new·The score now tells you which way it movedA brain's exam only ever grows: its own material writes questions, and so does every question a real caller asked and did not get answered. The score is a percentage over that growing set, so a brain that learned more could post a smaller number — and this week three did. One of them answered two MORE questions than the week before and showed eighteen points less. Printed as a single percentage, that reads as decline to a reader and as punishment to anyone who contributes material.all news →
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App Store & Google Play Review · all subjects

Payments and IAP

6 notes, read out of this brain and free to use. Each one was extracted from a source and is re-checked against its exam.

When must I use In-App Purchase (3.1.1)?

Guideline 3.1.1 requires IAP for anything digital consumed inside the app: premium features, subscriptions, virtual currency, boosts, game items, ad removal, digital content unlocks. You may not use Stripe/PayPal/web checkout for these, and you may not even link or refer users to an external purchase method from inside the app except under the specific external-link rules below. Physical goods and services consumed outside the app (ride-hailing, food delivery, physical retail, real-person services like tutoring) must NOT use IAP — Apple rejects IAP for those. Multiplatform services can offer an account created elsewhere to log in, but the app must not steer iOS users to that external purchase path in a way that violates the steering rules.

Can I link out to my website for payment?

As of early 2026 the rules differ sharply by storefront. US: after the court ruling in Epic v. Apple enforcement, Apple permits US-storefront apps to include buttons/links to external purchase without the anti-steering rejection and without Apple commission — many apps now ship a plain external checkout link in the US. EU: the StoreKit External Purchase Link Entitlement (EU) and DMA alternative terms allow external links with disclosure sheets and a reduced commission structure. Elsewhere the classic anti-steering rule still applies: no in-app links or calls to action for external purchase of digital goods. This area changes fast — verify against the current 3.1.1 and 3.1.3 text and Apple's 'Apps on the App Store in the US/EU' pages before shipping.

What are reader apps allowed to do (3.1.3)?

Guideline 3.1.3(a) lets 'reader' apps — magazines, newspapers, books, audio, music, video, professional databases — allow a user to sign in to an account created outside the app to access content they already paid for, without offering IAP. The External Link Account Entitlement (apply in App Store Connect, per-region) additionally lets approved reader apps show one link to their website for account creation/management — with a required Apple disclosure sheet, and the link must open the website directly, not a purchase-optimized interstitial. The entitlement is reviewed manually and must be requested before submission. If your app sells content AND features beyond reading (e.g., community, courses), reviewers may deny reader status and require IAP for the digital parts.

My IAP was rejected — what do reviewers test?

Reviewers run the purchase flow in the sandbox: they tap buy on each IAP you marked 'ready to submit', verify the product is delivered, prices display correctly, and a Restore Purchases button exists and works (required for non-consumables and subscriptions; its absence is a classic 3.1.1/2.1 rejection). Common failures: IAP products not submitted together with the build (must be 'Ready to Submit' and attached to the version), price shown in the UI not matching App Store Connect, subscriptions without visible duration/price/terms before the pay button, and no functional restore path. Also: a paywall that blocks all usage of a paid app with no free trial explanation, or that continues billing after account deletion, draws scrutiny.

Google Play Payments policy — is it the same as Apple's?

Mostly parallel, but with differences developers trip on. Google Play's Payments policy requires Google Play Billing for digital goods, same as Apple's 3.1.1. But Google has formalized alternative billing programs in several regions (user choice billing in the EEA, India, Korea, and others — as of early 2026, check the current list) with a service-fee reduction of a few percentage points, not zero. Google is generally more tolerant of account sign-in for content bought elsewhere but still enforces anti-steering inside the app for covered regions. Physical goods must not use Play Billing, same as Apple. Enforcement is automated: Play scans APKs/AABs for non-Google billing SDKs and flags them pre-review.

Can I link from my paywall to buy on my website — Apple AND Google Play?

Apple: digital goods must use IAP (3.1.1), and an unauthorized external purchase link is a 3.1.1 rejection. The exceptions: reader apps (3.1.3(a)) with the External Link Account entitlement may link to account management/purchase on the web; in the US storefront the StoreKit External Purchase Link entitlement allows a link-out under its specific rules, and post-Epic injunction US apps may link to external purchase without the commission — this area is actively changing as of early 2026, verify the current entitlement terms. Google Play: the Payments policy requires Google Play billing for digital goods, but Play runs User Choice Billing (user picks Play billing or the developer's own billing at checkout, with a reduced service fee) and an alternative-offers program in some regions — enrollment is required, you cannot just add your own checkout link. In both stores an unapproved external checkout link is one of the fastest rejections there is.

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