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app-ads.txt guide for Android and iOS app developers

By the ads-txt.in team · Published November 8, 2026

Mobile apps do not have a domain of their own, so they cannot host an ads.txt file the way websites do. The IAB Tech Lab created app-ads.txt in 2019 to bring the same protection to apps. If you show ads in an app through AdMob or another network, you should set it up.

How app-ads.txt works

The file format is identical to ads.txt. The difference is where it lives and how buyers find it. You host app-ads.txt at the root of your developer website, for example https://yourstudio.com/app-ads.txt. Buyers look up your app in the Google Play Store or Apple App Store, read the developer website listed there, and fetch the file from that site.

Step 1: Add your developer website to the store listing

In Google Play Console, add the website in your store settings for the app. In App Store Connect, add a marketing or support URL. The domain you list is the domain where the file must be hosted.

Step 2: Create the file

For AdMob, the line looks like this, with your own publisher ID:

google.com, pub-1234567890123456, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0

Our generator has an app-ads.txt option that names the file correctly. Add the lines for any mediation partners you use, as provided by each partner.

Step 3: Upload to the root of the developer website

The file must open at https://yourdomain.com/app-ads.txt. If your developer website is a free page builder that does not allow root files, use a domain where you can upload files.

Step 4: Verify

Use our checker and select app-ads.txt. In AdMob, open the app-ads.txt section to see whether AdMob has verified your file. Verification can take some time after you publish.

Common mistakes

  • Listing one website in the store but hosting the file on another.
  • Hosting the file on a sub-path such as /apps/app-ads.txt.
  • Naming the file ads.txt instead of app-ads.txt. A website that also shows ads can host both files; they are separate.
  • Leaving a store listing with an old, expired domain.

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