Just published subscription options on top of my lifetime purchase because my friend convinced me to do so. I wa arguing with him it would never work, but he proved me wrong. If you are in doubt, add subscriptions too, it might pay off. The app is a native Mac os app to simplify designing, managing and uploading App Store screenshots.
Hi, my name is Taras. Lately I've been trying to build my own apps and this post is about one of those experiments.
Exactly one month ago I shipped my app Screenshot Bro (Desktop, Mac) to the App Store, and I want to share my short journey, how I went about promoting it, and the first small wins.
If you've ever shipped an app on the App Store or Google Play, you're probably familiar with it — you have to upload several screenshots. At first glance it doesn't seem like a big deal, and it really isn't if you just uploaded them once and never planned to come back.
But the moment your app gets even slightly successful, you start doing ASO. And that's when the real screenshot grind begins: localize them for every language, keep them up to date, run A/B tests, support different sizes, and so on. And at the very end you still have to re-upload all of it to the stores.
I ran into this myself and realized doing it in Figma isn't very convenient.
After looking at what already exists, I built a tool for my own use. The first version was a web app (React Router + Tailwind CSS) — it's still available: web.screenshotbro.app.
Once I had something working, it became clear I could try to sell it. But the web version had drawbacks: no file-system access (exports had to be zipped), IndexedDB for storage, and monetization was tricky — I didn't want ads or a backend.
So I rebuilt it as a native macOS app — better performance, all data stored locally in a simple format (JSON + assets). Same idea as Obsidian, where all files belong to the user.
Very simple. The free version gives you the full feature set but is limited to a single project. A one-time $10 PRO purchase removes that limit.
My main promotion channels were social networks — X, Threads, Reddit. I try to put out some content with new product features every day.
Reddit worked best, especially subs like r/AppStoreOptimization. The approach: give the user something valuable first — in my case feedback on how to improve their existing screenshots — and only then suggest they try my app. You have to sell carefully, because (as everywhere) people really don't like aggressive marketing. First help out, then sell.
Here's an example of a post where I "roast" users' screenshots — and if they like it I suggest they try my app:
On Threads and X I constantly post videos with new app features. Since it's an app for generating images, the videos come out pretty fun.
Apart from social, I keep improving the landing page.
The site is slowly getting indexed by Google and showing up in search.
I also did a Product Hunt launch for both the web version and the app, which added a bit of visibility.
The app is 100% vibe-coded (SwiftUI). Main tools: Claude Code (80%) + Codex (20%), cross-checking each other. The rule I stick to is one feature at a time. Sometimes development drags, especially on the UI, but overall I'm happy. Once I had to really sit down and optimize memory and performance.
For manual testing I use a dedicated project that exercises everything, plus AI-written unit tests that should (probably 😂) catch regressions.
A collection consists of rows of screenshots, each with a shared canvas where you can drop shapes, images, SVGs.
Smart drag-and-drop. Drag screenshots onto a row and the app distributes them across devices correctly on its own, creating the screens that are missing.
Devices. All the most popular Apple frames (artwork freely available from Apple), plus abstract frames, plus a 3D iPhone 17.
https://i.redd.it/bweu9bcosa2h1.gif
Localization. The main headache if you support multiple locales. There's built-in auto-translate via TranslateKit (translations are so-so), but you can also feed the project's JSON to an agent and ask it to translate — works great.
Per language, per element, you can override any property — because text length changes break layouts. For devices, you can swap the image per language. When uploading to the App Store, it matches language → image automatically.
Templates. Nobody wants to make screenshots from scratch, so there's a template library — drag in your images, fill the frames. This area still needs the most work (more high-quality templates).
Example template ripped off from Duolingo:
Upload to App Store Connect. Direct upload, the app figures out what goes where by size and locale, and you can edit metadata along the way. Just drop in your API key in settings.
Exports. Main one — all images per locale, ready to upload.
Also bulk export of everything together.
And demo-style images for social media with various settings.
Is there really no AI in the app itself?
In development, plenty. In the app, not yet. I'm planning to publish the JSON schema for the project file so any agent can work with it. Maybe later I'll add image generation, background removal, etc., but for now I want to focus on manual editing.
First-month numbers:
Not huge, but the conversion rate is decent and it shows the product has an audience willing to pay.
Just applied to the App Store Small Business Program to drop Apple's commission to 15%. Plans: scale the template library (inspired by top apps like Duolingo), improve site SEO, and record a YouTube tutorial series.
If you're a developer who also hates prepping screenshots — give it a try, I'd love feedback.
👉 Screenshot Bro on the App Store
Happy to answer questions in the comments.
The biggest 2.3 highlight: upload screenshots straight to App Store Connect — no more Transporter detours. Pick the app, edit metadata, hit upload. Per-project remembered, with proper error handling and notifications when the upload finishes.
What's new
- App Store Connect upload — direct upload from the app, with a metadata editing step in the wizard and per-project app memory.
- Showcase export sheet — redesigned with aspect presets, per-row previews, and configurable layout.
- Backup to zip — one click in Settings packages all your app data for safekeeping.
- Localization, supercharged — added 38 more languages (now covering most of the world), unified flag catalog, and an in-app language picker. The app itself now ships in Spanish.
- Smarter custom fonts — weight and italic controls for imported fonts, automatic family-sibling import, and proper variant distinction.
- SVG improvements — inserted SVGs auto-scale to a sensible minimum (256pt), and Restore Aspect Ratio is available for every SVG.
- Project polish — Show in Finder, native rename/duplicate dialogs prefilled with the current name, fixed caret bug, deduped template resources.
- Free-tier nudge — Upgrade to Pro button right in the toolbar.
- Quality of life — export and ASC upload completion notifications, Reset All Images, rich-text bar appears only when text is selected.
Plus a refreshed Indigo template, updated Amethyst, and dozens of smaller fixes.
