How to write App Store keywords that actually convert

Apple’s Keyword field is 100 characters. That’s it. It doesn’t show up anywhere users see, it only tells App Store search what to index your app for. And if you’re like most indie devs, you wasted at least 60 of those 100 characters the first time you filled it in.

Let’s fix that. Here’s how to make every character count.

What Apple already indexes (so you don’t have to repeat it)

Apple automatically indexes these fields — they count toward your search ranking without needing to appear in the Keywords field:

• App name (up to 30 chars)
• Subtitle (up to 30 chars)
• In-app purchase names (all of them)
• Developer / publisher name
• Category

Five character-wasting mistakes

1. Plurals

Apple handles singular/plural matching automatically. runner matches searches for “runners.” Don’t waste 2 characters adding the “s.”

2. Spaces between commas

Use run,track,marathon — not run, track, marathon. Those spaces cost you 4 characters here. For 100 chars, that’s 4% of your budget.

3. Your app’s own name

Already indexed. Remove it.

4. “app”, “free”, and category words

Users search for outcomes, not the word “app.” “Free” is handled by Apple’s filters. And your category is already indexed — putting “productivity” in your Keywords for a productivity app is pure waste.

5. Long tail phrases

Apple matches on individual keywords, not phrases. Adding fitness tracker for runnersis worse than adding fitness,tracker,runner — you’ve lost the flexibility of matching partial searches.

What to actually include

Pick words your target user would type into search. Three categories matter:

Category words they’d search (that aren’t your App Store category)

If you built a habit tracker, “habits” might be in your subtitle — but “streak”, “routine”, “discipline” probably aren’t. Those are Keyword field material.

Competitor-adjacent words

If Strava and Nike Run Club dominate your space, your users know those words. Adding them to Keywords can help you show up for comparison searches — but only if you’re actually a credible alternative. Apple is aggressive about demoting apps that don’t match the search.

Outcome words

What does the user want to achieve? Weight loss, better sleep, faster code, cleaner inbox. These are where high-intent users live.

How to tell if it’s working

Impressions and conversion rate in App Store Connect → Analytics. Specifically:

• Search impressions: how often you showed up in search results
• Conversion to page view: of those impressions, how many people tapped in
• Conversion to install: of those page views, how many installed

A keyword change that boosts impressions but tanks install-rate is pulling in the wrong users. A keyword change that boosts both is a winner. Look at the 30-day delta after any change.

Quick-start template

Here’s a working example for a hypothetical running app:

Note what’s NOT in that Keywords list: “running” (in subtitle), “app” (implicit), “PaceMaker” (already indexed), “elevation” or “playlists” (in subtitle).