder generated.
- Broken links: a support URL or privacy policy URL that returns a 404, or buttons that go nowhere.
- No demo account, or one that has expired, so the reviewer can't get past the sign-in screen.
The fix: install the build on a real iPhone and tap through every screen. Remove every placeholder, check every URL in the app and the listing, and keep your backend live during review. Then fill in Sign-in required in the App Review Information section of App Store Connect. Apple says the demo account "must not expire", and details for any extra accounts go in the Notes field.
Why was my app rejected for account deletion?
Because the app lets people create an account and gives them no way to delete it inside the app. Guideline 5.1.1(v) says: "If your app supports account creation, you must also offer account deletion within the app." Builders add sign-up and rarely add deletion.
The fix: add a Delete account option in settings that deletes the account and its personal data on the server, with one confirmation step. Deactivating the account isn't enough. The account deletion guide covers what Apple accepts, the Supabase setup most builders use and what to reply.
Why did Apple reject my app as spam under 4.3?
Because it looks like apps already in the store, or like a copy of one of yours. Guideline 4.3(a) says "Don't create multiple Bundle IDs of the same app", and 4.3(b) says "Don't submit apps that are indistinguishable from what's already widely available."
AI-built apps arrive with the builder's default design, a name that only describes the category and template screenshots, so the reviewer can't see what makes yours different. The fix: one app per product, your own name, icon and colours, no template leftovers, and the feature that sets you apart on the first screens. Never resubmit it under a new Bundle ID. The Guideline 4.3 guide has the full checklist.
Why was my app rejected for its privacy policy or permissions?
Because something in the app's privacy setup is missing or doesn't match what the app does. Guideline 5.1.1(i) says every app must link to its privacy policy "in the App Store Connect metadata field and within the app in an easily accessible manner". Three gaps come up again and again:
- No privacy policy link inside the app, or a link that's broken. The policy must say what data the app collects, how it's used, how long it's kept and how people can ask for deletion.
- Permission prompts without a clear reason. Guideline 5.1.1(ii) says: "Ensure your purpose strings clearly and completely describe your use of the data." A camera prompt that just says "This app needs the camera" is a common miss.
- Privacy labels that don't match the app. The privacy details in App Store Connect must cover what you and any third-party SDKs collect, such as analytics, crash reporting or ad tools.
The fix: publish a real privacy policy, link it from the app's settings and from App Store Connect, and write each purpose string as a plain sentence that says what the feature does with the data ("Take a photo of your receipt to add it to an expense"). Then go through every SDK in the app and update the privacy details to match. Apple says you can change those answers at any time without submitting an update.
What does Guideline 2.3 Accurate Metadata mean?
It means your listing must show the app people will actually get. Guideline 2.3 asks that your description, screenshots and previews "accurately reflect the app's core experience".
- Screenshots of the web version, a mock-up or features the app doesn't have. Guideline 2.3.3 says screenshots "should show the app in use, and not merely the title art, login page, or splash screen".
- A name or subtitle stuffed with keywords or another app's name. Guideline 2.3.7 limits names to 30 characters and asks for keywords that accurately describe your app.
- Review notes that are too vague. Guideline 2.3.1(a) says new features must be described "with specificity" in the Notes for Review, and generic descriptions are rejected.
The fix: take the screenshots from the build you're submitting, with realistic data, and rewrite the name, subtitle and description to match what's in it. The publishing guide has Apple's screenshot sizes.
Common App Store rejection reasons at a glance
- What the reviewer saw
- A website inside an app: browser-style pages, web leftovers, nothing app-like
- The fix
- Native screens and navigation, no web leftovers, phone features where they fit
- What the reviewer saw
- A crash, placeholder content, broken links or a sign-in they couldn't get past
- The fix
- Test on a device, remove placeholders, fix URLs, add a demo account that doesn't expire
- What the reviewer saw
- Sign-up with no way to delete the account in the app
- The fix
- A Delete account option in settings that deletes the account and its data
- What the reviewer saw
- An app that looks like many others, or a duplicate of one of yours
- The fix
- One app, your own name, icon and design, and a clear difference on the first screens
- What the reviewer saw
- No in-app privacy policy, vague permission prompts or privacy labels that miss data
- The fix
- Link the policy in the app and App Store Connect, clear purpose strings, accurate privacy details
- What the reviewer saw
- Screenshots, a name or a description that don't match the app
- The fix
- Screenshots from the real build and a listing that describes what's in it
| Guideline | What the reviewer saw | The fix |
|---|---|---|
| 4.2 Minimum Functionality | A website inside an app: browser-style pages, web leftovers, nothing app-like | Native screens and navigation, no web leftovers, phone features where they fit |
| 2.1 App Completeness | A crash, placeholder content, broken links or a sign-in they couldn't get past | Test on a device, remove placeholders, fix URLs, add a demo account that doesn't expire |
| 5.1.1(v) Account Deletion | Sign-up with no way to delete the account in the app | A Delete account option in settings that deletes the account and its data |
| 4.3 Spam | An app that looks like many others, or a duplicate of one of yours | One app, your own name, icon and design, and a clear difference on the first screens |
| 5.1.1 Privacy | No in-app privacy policy, vague permission prompts or privacy labels that miss data | Link the policy in the app and App Store Connect, clear purpose strings, accurate privacy details |
| 2.3 Accurate Metadata | Screenshots, a name or a description that don't match the app | Screenshots from the real build and a listing that describes what's in it |
To see which of these your app would hit, run the free App Store check.
What should I do after my app is rejected?
Read the note, fix every issue it lists, reply in App Store Connect and resubmit the same app. Apple says rejection details include "any specific App Review Guidelines that your submission didn't follow", and you can correspond with App Review in the App Review section of the app's page before resubmitting.
- Read the whole note. It names each guideline the reviewer flagged.
- Fix everything it lists, not just the first item.
- Check the other reasons in the table above too, since apps rejected for one are often rejected for another.
- Reply in App Store Connect with what changed and where to see it, for example "Account deletion is in Settings, then Delete account."
- Resubmit the same app. Apple typically reviews at least 50% of submissions in under 24 hours and 90% in under 48 hours.
If you believe the reviewer misunderstood your app or treated you unfairly, 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 first.
Most of these fixes you can do yourself in a day. The exception is 4.2 on a wrapped site, where the fix is rebuilding the screens. That's the work we do, and rejection help and pricing explain how. To compare every route first, see the best ways to publish a vibe-coded app.
We take your AI-built app the last mile.
We rebuild web apps made with Lovable, Bolt.new, Base44, v0, Replit and others as native React Native and Expo apps, so the 4.2 cause is gone before review. We add account deletion, write the privacy policy link, purpose strings and privacy details, set up the demo account and listing, then submit, reply to App Review and resubmit until it's approved. If your app follows the store policies and we can't get it approved, you get a full refund.
