How to post your iOS app on Reddit without getting removed

Most removed app posts break a rule the maker never read. Each subreddit sets its own, and they're specific: a day of the week, a karma threshold, a format for the post.

The good news is that the rules are written down. Here they are for the subreddits where an iOS app can be posted, as of October 2026. Reddit blocks automated reading of its rules pages, so each rule below comes from the subreddit's pinned moderator posts or the latest archived copy of its rules, linked and dated. The Launch Map keeps them alongside every other place to launch.

Rules here change often. Open the subreddit's own rules page before you post.

What does Reddit itself say about self-promotion?

Reddit's own rules ask you to participate authentically in communities you care about, and not to spam. Its Reddiquette guide puts a number on it: only 1 in every 10 of your submissions should be your own content.

Every subreddit below builds on that. Most removals come from ignoring it.

Why do app posts get removed?

Three reasons cover most of them:

• Wrong day. Some subreddits only allow app posts on one day of the week.
• No history. Many want you to have taken part, in that subreddit, before you promote anything.
• Wrong format. A bare link, a missing flair, no price, or a title in the wrong shape.

None of these are about your app. They're about following the house rules.

Which subreddits allow iOS app posts?

Two more fit particular moments: r/TestFlight before launch, for beta testers, and r/AppHookup later, for a real price drop.

What does r/iosapps ask for?

It's the closest thing to an audience of people looking for apps, and it has the most detailed rules.

• Karma first. You need 10 karma earned in r/iosapps before posting, and one app post per developer every 30 days, counted from your last one even if it was removed.
• Main feed or the monthly thread. To post in the main feed you also need either a trust signal (such as 20 or more ratings on the App Store) or full transparency: your real name, contact details, and a website with a privacy policy and terms. Everyone else posts in the monthly App Shelf thread pinned at the top of the subreddit, and that post counts toward your 30 days too.
• A fixed format. The pinned thread asks for an "ABC" post: the problem your app answers, what it does better than named competitors, and what it costs. Pricing and a flair are required.
• Links and honesty. Download links go to the App Store or TestFlight only, and you always say you made the app. Apps built on generative AI, or mostly built with AI, go in the monthly thread.

What do r/apple and r/iOSProgramming ask for?

r/apple gives developers Sundays, California time, as a self-post. Its wiki asks for at least 5 posts or comments in the past month that have nothing to do with your app, and no more than 10% of your activity can be self-promotion. A bare link to your app isn't allowed.

r/iOSProgramming is developers, not users. App posts go up on Saturdays, one app a year. An App Saturday post needs three sections: your tech stack, one development challenge and how you solved it, and an AI disclosure (self-built, AI-assisted, or mostly AI-generated).

What about r/IndieAppNews and r/iphone?

r/IndieAppNews is made for this. Its rules ask for app introductions and real updates, say content written on Reddit will probably work better than a link elsewhere, and ask for less than one post per app per day.

r/iphone asks developers to message the moderators first, and doesn't allow release notes as posts.

How much should you take part first?

Enough that your post isn't the first thing anyone sees from you. r/iosapps and r/apple put numbers on it; others just say activity is required.

In practice that means a few weeks of comments that help people, in the subreddit you want to post in. It's slower than posting today. It's also the difference between a post that stays up and one that's gone in ten minutes.

What should the post say?

• Say you made it, in the first lines. r/iosapps requires it, and everywhere else people respect it.
• Write it for Reddit. The problem, what's different and the price. Not your App Store description.
• Show it. A screenshot or two in the post.
• Ask something specific. "Would you use this for X or Y?" gets more replies than "thoughts?"
• Stay. Answer every comment, including the critical ones.

Where can you post a beta, or a deal?

Before launch, r/TestFlight is for recruiting testers: only your TestFlight link, your app's name as the title with no tags like [Tester], and the right flair.

After launch, r/AppHookup takes real price drops on paid apps, with a strict title format. Launch deals are at the moderators' discretion, and it doesn't take betas or apps that are always free, so it's for later.

What if your post gets removed?

Read the removal reason, if there is one. Don't repost straight away: in r/iosapps, even a removed post starts your 30-day wait again.

If you don't understand why, message the moderators once, politely, and ask. They run these places for free.