A single one-star review can undo weeks of marketing spend, and it sits there, visible to every potential user who visits your App Store page. Unlike social media comments that scroll out of sight, app reviews stick around and directly influence whether someone downloads your app or moves on to a competitor.
This guide covers how to monitor and respond to reviews in App Store Connect, best practices for handling both positive and negative feedback, compliant ways to request ratings, and how to turn review data into actionable product insights.
Apple App Store review management is the process of monitoring, responding to, and analyzing user feedback submitted through the App Store. Developers can reply to reviews directly in App Store Connect, and each response appears publicly beneath the original review, visible to anyone browsing your app's page. This makes every reply an opportunity to show responsiveness and build trust with both the reviewer and potential users.
The practice covers apps across iOS, macOS, watchOS, and visionOS. While Apple provides native tools for viewing and responding to reviews, many teams also use third-party platforms to handle higher volumes or manage multiple apps from a single dashboard.
Review management isn't just about reading feedback. It involves tracking how sentiment shifts over time, spotting recurring complaints, and using what you learn to improve your product. When done well, it turns a reactive task into a proactive advantage.
Reviews affect more than how people feel about your app,they influence whether people find it in the first place, whether they download it, and what they tell you about their experience.
Apple's search algorithm factors in your average star rating and the volume of recent reviews when deciding where your app appears in search results. Apps with higher ratings and steady review activity tend to rank better for relevant keywords. Even a modest improvement in your average rating can shift your position noticeably.
Most users check star ratings before tapping "Get." Apps rated below four stars typically see fewer downloads than higher-rated competitors. Beyond the number, individual reviews matter too, potential users often scroll through recent feedback to see if reported issues have been fixed.
Reviews act as an always-on feedback channel. Users report bugs, request features, and share frustrations without needing to contact support. This unfiltered input often surfaces problems faster than internal testing or formal surveys, making reviews a useful early-warning system for product teams.
App Store Connect is Apple's official portal for developers. It's where you'll find all the tools for monitoring ratings, reading individual reviews, and responding to users.
To view your reviews, go to App Store Connect, select "My Apps," choose your app, and click "Ratings and Reviews" in the sidebar. From there, you can filter by app version, territory, and star rating.
Filtering is especially helpful after a new release. If you want to isolate feedback specific to your latest update, you can narrow the view to just that version and see what users are saying about recent changes.
Responding is straightforward: select a review, write your reply, and submit. Your response appears publicly beneath the original review. You can only submit one response per review, though you can edit it later if needed. Responses typically show up within 24 hours.
Keep in mind that only users with certain roles, Account Holder, Admin, or Customer Support ,can respond to reviews in App Store Connect.
When you release a new version, you have the option to reset your cumulative star rating. This can be useful after fixing a major bug that generated a wave of negative feedback.
However, resetting removes your existing rating entirely, so it's generally best reserved for significant updates where you're confident the new version will perform well. Individual reviews remain visible regardless of whether you reset.
How you respond matters as much as whether you respond. A thoughtful reply can turn a frustrated user into a loyal advocate, while a generic or defensive response often makes things worse.
Timeliness signals that you're paying attention. Aim to reply within a few days, especially for negative reviews. Keep your tone courteous and helpful, regardless of how the review is written; public responses reflect your brand's character to everyone who reads them.
Avoid copy-paste templates that feel robotic. Reference the specific issue or compliment mentioned in the review. Even small touches, like acknowledging the user's situation, make responses feel genuine rather than automated.
Acknowledge the concern first, then offer a path forward. If the issue is a known bug, let them know it's being addressed. If it requires more information, invite them to contact support. Defensiveness rarely helps; empathy usually does.
Positive reviews deserve recognition too. A brief, sincere thank-you reinforces goodwill and encourages continued engagement. You might also mention an upcoming feature or invite them to share the app with others.
When you've fixed an issue a user reported, circle back and let them know. This often prompts users to update their review, and it shows other readers that you act on feedback. It's one of the most effective ways to turn a negative review into a positive one.
Apple has strict rules about soliciting ratings. Violating them can result in app removal. The good news is that Apple provides an approved method that works well when used thoughtfully.
SKStoreReviewController is Apple's built-in prompt that displays the standard rating dialog within your app. It's the only approved method for requesting ratings in-app. The prompt is simple and familiar to users, which tends to increase completion rates compared to custom solutions.
Apple limits the prompt to three appearances per user per 365-day period. You can request the prompt at strategic moments, like after a user completes a task successfully, but Apple decides whether to actually display it. Triggering the request after positive experiences tends to yield better results.
Offering rewards, discounts, or any other incentive in exchange for ratings violates Apple's guidelines. This includes indirect incentives like unlocking features after a user rates the app. Stick to the standard prompt and let the quality of your app speak for itself.
Reading individual reviews is valuable, but patterns only emerge when you analyze feedback at scale. Review analysis helps you prioritize fixes, validate feature ideas, and track how sentiment shifts over time.
Categorize reviews by topic—performance, UI, pricing, specific features—to see what users mention most frequently. Manual tagging works for low volumes, but AI-powered tools can automate the process and surface trends you might otherwise miss.
Recurring requests often point to genuine product gaps. If dozens of users ask for the same feature, that's a signal worth paying attention to.
Track whether your overall tone is improving or declining, especially after releases. A spike in negative sentiment following an update signals that something went wrong. Conversely, improving sentiment after a fix confirms you're on the right track.
Tools with sentiment analysis can quantify shifts automatically, saving hours of manual review reading.
Reviews often surface technical problems before they appear in support tickets or crash reports. Setting up alerts for keywords like "crash," "freeze," "bug," or "error" helps you catch issues quickly. The faster you identify a problem, the faster you can address it—and the fewer negative reviews accumulate.
Tip: For teams managing reviews alongside high-volume social engagement, platforms like BrandBastion can centralize sentiment analysis and alert workflows across the App Store and social channels, reducing time spent switching between tools.
This is one of the most common questions developers ask. The answer is straightforward: no, developers cannot delete user reviews.
Apple does not give developers the ability to remove or edit reviews. Only Apple can take action on reviews that violate its guidelines. This policy protects the integrity of the review system and ensures users can trust that feedback is authentic.
If a review contains spam, offensive content, or appears to be fake, you can report it through App Store Connect using the "Report a Concern" option. Apple reviews these reports and removes content that violates their guidelines.
Simply disagreeing with a review or finding it unfair is not grounds for removal—only policy violations qualify. Examples of reportable content include:
Reviews are more than a metric to monitor; they're a direct line to your users and a public reflection of how you treat them. Brands that respond thoughtfully, analyze feedback systematically, and act on what they learn build stronger products and deeper user trust.
The most effective teams treat review management as an ongoing practice rather than a periodic task. They set up alerts, establish response workflows, and use insights to inform roadmap decisions. Over time, this approach compounds: better responses lead to better reviews, which lead to better rankings and more downloads.