# How to make an App Store preview video in 2026

> The exact App Preview specs, the rules that get previews rejected, and three ways to make one, from the Simulator to an agent-driven take.

Source: https://showtake.app/guides/app-store-preview-video

An App Preview is the short video that autoplays on your App Store page. Only a small share of apps have one, so a good preview makes your page stand out. It also has the strictest rules of any video you will make.

## The specs

| Device class | Portrait | Landscape |
| --- | --- | --- |
| iPhone 6.9", 6.5", 6.3", 6.1" | 886×1920 | 1920×886 |
| iPhone 5.5" | 1080×1920 | 1920×1080 |
| iPad 13", 11" | 1200×1600 | 1600×1200 |
| Mac | 1920×1080 | - |

- **Length:** 15 to 30 seconds.
- **Frame rate:** 30 fps or lower.
- **Video:** H.264 (High profile, level 4.0 or lower, 10-12 Mbps) or ProRes 422 HQ, in .mov, .m4v or .mp4, at most 500 MB.
- **Audio:** stereo AAC, 256 kbps, 44.1 or 48 kHz. Add a silent track if you have no sound.
- **Up to three previews** per localisation; the first autoplays.

Check a file against all of this in the browser with our free [App Preview checker](https://showtake.app/tools/app-preview-checker). Apple's own page is "App preview specifications" in App Store Connect Help.

## The rules that cause rejections

1. **No device frames or hands.** Previews must be captures of the app itself (Guideline 2.3.4). A phone mockup around the screen is the most common rejection.
2. **Only your app.** No footage of other apps, the home screen or the real world unless the app shows it.
3. **No prices or "free".** Prices vary by country; leave them out of captions.
4. **Wrong size or frame rate.** A Simulator recording at 60 fps or at the device's native size is refused at upload.

## Three ways to make one

### 1. Record the Simulator yourself

`xcrun simctl io booted recordVideo preview.mov` records the booted simulator. Tap through the feature, then crop and scale to 886×1920 and re-encode at 30 fps with ffmpeg or an editor. It is free but slow: every retake starts from zero, and zooms or captions are manual work.

### 2. Use a screen recorder with an editor

Record the Simulator window, add captions and zooms in the editor, export at a custom size. Faster to polish, but you still drive the app by hand and must remember to turn off device frames for the preview.

### 3. Let your coding agent film it

With ShowTake, ask your agent: "Make an App Store preview of creating a note and sharing it." It builds the app, films a clean take in a fresh simulator at 9:41, zooms on each tap and exports a frameless 886×1920, 30 fps preview that the validator has already checked. Next release, replay the flow in every language you support.

## A good preview, step by step

- Open with the main feature in the first three seconds; the poster frame (around 5 s) is what people see before it plays.
- One story, six to eight steps, a short caption per step.
- Realistic data: use a [demo mode](https://showtake.app/docs/demo-mode) instead of an empty account.
- Film light mode first; add dark mode as a second preview if it matters to your users.