# How to fill the App Store 100-character keyword field (with Apple's rules)

> Apple's rules for the App Store keyword field, name and subtitle, plus a step-by-step method to use all 100 characters without duplicates or rejected terms.

Published 2026-11-02 by ODEL.

The App Store keyword field holds up to 100 characters of single words or short phrases, separated by commas with no spaces after the commas. Fill it with terms that are not already in your app name, subtitle or category, use singular forms only, and never include competitor names. The rest of this guide shows how to get the most out of those 100 characters, using Apple's own documentation for every rule.

## The rules, from Apple

These come from Apple's [App Store search guidance](https://developer.apple.com/app-store/search/) and [App Store Connect Help](https://developer.apple.com/help/app-store-connect/reference/app-information/platform-version-information/):

- **Length:** keywords are limited to 100 characters total (App Store Connect describes it as 100 bytes, which matters for languages with multi-byte characters).
- **Format:** separate terms with commas and no spaces, for example `Property,House,Real Estate`. Spaces inside a phrase are fine.
- **No repeats:** don't repeat words already in your app name, subtitle or category. Your app is already searchable by its name and company name.
- **No plurals of words you already have:** Apple treats "climb" and "climbs" as duplicates.
- **Skip filler:** generic words such as "app" or "game" and filler words such as "the" and "to" add nothing.
- **Not allowed:** names of other apps or companies, trademarked terms or celebrity names you are not authorized to use, irrelevant terms and offensive terms. Apple says improper keywords are a common reason for rejection.
- **Promotional text does not count:** it does not affect search ranking, so don't stuff keywords there.

The app name can be 2 to 30 characters and the subtitle up to 30 characters ([App Store Connect Help](https://developer.apple.com/help/app-store-connect/reference/app-information/app-information)). Together with the keyword field, that is about 160 characters of searchable text per localization.

## Step 1: Decide what goes in the name and subtitle

The name and subtitle are visible to shoppers and count for search, so they hold your most important phrase. If your brand is unknown, a descriptive name such as "Pill Reminder - Brand" often works better than the brand alone. Write the subtitle as a readable benefit that also contains your second-most important phrase.

## Step 2: List candidate words, not phrases

The keyword field works best as a pool of words. Break your target phrases into words: "meal planner grocery list" becomes `meal`, `planner`, `grocery`, `list`. Remove every word that already appears in the name, subtitle or category.

## Step 3: Remove duplicates and plurals

Keep one form of each word. If the name says "Recipe", don't add `recipes`. Drop "app", "free", "best" and other generic words.

## Step 4: Order and pack

Put the most important words first so they survive if you need to cut. Write them comma-separated with no spaces:

`grocery,list,shopping,dinner,weekly,family,cook,budget,batch,prep`

Count the characters. If you have room left, add the next-best relevant word; if you are over, cut from the end. Aim to use 95 to 100 characters with real terms rather than padding with weak ones.

## Step 5: Repeat for each localization

Every localization has its own name, subtitle and keyword field. Write them in the local language from local research; a word-for-word translation of your English list often misses how people search in that market.

## Step 6: Validate before you submit

Before saving in App Store Connect, check:

1. Character count is 100 or less for every locale.
2. No word repeats the name, subtitle or another keyword.
3. No competitor or trademarked names.
4. No spaces after commas.

Then track rankings after the update is live and replace terms that bring nothing.

## Doing it by hand

A spreadsheet works: one column per locale, a `LEN()` formula for the character count and a quick search for repeated words. App Store Connect itself rejects text that is too long, but it will not warn you about duplicates or wasted words.

## Where Appalize fits

[Appalize](/project/appalize), the ASO workspace we make, has an ASO editor that validates metadata, including character limits and duplicate keywords, and supports applying it, next to its keyword research and competitor tracking. Through its REST API and MCP access, an AI assistant that supports MCP can draft and check metadata in your workspace. Appalize has a Free plan (1 app, 5 keywords, 3 countries) and paid plans from $9.99/month (appalize.com/pricing, Nov 2026).

New to keyword research? Start with [how to do App Store keyword research as an indie developer](/blog/how-to-do-app-store-keyword-research-as-an-indie-developer).