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Understanding App ID and Bundle ID in iOS Development
I’ve Always Been Confused
There are a couple of key identifiers in iOS development that are often misunderstood.
These identifiers are crucial, but I think it is time to break down what App ID and Bundle ID is, how they work and why they are essential to building iOS applications.
In Depth
App ID and Bundle ID are key identifiers that serve different purposes.
So let’s break them down, identify (ha) how they work and why they’re essential to building applications.
The App ID
An App ID is an identifier that Apple uses to recognize one or more apps created by a development team. The App ID is used to enable services, such as Push Notifications or Sign in with Apple.
Structure
Prefix: A 10-character alphanumeric string (the Team ID) that is unique to your Apple Developer account.
Suffix: This is the Bundle ID string, which may be an explicit or a wildcard that matches one or more apps.
TeamID.com.example.MyApp
TeamID.com.example.*
The Bundle ID
A Bundle ID uniquely identifies a specific app within the Apple ecosystem. It’s a string set by the developer to register the app with Apple and is essential for App Store submission. The Bundle ID cannot be changed once the app is live on the App Store, as it helps Apple differentiate one app from another.
The Bundle ID is set in Xcode when creating a new app project. For example:
com.example.MyApp
The Bundle ID is used to identify the app across the App Store, iCloud and other Apple services. The ID is coupled with the app throughout the lifecycle and may not be reused for another app once assigned.
