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Chapter 7: Create your iOS build and complete initial testing

Before submitting your app to Apple, make sure the core experience works.

We’ll test it in two stages:

  1. Test the subscription logic in Replit using RevenueCat’s Test Store
  2. Create a real iOS build and install it through TestFlight to check how the app behaves on an iPhone

At this stage, you want to confirm that:

  • The main app experience works
  • The paywall appears in the right place
  • The simulated purchase flow works
  • A successful test purchase unlocks the paid features
  • RevenueCat records the test transaction
  • The native app works correctly on a real iPhone

It’s much easier to find and fix these problems now than after your app is live.

Test the basic purchase flow in Replit

When Replit Agent set up your subscriptions, it created test products using RevenueCat’s Test Store.

Test Store is RevenueCat’s built-in testing environment. It lets you simulate purchases without connecting to Apple’s payment system or spending real money. Successful test purchases update the customer’s entitlement just like a real purchase and appear as sandbox data in RevenueCat.

To test the basic flow:

  1. Open your app in Replit’s preview, or open it on your iPhone using Expo Go via the QR code in the previewer
  2. Navigate to the point where the paywall should appear
  3. Check that the paywall shows the correct benefits and subscription options
  4. Select the purchase button
  5. Choose Test valid purchase
  6. Confirm that the paid features unlock
  7. Go to the RevenueCat dashboard and turn on Sandbox data
  8. Confirm that the Test Store transaction appears in your sandbox transactions
Replit’s mobile preview shows a RevenueCat Test Store purchase screen for the monthly premium subscription, with options to test a valid or failed purchase, or cancel.
RevenueCat’s Healthy Meal Planner overview dashboard in sandbox mode, showing one active subscription, $5 in monthly recurring revenue, two new and active customers, and a recent $4.99 Test Store transaction.

It’s also worth repeating the test and selecting Test failed purchase. Your app should handle the failed transaction cleanly and keep the paid features locked.

RevenueCat Test Store is useful for checking your app’s subscription logic, but it doesn’t test Apple’s real StoreKit purchase flow. We’ll test that later, after the App Store products are configured.

Create and upload your iOS build

Once the basic flow works, you are ready to create an iOS build. You can start the process by selecting “Publish” in Replit or asking the Agent directly.

Replit’s Publish panel shows the Healthy Meal Planner app configured for public access with an available domain, app name, icon, and Publish button, alongside a phone preview of the app’s empty Shopping List screen.

Once the build has completed, select “Start publishing to the App Store”

Replit Cloud’s production publishing overview shows the Healthy Meal Planner app live at a Replit URL, with North America deployment details and an option to begin publishing it to the App Store.

Follow the steps provided via Expo Launch. You’ll be asked to:

  1. Confirm or choose your Expo project
  2. Sign in with the Apple account enrolled in the Apple Developer Program
  3. Choose or create the Apple app and confirm its details
  4. Configure the Apple distribution certificate and provisioning profile
  5. Review the setup and select Launch to App Store

If this is your first build, the Launch flow can create the required Apple certificates and provisioning profile for you.

Replit’s Expo Launch dialog shows the app prepared for App Store submission, with completed steps for selecting the Expo project, signing in with Apple, choosing the app, and configuring Apple certificates, plus a "Launch to App Store" button.

Replit will then create the iOS build, sign it using your Apple Developer credentials, and upload it to App Store Connect. The build process happens on Expo’s infrastructure.

Once publishing finishes, open App Store Connect and select Apps. Your new app should appear there.

App Store Connect’s Apps page shows "Healthy Planner Pro" listed as an iOS app, version 1.0, with a "Prepare for Submission" status.

Your app isn’t live on the App Store yet. At this point, you’ve only uploaded a build to App Store Connect so you can test and configure it before submitting it for App Review.

What just happened?

You’ve moved from a development preview to a real iOS build.

Replit’s Launch flow (via Expo Launch):

  • Creates an installable iOS build
  • Signs it using your Apple Developer account
  • Uploads it to App Store Connect

This matters because Expo Go runs your project inside a shared preview app. Your new build is your app running independently, much closer to what users will eventually download from the App Store. Native functionality, such as real in-app purchases, needs to be tested using a real build rather than relying only on Expo Go.

Test the app with TestFlight

TestFlight is Apple’s beta-testing system. It lets you install an App Store build on your iPhone before the app is publicly available.

Once Replit finishes uploading the build, you may receive an invitation email with a link to open it in TestFlight. Replit’s current publishing flow can set this up as part of the launch process.

If you need to set up internal testing manually:

  1. Download TestFlight on your iPhone
  2. Open App Store Connect
  3. Select your app
  4. Open the TestFlight tab
  5. Create or select an internal testing group
  6. Add the build to the group
  7. Add yourself as an internal tester
  8. Accept the email invitation and install the app through TestFlight
App Store Connect’s TestFlight page for Healthy Planner Pro, showing iOS build 1 of version 1.0.0 marked "Ready to Submit" for the Team (Expo) internal testing group.

What to test in TestFlight

Now go through your app from start to finish on your iPhone.

Check that:

  • The app opens without crashing
  • The main user flow works from beginning to end
  • The layout looks correct on your iPhone
  • Buttons and navigation work
  • Text isn’t cut off or difficult to read
  • The paywall appears at the intended moment
  • The paywall clearly explains what subscribing unlocks
  • The expected subscription options appear
  • Privacy Policy and Terms of Use links open correctly
  • Paid features remain locked for users who haven’t subscribed

This is also a good time to try the app as a first-time user rather than simply checking the screens you worked on most while building it.

Don’t worry if the real Apple purchase flow doesn’t work yet. We haven’t finished configuring the matching subscription products in App Store Connect.

In the next section, we’ll connect the App Store products to RevenueCat. Once that’s complete, we’ll return to TestFlight and test the full Apple purchase flow.

If something doesn’t work

If you find a problem, go back to Replit and describe exactly what happened to Replit Agent.

Include:

  • What you were trying to do
  • What you expected to happen
  • What actually happened
  • Which screen or step caused the problem

For example:

In the TestFlight build, tapping ‘Add to planner’ from the recipe screen doesn’t do anything. I expect the recipe to be added to the weekly planner and a confirmation to appear. Please investigate and fix that flow without changing the rest of the navigation.

Once Replit Agent fixes the problem, repeat the publishing process to upload a new build. Install the updated version through TestFlight and test the affected flow again.