App Store adds 12‑month monthly billing option for annual subscriptions

Apple has added a new App Store subscription format that bills users monthly while committing them to a full 12-month term. (developer.apple.com) The change applies to auto-renewable subscriptions, the App Store products used for apps that charge on a repeating schedule for digital access. Apple announced the option on April 27, 2026, and said developers can configure it now in App Store Connect and test it in Xcode. (developer.apple.com 1) (developer.apple.com 2) In plain terms, the new plan splits a yearlong subscription into monthly charges instead of collecting the annual price upfront. Apple’s StoreKit documentation describes it as an auto-renewable subscription that “bills customers monthly and has a yearly commitment.” (developer.apple.com) (docs.developer.apple.com) The catch is in the cancellation rule. Apple said users can cancel at any time, but that only stops the subscription from renewing after they finish the payments needed to satisfy the 12-month commitment. (developer.apple.com) Apple said customers will be able to see how many payments they have completed and how many remain in their Apple Account. The company also said it will send email reminders and, for users who opt in, push notifications before the renewal date. (developer.apple.com) For developers, this creates a pricing middle ground between a standard $9.99 monthly plan and a discounted annual plan charged all at once. Apple’s subscription tools already let developers offer durations from one week to one year, but those plans have typically matched the billing interval to the subscription term. (developer.apple.com) Apple’s developer documentation shows the new format is being wired directly into StoreKit, the company’s in-app payments system. Transactions for these plans carry a `billingPlanType` of monthly, and Apple added a new `PricingTerms` model in the iOS and iPadOS 26.5 beta 4 release notes for reading commitment-plan pricing. (docs.developer.apple.com) (developer.apple.com) The rollout is not global at launch. Apple said monthly subscriptions with a 12-month commitment will be available in May on iOS 26.5, iPadOS 26.5, macOS Tahoe 26.5, tvOS 26.5, and visionOS 26.5, with the United States and Singapore excluded. (developer.apple.com) That means the immediate effect is on how developers package subscriptions, not on every iPhone user overnight. Apple has opened the setup and testing tools first, and the customer-facing option arrives with the May software releases in eligible markets. (developer.apple.com)