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iOS Downloading

Overview

Downloading your app to an iOS device requires an Apple Developer account. The process involves actions in your Thunkable project and your Apple Developer account. We recommend having each open in a separate browser tab so you can easily navigate between them.

Please note that while the images and instructions from the Apple Developer account are accurate at the time of this doc’s publishing, they may change slightly over time.

Register Your App with Apple

To register an App ID:

  1. Open your Apple Developer account page.

  2. Under the Certificates, IDs & Profiles heading, select Identifiers.

  3. Click the blue + icon to add a new identifier to your account.

  4. Choose App IDs from the list of options.

  5. Click Continue.

  6. Select App.

  7. Click Continue.

  8. On the Register an App ID screen, complete or take note of the following fields:

    1. Description - This is the name you want to give your app. It appears next to the app icon when downloaded on a user's device. It must be unique to the App Store and cannot use special characters such as @, &, *, "

    2. Bundle ID - This is also unique to your app, but not visible to your app users. Apple recommends reversing your domain name to create your bundle ID, i.e. com.yourDomainName.yourAppName to avoid conflicts with other apps.

      Uploading apps to the App Store requires an Explicit Bundle ID. Wildcard bundle IDs are no longer accepted.

    3. App ID Prefix (Team ID) - Record your App ID Prefix or Team ID. This automatically created, unique identifier is linked to your Apple Developer Program membership. The same ID can be used for every app you publish.

  9. Click Continue.

  10. Confirm that the details are correct.

  11. Click Register.

  12. The new App ID you created is included in your list of Identifiers. Click the app's name to review its Description, App ID Prefix (Team ID), or Bundle ID.

Start the Downloading Process in Thunkable

To begin the process:

  1. Open your Thunkable project.

  2. Click the Download icon.

  3. Select Download iOS from the drop-down menu.

  4. Click the Get Started button.

  5. Select iOS Provisioning Method: Manual Provisioning or Automated Provisioning

  6. Click the Next button.

Automated Provisioning:

To use automated provisioning, you must first configure your App Store Connect API credentials. Configure it by following the steps here: https://ai.thunkable.com/account/appstore

Register app

  1. Input your App Name, Team ID, and Bundle ID from when you completed these steps: Register Your App with Apple.

  1. Click Next.

Register Devices

You must specify registered devices in your Apple Developer account to create a provisioning profile for app testing and ad hoc distribution. This process is necessary because iOS devices have security mechanisms in place to ensure that only authorized apps are installed and run on them.

Removing a registered device from your account will continue to count against your device limit. At the start of your new membership year, Account Holders and Admins can remove listed devices and restore the available device count.

Register a Single Device

To register a single device to your Apple Developer account:

  1. Open your Apple Developer account page.

  2. Under the Certificates, IDs & Profiles heading, select Devices.

  3. Click the blue + icon to add a new device to your account.

  4. Ensure the iOS platform is selected.

  5. Give your device a name.

  6. Provide the device’s UDID. See here for instructions for locating your device's UDID: Locating Your Device’s UDID.

  7. Click Continue.

Register Multiple Devices

To register multiple devices to your Apple Developer account:

  1. Open your Apple Developer account page.

  2. Under the Certificates, IDs & Profiles heading, select Devices.

  3. Click the blue + icon to add a new device to your account.

  4. Under Register Multiple Devices, click Download sample files.

  5. Create your file containing the devices you wish to register. A maximum of 100 devices can be included in your file, and it may take a few minutes to process.

  6. Click Choose File.

  7. From your computer, select the file you created in step five above.

  8. Click Open.

  9. Click Continue.

Register Test Devices

Click the + Add Device button to add a new device to your account or the Sync from Apple button:

Locating Your Device’s UDID

Every iPhone, iPod touch and iPad has a unique identifier number associated with it, known as a UDID (Unique Device ID). This is either a 40-character alphanumeric ID on older devices or a 24-character ID (excluding hyphen) on newer devices, consisting of eight digits, a hyphen, and 16 alphanumeric characters.

Please see here for instructions on locating your device’s UDID: bjango: Finding your iPhone, iPod touch or iPad unique ID (UDID).

App Info

  • App icon: This app icon appears when a user downloads your app from the App Store. Recommended size: 1024x1024 px. This icon must not have any transparent pixels.

  • Version Number: The version number is visible to your users when they download a new version of your app. See here for additional information: Set a Version Number.

When the necessary fields are populated, click Send.

Manual Provisioning:

  1. ​Set Apple ID (Your App Store account's email, it does not need to be the same as your Thunkable account's email)

  2. ​Click the Next button.

​Register app​

  1. ​Input your App Name, Team ID, and Bundle ID from when you completed these steps: Register Your App with Apple.

  2. Click Next.

Create an iOS Distribution Certificate

Follow these instructions to create a distribution certificate: Create an iOS Distribution Certificate.

Create an Ad Hoc Provisioning Profile

Apple requires a provisioning profile to install an app on a device. You need to create and download an Ad Hoc provisioning profile in your Apple Developer account and then return to Thunkable to upload this file.

  1. Open your Apple Developer account page.

  2. Under the Certificates, IDs & Profiles heading, select Profiles.

  3. Click the blue + icon to add a new certificate to your account.

  4. Under the Distribution heading, select Ad Hoc.

  5. Click Continue.

  6. Select the App ID for the app you want to publish.

  7. Click Continue.

  8. Select the certificate you wish to include in this provisioning profile.

  9. Click Continue.

  10. Select the device(s) you wish to include in this provisioning profile.

  11. Click Continue

  12. Name your provisioning profile.

  13. Click Generate.

  14. Click Download to save the provisioning profile to your computer.

  15. Return to Thunkable.

  16. Click Upload Ad Hoc Provisioning Profile.

  17. From your computer, select the .mobileprovision file you just downloaded.

  18. Click Next.

Review App Information

  1. Review your app’s information in the modal provided. Detailed instructions are available here: Publish iOS: App Info.

  2. Click Submit.

  3. Congratulations! You will receive an email from Thunkable when your iOS app is available to download. This may take up to an hour.

Download iOS App

When you receive the email with the download link:

  1. Open the email on your iPhone or iPad.

  2. Click the Download App Project button.

  3. Select your preferred browser.

  4. Click Download.

  5. In the pop-up prompt, click Install.

  6. Open your iOS device's Settings.

  7. Navigate to Privacy & Security.

  8. Click Developer Mode.

  9. Toggle the Developer Mode switch to true.

  10. Click Restart.

  11. Once your device has restarted, click Turn On to enable Developer Mode.

  12. Enter your device’s passcode.

  13. Click on your app's icon to test the app.

If there are issues with your app build, you will receive an email outlining what you need to fix.

Troubleshooting

App Cannot be Built

If you receive an email saying that your app cannot be built, it may be the result of one of the following:

  • Ensure your app icon image:

    • does not have the same name as another project asset

    • is an image file

    • does not contain transparent pixels. Apple does not allow icons with transparent colors.

  • Ensure your App (Bundle) ID adheres to the following:

    • It is a series of short strings of text separated by periods (e.g. com.thunkable.creator.app).

    • It is all lowercase.

    • It begins with a letter.

  • Ensure your asset names only contain Roman alphabet characters (with no accents) and numbers.

    • Examples of asset names that could cause errors: image(1).jpg, imãge.jpg

    • Examples of asset names that won't cause errors: image1.jpg, image.jpg

  • We are having trouble with our build servers. Please try again in 30 minutes.

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