Guide for app portfolios
Both stores now use AI to describe your app to buyers.
Last checked:
What you control
2of 10features give you direct control
Direct
Partial
Indirect
None described
Select a feature to see what to do first.
App Store App Store Tags
Do first: Name the main use cases in the en-US subtitle, description and screenshot captions. Check tags after each release.
Details in the table
The short answer
Apple and Google now use AI to read your listing and reviews, and show buyers the result next to your own copy. Admiral Media’s map below shows which of the 10 features you control and what to change first.
On 4 Nov 2026
App Store
Google Play
You control
For an app in many markets, the US listing and English reviews carry the most weight.
Last checked Every platform fact links to the Apple or Google page it comes from.
Feature table
Five are on the App Store, four on Google Play and one in the Gemini app. Only two give you direct control.
Your control: Direct
Your control: Partial
Your control: Indirect
Your control: None described
App StoreJun 2025
Your control: Partial
Buyers see
Short tags next to categories, in search results and on the product page. Tapping one opens a curated collection.
Do first
Name the main use cases in the en-US subtitle, description and screenshot captions. Check tags after each release.
App StoreiOS 18.4
Your control: Indirect
Buyers see
A short AI paragraph above the reviews that sums up what reviewers say. Apple refreshes it regularly.
Do first
Fix what reviewers repeat, reply in the local language and read the summary in all 9 storefronts.
App StoreOct 2025
Your control: Direct
Buyers see
A custom product page instead of your default page when they search a keyword you assigned.
Do first
Give each keyword group in each core market a page whose screenshots match that search.
Apple AdsDec 2025
Your control: Partial
Buyers see
Ads at the top of search results and further down the page.
Do first
Run an exact match brand campaign with Search Match off in core markets and track first-position share.
App StoreJun 2026
Your control: None described
Buyers see
Tailored collections on the Apps, Games and Search tabs, each with a note on why an app is recommended.
Do first
Record how your apps are described in the US so you notice when it changes.
Google PlayDec 2025
Your control: Indirect
Buyers see
A chat in Play search that answers questions, compares apps side by side and cites user reviews.
Do first
Keep descriptions, tags, events and preview videos current in Play Console in every language you sell in.
Google PlayDec 2024
Your control: Indirect
Buyers see
A paragraph summary and topic chips on the app page, built from English reviews.
Do first
Reply to reviews in each language and fix the themes Play Console lists.
Google PlayMay 2024
Your control: Indirect
Buyers see
AI-written questions, answers and highlights about an app in search results and on the app page.
Do first
Make sure the description answers what buyers ask: subscription terms, offline use, devices.
Gemini appMay 2026
Your control: Indirect
Buyers see
App recommendations inside Gemini conversations, matched to a need the user describes.
Do first
Describe key features in plain words in each listing and check media and deep links.
Google PlayDec 2024
Your control: Direct
Buyers see
A listing written for the search term they used.
Do first
Build listings for the top keyword groups per market and have a native speaker check each draft.
See which of these features matter most for your apps and markets.
4.9 on Clutch from 48 reviews · 150+ brands since 2019
Dates are launch or announcement dates from the linked Apple and Google pages, read 4 Nov 2026. Version numbers refer to the Google Play Store app.
Official and observed
Apple and Google say AI builds tags, review summaries and Ask Play answers from your listing and reviews.
Official
Observation
Practitioners report that tags tend to echo words in the subtitle and the first lines of the description. Apple has not confirmed this.
Official
Observation
A fixed bug can stay in a review summary for a while, because the summary follows the reviews, not your release notes.
Official
Observation
Answers change with the wording of the question and with follow-ups, so one check is a sample, not a ranking.
Observations come from day-to-day listing work, not platform statements. Test them in your own markets before you act on them at scale.
App Store
App Store work for AI starts with plain en-US text and review care in each market.
Apple sets tags by default from en-US metadata only, so the US listing decides your tags even for a global app.
