What does it take to put your app in the App Store and Google Play, and whose account should it be in?

Ascent Vision · Published October 28, 2026

The business should usually be the one that holds the accounts on both stores. Apple's organization enrollment asks for a legal entity, not a trade name, a D-U-N-S Number and someone with legal authority to bind the organization. Google Play has personal and organization account types, asks organizations for a D-U-N-S number, and sets a testing step for new personal accounts. Apple reviews every app and update, and Google's pages also refer to review, so allow time for that before a launch date.

Why the business should hold the accounts

Apple says an organization's name is shown as the seller name of its apps on the App Store, and an individual's legal name is shown for an individual enrollment. If a developer uses their own account, your app may appear under their name.

As general advice, an app under someone else's account can be hard to hand back if you part ways. The related answer on who owns software built for your business covers this in the agreement.

What Apple asks of an organization

Apple lists sole proprietors and single-person businesses under individual enrollment. For an organization, its page says you need an Apple Account with two-factor authentication turned on, and that it confirms the following.

That the person enrolling can bind the organization legally. Apple lists the owner or founder, an executive team member, a senior project lead, or an employee granted that authority by a senior employee. That person becomes the Account Holder.
A legal entity. Apple says it does not accept DBAs, fictitious business names, trade names or branches.
A D-U-N-S Number, a nine-digit number assigned by Dun & Bradstreet. Apple says government entities are excluded from this.
A work email address on the organization's domain, and a public website that works.

What Google Play asks

Google says to choose an organization account if the account is for an organization or business, and a personal account for personal use, such as a student, hobbyist or amateur developer. To create an organization account you must provide a D-U-N-S number.

For personal accounts created after November 13, 2023, Google requires a closed test first: at least 12 testers opted in continuously for at least 14 days, before you can apply for production access. Google presents this as a personal-account step, so read its current page for the type you choose.

Review and your schedule

Apple says it reviews all apps and app updates. If information is incomplete, it says review may be delayed and the app may not pass.
Apple asks for a demo login when features need signing in, plus links to user support and a privacy policy.
Google says an app's store listing and the app itself must link to a privacy policy, even if the app does not access personal or sensitive user data.
As general advice, allow time for a fix and a resubmission, and expect that a later update goes through review too.

Questions to ask before work starts

Put these to the developer before work starts. The related answer on whether your business needs a mobile app covers the earlier question of whether to build one, and the related answer on keeping custom software running covers renewals and upkeep.

Which account will the app be published under, and who is the Account Holder or owner?
Does our company already have a D-U-N-S number, and who will request one if not?
Who else has admin access, in case one person leaves?
Who writes and hosts the privacy policy and support page?
Who pays the stores' enrollment costs, from which account, and who keeps them current?

Sources

Custom software and apps

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