How to Get More App Ratings (Within the Store Rules)

When should you show the rating prompt?

At a happy moment, to a user who keeps coming back. I call this Success-State Rating Prompts: ask for ratings at happy moments, only from returning users, with the official store prompt and no question before it.

1. Only show it to returning users, for example after three sessions and two core actions.
2. Trigger it after a success moment, never at app launch.
3. Show the official Apple or Google prompt directly. Ask no question before it.
4. Keep a feedback link always available in settings or help, for everyone.
5. Never filter out unhappy users. Google Play forbids it, and Apple caps prompts at three a year.

Step 4 is how you hear from unhappy users without gating anyone. The feedback route is open to every user at every moment, not offered instead of the store prompt.

The signs your prompts are set up wrong: engineering has 100% say on where the prompt appears, the plan covers technical triggers but not how users feel, the retention messaging (CRM) team isn't co-leading the prompts, or a "Do you like the app?" screen appears before the store prompt.

How do you pick the right trigger moment?

Match the moment to your goal. I call this Reach, Convert, Optimize Prompts: you can design a prompt for reach, for conversion or for five-star quality, and each goal is won by a different moment in the user journey.

The rule underneath all three: pick the moment by behavior, never by asking first. Stores forbid filtering out unhappy users, so the moment itself has to do the work a pre-question would try to do.

Signs your timing is off: the prompt only appears deep in the journey, it interrupts a task in progress, or it fires right after a price rise.

How do you score candidate prompt moments?

Score each moment on two things: how happy the user is there, and how likely they are to rate. I call this the Rating Prompt Trigger Matrix.

1. List candidate prompt moments in the user journey.
2. Score each on user happiness and how likely users are to rate.
3. Ship the Jackpots.
4. Retire the Disasters, rework the Long Shots and watch the Slow Burns.

A Disaster is any moment where users are motivated to rate but annoyed: on launch, or right after an error. If your ratings volume is rising while your average falls, you almost certainly have one live.

Who should own the rating prompt?

Retention marketing (CRM), with help from developers and ASO. Developers know where the prompt can technically fire; the CRM team knows where users are happy. When engineering decides alone, the prompt lands at launch because launch is easiest to code, and that invites spite ratings and rage-rating. For how ratings and reviews split between owners, see ratings vs reviews.

From the field

A yoga app had its rating prompt firing at app launch. It moved the prompt to right after the final free workout, a clear success moment, and was flooded with five-star ratings within two weeks. Nothing else changed: same app, same users, same native prompt, a different moment.

A note on the "pre-approval dialog"

You will still find advice to show a "Do you enjoy the app?" dialog first and send only the happy users to the store. Don't. It filters out unhappy users, which Google Play forbids. Choose the moment well instead, show the native prompt directly, and give everyone the feedback link.

Once ratings are flowing, the next levers are replies: see how to respond to app reviews.

Frequently asked questions

When is the best time to ask for an app rating?

Right after a success moment, and only for returning users. A success moment is when the user has just achieved what they came for, such as finishing a workout or completing a task. A practical threshold is a user who has had three sessions and completed two core actions. Never ask on first open or at app launch.

Can I ask users if they like my app before showing the rating prompt?

No. A "Do you enjoy the app?" screen that sends happy users to the store and unhappy users to a feedback form filters out negative ratings, and Google Play forbids that. Show Apple's or Google's native prompt directly, with no question before it, and keep a feedback link available to everyone in settings or help.

How often can I show the App Store rating prompt?

Apple caps its native rating prompt at three times a year per user, so every display counts. That limit is another reason to trigger it at your best success moment, chosen by user behavior, rather than wherever it is easiest to code.

What rating should an app aim for?

Appkitekt's playbook sets the targets at 4.5 stars or higher on Google Play and 4.8 stars or higher on the App Store. Ratings are among the top five ranking factors to fix first, alongside download velocity, technical health and engagement, so a rating below target holds back both search ranking and conversion.

If you want your prompts and triggers audited per store, that is part of our app store optimization strategy work.