Limit application size and determine the size of your application

Question

Ok, so I read countless places that indicate that the application size limit is 20 MB, and some say it is 50 MB ... what is it?

More importantly, my current application has a "app store for evaluation" size of 106.1mb in the "Archive" section of the organizer. HOWEVER, when I distribute it to an ad-hoc file, it appears as an .ipa whose size is 48.3mb. Which should I use, and I'm confused why they are so different.

Answer 1

The official (and reliably relevant) resource for this is the Uploading Binary in the iTunes connection guide (expand "To start the" Ready to download the binary stream "section). During this editing, it indicates:

IOS application binaries can reach 2 GB , but the executable (start_name / folder_name) cannot exceed 60 MB. However, consider load times when sizing your applications. Remember that there is a limit of 100 MB for downloading on the air .

Restricting downloads on the air means that applications below this threshold can be downloaded using a mobile data connection (anything above the limit requires a WiFi connection or for downloading via iTunes on a computer). This is important, as many users may not have access to Wi-Fi, and you do not want them to not be able to get your application!

Also .ipa is a compressed, encrypted zip file, while an archive is a completely overpriced application package, so file sizes are different. The .ipa file size is the one that will be used in the App Store, so use it as a reference for the overall size. However, the less you can make your application, the happier the user will be!

Answer 2

Apple recently scored 20 to 50 shortly after WWDC'12. I am not sure if this has been officially announced, but has been seen in a large application error message.

Use IPA size. Files sent from the application store are compressed. Maybe 106.1 is an uncompressed size, or it's a mistake.

Answer 3

Today, Apple is increasing the amount of downloadable content in the App Store to 100 MB.