The App Store Keyword Field: What to Put in 100 Characters
Apple gives every app one hidden field, up to 100 characters, that only Apple reads. It is not shown on your page, yet it decides which searches your app can appear for. Filling it well is one of the cheapest improvements you can make.
What the keyword field is
In App Store Connect, each language of your listing has a keywords box with a limit of 100 characters. People never see it. Apple uses it, together with your app name and subtitle, to decide which searches your app is eligible to rank for.
Each localization has its own field. If your app is available in several languages, each language's keyword field is another 100 characters of searchable space, which is why researching phrases per language pays off.
The rules that matter
- Separate keywords with commas, and do not use spaces after them. A space spends a character and adds nothing.
- Do not repeat words that are already in your app name or subtitle. Apple already reads those, so repeating a word wastes space.
- Use single words, not whole phrases. Apple combines words from your name, subtitle and keyword field into phrases. If "tournament" is in your name and "bracket" is in the field, you can be found for "tournament bracket".
- Singular and plural forms are generally treated as the same, so pick one rather than spending characters on both.
- Do not include other companies' names or trademarks. It breaks the App Store review guidelines and risks rejection.
- Skip filler such as "app" and "best". They are rarely what people are searching for and take up room.
How to choose what goes in
Start from your researched list. Remove words already in your name and subtitle. Then rank what is left by how well it fits your app, how many people search for it and how winnable it is. Fill the 100 characters from the top of that list.
Words that work in combination are the best use of the space, because each new word multiplies the phrases you can be found for. Two words that each appear in many real searches can cover dozens of phrases between them.
An example
Imagine an app called "Bracket Maker" with the subtitle "Run any tournament". The words bracket, maker, run, any and tournament are already covered, so the keyword field should not repeat them. A good field adds what is missing, for example:
league,knockout,fixtures,scoreboard,schedule,teams,pool,round,robin,chess,padel
That is 74 characters, so there is room for a few more words. The point is the shape: single words, commas, no spaces, nothing repeated.
Common mistakes
- Leaving the field half empty. Every unused character is a missed chance.
- Repeating your app name's words.
- Filling it with high-traffic words that do not describe your app. They bring the wrong people, and the App Store notices when people leave quickly.
- Writing it once and never touching it. Check your rankings after each change and swap out words that are not earning their place.
- Forgetting the other languages. Each one has its own field.
Changes need an app update
The keyword field is part of your app's metadata, so you change it with a new version in App Store Connect. Plan changes around releases, make one set of changes at a time, and note the date so you can see the effect in your rankings afterwards.
Check your work
After you ship, look at where you rank for the words you added. MetricNudge's Keywords tool tracks your rank for each phrase in each storefront every day and shows what moved, and its Optimize page scores how well a listing uses the keywords you track. If a word you added never moves your rankings, replace it next release. For the other two text fields Apple reads, see App Store name and subtitle.
Try it on your own app
MetricNudge tracks your keyword rankings in every storefront, shows your app's analytics, and writes a plain-words plan of what to do next. The free plan needs no card.