Name the main use cases plainly in the subtitle and description, and keep screenshot captions as short readable sentences. Apple names the description, category and even screenshots as the information tags draw on.
Sources: App Store Connect Help: Tags · WWDC25 session 328
Each storefront has its own ratings and its own summary, so fix what reviewers repeat in each one.
Reply in the local language, and keep in mind that only one developer response shows per review.
Sources: Apple: Ratings and reviews · App Store Connect Help: Reviews
A page with keywords assigned shows in search instead of your default page, so match its screenshots to that search.
Our guide, linked below, explains why these pages are not A/B tests and how to read them.
Sources: Apple Developer News, 29 Oct 2025 · App Store Connect Help: Custom pages
Apple shows an event card in search to people who downloaded your app before, and to anyone who searches for the event.
New users see your screenshots. Only 24% of 1,000 top US App Store listings ran an in-app event on 29 Sep 2026, against 52% of games. Use events to win back lapsed users and to appear on the Today, Games and Apps tabs.
Sources: Apple: In-app events · Admiral US listings study, 29 Sep 2026
Run a brand campaign on exact match with Search Match off in each core market.
Apple Ads runs ads at the top of search results and further down the page, and you cannot select or bid for a position. Track Impression Share for the first ad position.
Sources: Apple Ads Help: Search results ads · Apple Ads: Campaign structure · Apple Ads Help: Reporting
Since 5 Oct 2026 you can add image and video creative assets to the product page header and to search results.
Apple says they work with custom product pages, so plan them per market alongside those pages.
Sources: Apple Developer News, 5 Oct 2026 · Apple Newsroom, 8 Jun 2026
Google Play
Play work for AI comes down to fresh listings in every language, review care and a few direct tests.
Update descriptions, tags and events in Play Console regularly, as Google's 13 Oct 2026 checklist asks, in every language you sell in.
Google has not published a country or language list for Ask Play, so check it in each core market rather than assuming.
If subscription terms, offline use or supported devices are missing from the description, an AI answer has less to quote.
Fix the themes Play Console lists and reply in the reviewer's language.
Since 12 Oct 2026 (v53.6), Ask Play also gives summarized insights and citations from real user reviews.
Sources: Play Console Help: Review summaries · Play Store release notes
Target custom store listings by country, search keyword and other signals.
Play Console can draft descriptions with Gemini from your default listing and chosen search terms; you insert, edit or discard them. Have a native speaker check every draft.
Sources: Play Console Help: Custom store listings · Android Developers Blog, 19 May 2026
Localized experiments can test the icon, feature graphic, screenshots and descriptions, up to five at the same time.
Use them to test the wording AI answers draw on.
Source: Play Console Help: Experiments
Ask Gemini the questions your buyers ask and note which apps it names.
Google's checklist asks for high-resolution media, working deep links and fresh listing content.
Our store data
In localization, missing subtitles, rating gaps and missing preview videos, based on two Admiral studies of App Store data.
151 of the 271 had a translated description but the base screenshot set. Text that AI reads is often localized; screenshot captions are often not.
Portfolio study, 2 Nov 2026Samples
Portfolio localization study: public App Store data collected 2 Nov 2026. 25 portfolios, 37 developer accounts, 150 top apps, 14 storefronts. Not fully localized means the base screenshot set or a description left in the base language where the app lists the storefront language.
State of App Store Listings 2026: 1,000 top US App Store listings (top 50 in 20 categories), data collected 29 Sep 2026.
Running 2 or more apps in 10 or more store markets? Get one plan for every market.
