I'm following the instructions to associate an App Clip with a website:
<meta name="apple-itunes-app" content="app-id=myAppStoreID, app-clip-bundle-id=appClipBundleID, app-clip-display=card">
But I'm not sure what to put in the app-id because usually the App ID refers to the Team ID + bundle identifier (e.g. ABCDE12345.com.example.MyApp), but then it also says myAppStoreID which sounds different.
What goes in the app-id parameter?
In this case, app-id refers to the App Store ID, and not the App ID. This is clearly stated in the more general documentation about Smart App Banners.
These identifiers are sometimes confusing because of conflicting names1, or wrong documentation2. Here's a comprehensive list that should hopefully clear up some confusion:
| Example values | Terms used by Apple | Description | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bundle ID | com.example.MyApp, com.example.MyApp.Clip |
bundle ID, Bundle ID (explicit) |
User defined, typically in reverse domain name notation. |
| Team ID | ABCDE12345, 8XCUU22SN2 |
Team ID, Team ID |
Assigned by Apple. |
| App ID Prefix | ABCDE12345 |
App ID Prefix (Team ID) |
Usually same as Team ID. |
$(AppIdentifierPrefix)2 |
ABCDE12345. |
$(AppIdentifierPrefix) |
The App ID Prefix followed by a . |
| App ID | ABCDE12345.com.example.MyApp |
app identifier, App ID1, explicit App ID, app identifier |
The $(AppIdentifierPrefix) followed by the Bundle ID. |
| wildcard App ID | ABCDE12345.*, ABCDE12345.com.example.*, * |
wildcard App ID |
Similar to the App ID, but with a wildcard (*) character. |
| App Store ID | 1146562112 |
app-id, myAppStoreID, app ID1, Apple ID |
Assigned by Apple. Used in App Store URLs. |
Footnotes:
Notice how even though App ID and App Store ID are clearly different values, they have both been referred to as App ID and app ID, respectively.
Note that this variable includes the trailing .. You can see this by looking at a build’s environment variables, or at the variable’s usage in the Fruta app ($(AppIdentifierPrefix)com.example.apple-samplecode.fruta). There is only one location that shows it doesn’t contain a ., but it contradicts itself in the same sentence. A nearly identical paragraph correctly omits the .:
For example, if your full app’s app identifier is $(AppIdentifierPrefix)com.example.MyApp, the app identifier for your App Clip would be $(AppIdentifierPrefix)com.example.MyApp.Clip.