Publish Progressive Web App (PWA) to Popular App Stores

In today's world, more and more people are choosing mobile apps to enhance their digital lives. But the app store itself is also changing. Apps are a thing of the past, while Progressive Web Apps are on the rise. So how can you publish your PWA to the crowded app stores? Technically, there are many online app stores where you can publish your apps, including Apple Store, Google Play Store, and Microsoft Store. The different app stores have different requirements and policies on what types of apps they allow. To publish an app on the Apple App Store, you need to go through the strict approval process. If you are interested in developing PWA - Progressive Web Apps, this article is for you.

Can you publish PWA to Apple's App Store?

Since the beginning of time, Apple has used its iOS platform to power its devices. Apple also makes the apps for these devices. But when it comes to the App Store, Apple restricts which apps can be included in the store. The reason Apple doesn't allow PWAs in the App Store is because they would use an additional protocol that isn't supported and also hurts the user experience. Your app should have features, content, and a user interface that sets it apart from other apps in the App Store. If your app doesn't have a clear, unique value proposition, isn't particularly useful, or just looks like a glorified brochure, then it may not be suitable for the iOS Store, according to Apple.
However, if you have a Progressive Web Application (PWA), you still have the option of reaching Apple users via the Safari browser. If you want to go the iOS route, Apple restricts the possibilities of PWAs in Safari. You can open and save PWA apps with Safari, but some of the restrictions are as follows

 

• • No more than 50 MB can be cached.

• • There is no access to Face ID.

• • No access to Apple's Touch ID.

• • Bluetooth does not work there.

• • You cannot access the Siri virtual assistant.

• • No possibility to send push notifications.

• • No access to contacts.

• • You cannot connect to external social networks like Facebook.

But you can access some of the features like camera, GPS, voice, Apple Pay, audio output, etc.
It is true that PWAs are not published directly in the App Store as Apple only allows apps created with Flutter, C#, HTML5, Objective-C and Swift, as these offer the best UI & UX. Apps created with these programming languages are called native apps. So if you want your app to be found by more iOS users, you should definitely use Develop a native app.

Steps to publish PWA to Google Play Store

If you're a web developer or work in web app development, you may know that the Google Play Store was the first major app store to truly welcome Progressive Web Apps. But it's true that you may need to submit your PWA to get it listed on the Google Play Store. The inclusion of your web app in the Play Store is the best way to make them visible and discoverable for more users. Also, it looks like PWAs downloaded through the Google Play Store will have more features than standard web apps. Some of the plus points of listing your PWAs on the Play Store are:

 

• • You can add more widgets for the home screen.

• • Access to app shortcuts is possible.

• • An Android Auto extension to connect Android smartphones.

• • Possibility of reinstallation after reset and recovery.

• • Ability to monetize apps.

• • Access to push notifications.

Now that Google has increased the adoption of Progressive Web Apps, businesses are having more success turning their websites into apps. If you want to create a PWA with Android Studio, follow Google's publishing guidelines, policies, and best practices to get it into the Google Play Store. Before you proceed to the steps for publishing your app, make sure you have all the prerequisites such as. Android Studio, Have a Google Developer account and a fully functional Progressive Web App.
Below are the steps to publish PWA to Google Play Store:

TWA Starter Android app clone and edit

For this we need to have a svgomg-twa project from GitHub and then import it into Android Studio using the following navigation path:
File > New > Import Project.

Set up keystore and APK verification

Android apps use encryption to protect sensitive data. To encrypt a file, you need to enter your passcode, which is known as keystore or upload key. Key stores are very important for verifying your APK file because when you open an encrypted APK file, you need to enter your upload keys. Even if the file is lost, stolen or corrupted, no new user can install or use the app without the passcode or key stores.
You can create a keystore by first launching Android Studio and then going to Build → Generate Signed Bundle/APK. Then fill in the required fields.