4.9 on Clutch from 48 reviews · 150+ brands since 2019
Monitoring
Most checks run monthly; tags also after each en-US metadata change and localization gaps each quarter.
| Check | After a change | Monthly | Each quarter |
|---|---|---|---|
| App Store TagsUS product page, and App Store Connect under App Information | Each en-US metadata change | Yes | No |
| Apple review summariesUS, UK, Canada, Australia, India, Ireland, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa | Each major release | Yes | No |
| Ratings by storefrontApp Store Connect and Play Console, per countryFlag gaps of 0.5 stars or more | No | Yes | No |
| Ask Play and Gemini answersYour main category questions and app comparisons, per core marketSame questions each time | No | Yes | No |
| Play review themesPlay Console review summaries | No | Yes | No |
| Custom pages and listingsApp Analytics by custom product page, Play Console by custom store listing | No | Yes | No |
| Localization gapsEvery storefront where the app supports the language | No | No | Yes |
A suggested rota, not a platform rule. Keep the same questions and the same devices each month so changes are comparable.
Portfolio checklist
Each check is tied to one feature. Tick what is true today. Nothing is sent anywhere.
0 of 10 in place
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Still open
4.9 on Clutch from 48 reviews · 150+ brands since 2019
Measuring impact
With a market test: change 2 or 3 markets, leave matched markets alone and compare organic installs.
On the App Store, the search source in App Store Connect includes downloads from search results ads, so separate paid search before you credit the listing. Source: App Store Connect Help: Sources
How ASO incrementality is measuredPublished client results
Each figure comes from a published Admiral case study. They are past results for those apps, not a forecast.
LowerProperty appCustom product pagesApple Ads−43%cost per acquisitionAgainst the default page, same ad groups, 4 weeksRead the ImmoScout24 case study 
HigherBrain training appKorean App Store+93%App Store search downloadsBefore and after localized metadata in KoreaRead the NeuroNation case study 
LowerMeditation appApple AdsNew markets−38%cost per install+54% click-through rateRead the Petit BamBou case study Questions
Small team with one app? Check one listing first with the ASO Checker.
Start with the en-US subtitle, description and screenshot captions, because Apple builds App Store Tags from en-US metadata and shows them only in the US. Then work the reviews: fix what people repeat and reply in the reviewer's language, because Apple and Google both summarize reviews with AI. Keep every Play listing language current, since Google says Ask Play summarizes your listing and reviews. Recheck after each release.
On 4 Nov 2026, Apple showed App Store Tags only in the US App Store, built from en-US metadata. AI review summaries run on iOS 18.4 or later in the US plus 8 English-language storefronts: Australia, Canada, India, Ireland, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa and the UK. Apple's developer pages list no other storefronts, so track each market on its own.
You can deselect App Store Tags in App Store Connect under App Information, but you cannot write your own, and Apple warns that deselecting all tags may affect discoverability. You cannot edit a review summary. You can report a concern about it in App Store Connect or on the App Store, and you can reply to individual reviews.
Google says that when people compare apps, Ask Play summarizes your store listing and user reviews (Android Developers Blog, 13 Oct 2026). Since 12 Oct 2026 it also cites real user reviews. Google has not published ranking rules or a country list for Ask Play, so keep the description, tags and events current in every language you sell in.
Run an exact match brand campaign with Search Match off in each core market and track Impression Share for the first ad position every week, because Apple Ads now shows ads at the top of search results and further down, and you cannot select or bid for a position. Then pause brand ads in one market for 2 to 4 weeks to see how many installs they add.
Yes, because both can now be matched to search keywords: since 29 Oct 2025 Apple lets you assign keywords to up to 70 custom product pages per app, and Google Play lets you target up to 50 custom store listings by keyword. In an August 2022 test, ImmoScout24 saw −43% cost per acquisition with a custom product page against the default page, same Apple Ads ad groups, 4 weeks.
Ship the change in 2 or 3 test markets, keep matched control markets unchanged and compare organic installs over the same weeks. On the App Store, the search source in App Store Connect includes downloads from search results ads, so check paid search separately before you credit the listing.
For one app in one or two markets, start with the ASO Checker, which reads a public App Store listing and flags the gaps. A portfolio review fits teams with 2 or more apps in 10 or more store markets, or one app in 20 or more, where the same fix repeats across many listings.
Sources
Apple and Google pages used on this page, with the date each was published or last updated.
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