How do I transfer an app to another App Store developer account? A seller’s checklist

When you sell an iOS app, it moves from your developer account to the buyer’s through Apple’s official app transfer. You don’t hand over your developer account, and you don’t re-submit the app. The transfer is the last technical step of a sale. For the whole process, from numbers to payment, see how to sell an app.

What are Apple’s app transfer criteria?

An app can be transferred only if every one of Apple’s app transfer criteria is met:

• Both accounts are in good standing. Neither is pending or in the middle of a change, and both have accepted the latest Paid and Free Apps agreements. If you accepted the EU Alternative Terms Addendum, the buyer must accept it too.
• At least one version has been released on the App Store, and the app isn’t on pre-order anywhere.
• No version is in flight. Nothing can be Processing for Distribution, Waiting for Review, In Review, Accepted, Pending Developer Release or Pending Apple Release.
• Every In-App Purchase is Approved, Ready to Submit, Developer Removed from Sale or Rejected. Nothing is waiting for review.
• No duplicate product IDs. Your In-App Purchase product IDs can’t already exist in the buyer’s account.
• No Apple-hosted asset pack is in review.
• TestFlight is off, with builds, testers and test information removed, and Xcode Cloud data removed.
• It isn’t an Apple Arcade app, and it isn’t a sandboxed Mac app that shares an App Group container.

What should the seller do before starting the transfer?

Secure the payment first, then clear everything that would block or complicate the transfer.

1. Get paid safely first. The buyer funds escrow, then you start the transfer. See app sale escrow.
2. Get the buyer’s Apple Account email and Team ID. The Team ID is in their developer account’s membership details.
3. Ship any pending update, or wait. Nothing can be in review during the transfer, and while it’s pending you can’t edit metadata, pricing, availability or In-App Purchases.
4. Turn off TestFlight and remove builds and testers. Remove Xcode Cloud data.
5. Check product IDs with the buyer so none collide with IDs in their account.
6. Subscription apps: share the app-specific shared secret with the buyer before the transfer; they regenerate it afterwards. More in selling a subscription app.
7. Sign in with Apple: if the app uses it, generate transfer identifiers for your users as Apple describes, so they keep their accounts.
8. Download your records, such as sales reports and App Analytics exports, for your taxes. You lose App Analytics access after the transfer.

Most of this is also what a buyer checks earlier, in due diligence. My due diligence checklist covers that side.

How do I transfer an app to another developer account, step by step?

The seller requests the transfer, the buyer accepts it, and Apple processes it. Here are the steps from Apple’s initiate and accept pages:

1. Seller: the Account Holder signs in to App Store Connect, opens the app, clicks App Information (under General), scrolls to Additional Information and clicks Transfer App. Apple may ask for two-factor authentication. If a criterion isn’t met, App Store Connect tells you here.
2. Seller: enters the recipient’s Apple Account and Team ID, agrees to the terms and clicks Request Transfer. The app keeps its status and adds Pending App Transfer. Either side can cancel while it’s waiting for the recipient.
3. Buyer: the receiving Account Holder accepts the transfer in App Store Connect. If it isn’t accepted within 60 days, the request expires.
4. Apple: processes the transfer, which Apple says can take up to two business days.
5. Buyer: creates new provisioning profiles, then ships their first update under the new account.

What carries over in an app transfer, and what doesn’t?

The listing, ratings, reviews, users and bundle ID carry over; TestFlight, App Groups, Apple Pay merchant IDs and some Game Center features don’t. The details, from Apple’s overview of app transfer:

Based on Apple docs, checked September 2026.

If your app uses Game Center, plan for it: Apple removes the app from Game Center groups, merged leaderboards revert to their old IDs, and the buyer ships a build that uses those IDs.

What does the seller still need to do after the transfer?

Hand over everything that lives outside Apple, then confirm with escrow so the money is released.

• Hand over everything outside Apple: source code, backend, domain, analytics, crash reporting, support inbox and social accounts, whatever the agreement includes.
• Move third-party services such as RevenueCat, Firebase and ad networks to the buyer, or help them recreate them. RevenueCat transfers whole projects, not single apps.
• Confirm with escrow so the funds are released once the buyer confirms receipt.
• Stay reachable for the support period you agreed in the sale agreement.

Should I sell my developer account instead of transferring the app?

Almost never. Apple’s app transfer exists so apps can change hands without sharing accounts. Selling a whole developer account ties your identity and tax details to someone else’s business, and it’s risky for both sides. Transfer the app and keep your account.

Is the Google Play transfer different?

Yes. On Android you submit the request from Play Console with both accounts’ registration transaction IDs, and apps with in-app purchases are unpublished until the buyer publishes them again. The full walkthrough is in my guide to the Google Play app transfer.