Who Should Own Your App Store, Domain and Hosting Accounts, and When to Open Each One Before Launch

Why ownership matters more than cost

If someone else opens your accounts, they can take your app with them. A developer who registers the domain in their name controls your privacy policy URL, your login emails and your app links. A freelancer whose card pays for your hosting can switch it off. A store account in someone else's name means you don't own your listing, your reviews or your payouts. Apple makes this very clear. In App Store Connect, only the Account Holder can sign the Paid Apps Agreement, and that agreement is required before you can sell an app or offer in-app purchases (Apple Developer documentation). Whoever opened the account holds that role. Make sure that's you. The rule is simple. Open each account in your name or your company's name, pay with a company card and give your team access. The code works the same way: it belongs 100% to you, on your GitHub.

Who owns what, and when to open it

For each account below: who should own it, when to open it, and what sets the timing.

• D-U-N-S number. Who should own it: your company. When to open it: first, before anything else. What sets the timing: Apple and Google both ask for it for organization accounts.
• Domain name. Who should own it: you or your company. When to open it: first. What sets the timing: Apple's organization sign-up needs an email on your domain and a website.
• Business email. Who should own it: your company, on your domain. When to open it: right after the domain. What sets the timing: store accounts and Stripe should use a shared work address.
• Simple website. Who should own it: your company. When to open it: before the Apple sign-up. What sets the timing: Apple checks your website during organization sign-up.
• Apple Developer Program. Who should own it: your company, with you as Account Holder. When to open it: as soon as the D-U-N-S number arrives. What sets the timing: organization checks take time.
• Google Play Console. Who should own it: your company. When to open it: same time as Apple. What sets the timing: personal accounts have a testing rule before release.
• Stripe. Who should own it: your company. When to open it: as soon as you know you'll charge on the web. What sets the timing: business and identity verification come before live payments.
• Paid Apps Agreement, tax and banking. Who should own it: the Account Holder only. When to open it: before you set up in-app purchases. What sets the timing: needed before you can create paid products.
• GitHub. Who should own it: you. When to open it: before the build starts. What sets the timing: the code goes there.
• Hosting, database, email sending. Who should own it: you, billed to your company card. When to open it: at the start of the build. What sets the timing: usually quick to set up.

Step 1: request a D-U-N-S number

Step 1 happens before you brief a developer. A D-U-N-S number is a company ID issued by Dun & Bradstreet. Apple needs one to open an organization account, unless you're a government entity (Apple enrollment requirements). Google Play also needs one for every organization account, and requesting it is free (Google Play Console Help). Your company may already have one, so check first. If it doesn't, request it now. Both store sign-ups depend on it.

Buy the domain, then set up email

Register the domain yourself, with a registrar you'll still be able to log into years from now. Turn on auto-renew and link it to a company card. Next, create shared addresses on that domain, such as apps@ and support@. Use them for the store accounts and Stripe, not a personal inbox. When someone leaves the company, the logins don't leave with them.

Put a real website live

Apple's organization sign-up asks for a work email on your company's domain and a website that is public, working and on that same domain. Apple says social media links and sites with very little content won't be accepted (Apple enrollment requirements). A clear page that says what your company does and how to contact you is a good start.

Step 2: open the Apple Developer Program account

The fee is $99 per membership year, and prices vary by region (Apple). Choose between two account types. If investors, partners or app buyers will look at your listing, open an organization account. Do it as soon as the D-U-N-S number arrives. More on Apple accounts in our iOS and Apple guides.

• Organization. Your company's legal name shows as the seller on the App Store. Apple checks that you have legal authority to sign for the company. It doesn't accept trade names or DBAs.
• Individual. This is quicker to open, but you sell under your own name.

Google Play Console

Registration costs US$25, paid once (Google Play Console Help). Personal and organization accounts get the same features. Google requires an organization account for some kinds of apps, including financial services, health, VPN and government apps. There's one timing trap. Personal accounts created after November 13, 2023 have to run a closed test with at least 12 testers who stay opted in for 14 days in a row. Only then can you apply for production access. If a tester opts out and comes back, their 14 days start over (Google Play Console Help). If you pick a personal account, find your testers before the build ends. Friends, waitlist members and early customers all work. See our Google Play guides for more. Not sure which account type fits your app? Book a call and we'll go through it with you before the build starts.

Step 3: open payments early

Payments delay launches more than anything else. The fees aren't the problem. Verification is. Decide which path applies to you before the build starts, because it changes the checkout. Our feature cost guides explain how payments affect scope.

• Stripe. You can test in a sandbox straight away. To take live payments, you have to verify your business and give details about the company, the product and your role in it (Stripe docs). Open the account in your company's name. Then invite your developer as a team member with limited access, which Stripe supports.
• In-app purchases. The Account Holder signs Apple's Paid Apps Agreement and adds tax and banking information in App Store Connect. Until you've accepted the latest version of that agreement, you can't create paid apps or in-app purchases (Apple Developer documentation). Google Play has its own payments setup to complete in Play Console.

Step 4: hosting, database and tools

These are usually the quickest to set up, so they can wait until the build starts. Ownership still matters. Paid plans and renewals should go to your company card and a shared billing address. The domain renewal, the Apple membership and any paid hosting plan then can't lapse because someone's personal card expired. What these services cost after launch is covered in our post-launch guides.

• GitHub. Create the organization or repository in your name. Your code should end up there.
• Hosting and database. Open the accounts yourself, pay with your company card and invite your developer. Removing someone's access later is then a single click.
• Email sending, analytics, crash reports. Same rule: your account, their access.

Step 5: the week before submission

If all of this is ready, nothing outside the build holds up launch. Our build is Fixed at $3,460, with a fixed quote given before we start. Your app runs on the web, iOS and Android. It's delivered in about 20 days, with progress shown every week. Design is included, the code is 100% yours on your GitHub, and you get 2 weeks of fixes after launch. See what's included on our MVP Development page, then book a call.

• A privacy policy page on your own domain. Both stores ask for its URL.
• Testers lined up if you have a personal Google Play account.
• Store listing text and screenshots approved by you, since you own the listing.

Should the developer or the founder open the app store accounts?

The founder. Open the Apple and Google Play accounts in your company's name and invite your developer. On Apple, only the Account Holder can sign the Paid Apps Agreement, so that role should be yours.

Do I need a company to publish an app?

No. Both stores accept personal accounts. On Apple, an individual account sells under your personal name. An organization account shows your company's legal name and needs a D-U-N-S number.

What should I open first?

The D-U-N-S number, the domain and a business email on that domain. Apple's organization sign-up needs all three, plus a working website.

Can I move an account out of a freelancer's name later?

It's much harder than opening it in your own name from the start. Open every account yourself, and only give developers access.

Are hosting and store fees included in the $3,460?

No. Store fees, the domain and service plans are billed to you directly by each provider, so the accounts stay yours. The build is Fixed at $3,460, with design included and 2 weeks of fixes after launch.