 

Digital Asset Link

The Digital Asset Link is an essential part of the APK and is required to verify that the APK belongs to the content owner. It is used to link the app content to the user's account. 
The Digital Asset Link consists of two parts, a unique identifier (ID) and a secure hash of the entire packet file. The unique ID is generated by an algorithm and is unique to the packet file and the device. The secure hash is used to verify the integrity of the entire packet file. A digital asset link is required to distribute your app to users because without a link, Google Play is unable to verify the validity of the content in the APK.

Create and share

The final step is to create your application and publish it to the Google Play Stores.
In the default settings of your Google Play console, navigate to All apps → Create app. Then perform the following steps:

Internal tests: Track your app and find out the backlogs by creating an internal test at App Publications → Internal Test Tracking → Create Publication. 

Generate signed APK: Go to Android Studio → App Releases → Internal Test Track → Create Release. Use the keystore you created earlier and make sure you check both boxes with the version of the signatures.

Upload APK: Now you have completed all the steps. Next, you need to upload the Android file to the Play Store. To do this, navigate to Google Play Store → App Releases → Internal Test Track → Edit Release.

Before your app is listed for the review process, make sure that all the required fields like pricing, store listing, content rating, etc. are filled in. Once you have fulfilled all these requirements, your app will be published on the Play Store and will be available for the public to download.

Publish PWA to Microsoft Store

Microsoft may not be the first major company to adopt PWAs, but it has certainly embraced them just as Google has. Microsoft's app stores already host many popular apps developed by some of the world's most innovative brands. Microsoft has already signaled that it is moving away from the Universal Windows Platform and will encourage the release of PWAs. Adding PWAs to the Microsoft Store will help attract more Microsoft users. Microsoft's Bing uses its crawling mechanisms to find high-quality PWAs that can be automatically included in the App Store. The following features are available when you publish your PWAs to the Microsoft Store:

 

• • Secured connection

• • Highly reactive compound

• • Network-independent

• • Enables push notifications

• • Launch and open the application via an external link.

Microsoft also makes it very easy for developers to turn any web content into an app package. The web-based version of your app will be available to users in the Microsoft Store. So, you don't need to worry about losing a part of your audience if you publish your web app to the Microsoft Store. To publish your PWA to the Microsoft Store, you need a Windows Dev Centre account, PWA Builder, a fully functional and fully compliant PWA.
Follow these simple steps to publish your app to the Microsoft Store:

Assign a name to your app

If you want to publish an app to the Microsoft Store, you must reserve a name for it. Once you reserve the name, you have 3 months to use it, otherwise you lose the right to use that name. This gives others the opportunity to use the same name.

Create AppX via PWABuilder

Now you need to create an AppX using PWABuilder. PWABuilder is an excellent tool that helps you create a functional web app that can be published in all major app stores like Apple Store, Google Play Store, Microsoft Store and Amazon Appstore. This tool is fully developed by Microsoft to help all PWA apps publish to major app stores.

App tests

With PWABuilder, you can also test your PWA before publishing it to the Store. To do this, you need to enable developer mode and right-click test_install.ps1 → Run with PowerShell. This will automatically launch the app from your desktop and verify that all features are working properly.

Save submission

The last thing you need to do is prepare your files for uploading to the Microsoft Store. To do this, go to the package folder of the .zip file you downloaded earlier. In this folder, you will find the .appx file with all the information you need to publish to the Microsoft Store. Next, navigate to the submission page of your Windows Dev Center account. Then click on the "Submit to the Store" button. This process can take anywhere from an hour to several days. Once it is complete, your PWA will be certified and available for download from the Microsoft Store.

Why choose appleute?

Here at appleaute, we create PWA (Progressive Web Apps) for iOS and Android for our clients worldwide.
With appleaute's experience and expertise, we can easily create the perfect Progressive Web App for your business and reach your target audience with a modern and reliable user interface.
The future of digital interfaces and apps is here, and Progressive Web Apps are the new way to access the web, mobile apps, and the web.
Do you have an idea for the development of your PWA? Speak with us today and make it possible to reach a large number of people within a short period of time.