Use this Flutter release readiness checklist to prep signing, flavors, crash reporting, permissions text, and store assets so your first submission is calm and complete.
“Release-ready” isn’t “the app runs on my phone.” It means you can generate a production build, install it on a clean device, and submit it to the store without last-minute surprises.
What breaks right before a first submission is usually boring but painful: missing signing keys, a debug build uploaded by accident, crashes with no useful logs, permission prompts that feel suspicious, or store assets that don’t match the app (wrong icons, old screenshots, missing privacy text).
For a first Flutter submission, “release-ready” boils down to four outcomes:
This focuses on first-submission essentials: signing, flavors, crash reporting, permission copy and timing, and store assets. It’s not a full QA plan, performance audit, or legal review.
Plan at least a few focused sessions. A solo developer can often cover this in 1-2 days. On a team, assign clear owners (signing/builds, crash reporting, store listing and copy) so nothing lands in the final hour.
Most “last minute” release problems are early decisions you didn’t make. Lock down a few basics now, and everything downstream gets simpler.
Start with identity: the exact app name users see and the internal IDs stores use (package name on Android, bundle identifier on iOS). Changing these late can break updates, deep links, and analytics history. Decide how you’ll version releases, too, so every build has a clear number and you never have to guess what’s live.
Then set platform boundaries: Android, iOS, or both for day one, and minimum OS versions that match your users. Raising minimums late can force design changes or drop devices you assumed you supported.
Write down these decisions somewhere your team can find:
Finally, confirm your store accounts exist and you can publish. Nothing stalls a launch like waiting for account approval, missing tax forms, or lacking upload permission. If you’re generating the app with a tool like Koder.ai or coding by hand, these decisions still apply.
App signing is the proof that an app update really comes from you. If signing is misconfigured, the store can reject the upload, or you can end up unable to ship updates.
On Android, signing usually means an upload key stored in a keystore file (plus passwords). On iOS, it means certificates and provisioning profiles tied to an Apple Developer account. Even if you build with Koder.ai and export the source code, you still need clear ownership of store accounts and signing assets before the first submission.
Pick a system-of-record owner for each platform, ideally a company account rather than a personal one. Set access rules so you’re not dependent on one laptop or one person.
Keep a short record that answers:
A lost Android key can block future updates to the same app package. Make an encrypted backup in a separate location and test restoring it. For iOS, losing access usually turns into account recovery pain, so keep multiple trusted admins and document who they are.
Verify signing on a clean machine (fresh checkout, new CI runner, or a teammate’s laptop). If it only works on one computer, it’s not ready.
Flavors prevent “works on my phone” from turning into “we shipped the test server.” In plain terms, a flavor is a named build that uses different config without you editing files before every release.
Most teams should start with two flavors: dev (for testing) and prod (what you submit). If your team says “staging,” use that word. Confusing names lead to the wrong build being shared or uploaded.
Lock down what differs between flavors. The most common differences are app identity (name and bundle ID), icons, API endpoints, feature flags, analytics/crash reporting settings, and logging level.
Keep sensitive values out of the repo when you can. Use environment files, CI secrets, or injected build-time variables so keys don’t end up in commits.
Before you call it done, build every flavor you intend to use, including a clean release build. Missing configs show up here, not on launch day.
You can ship a clean build and still miss real-world problems: odd devices, spotty networks, and edge-case flows. Crash reporting turns those surprises into an actionable list.
Pick one crash reporting tool and wire it in early. The brand matters less than making sure every release sends useful reports.
Many “can’t reproduce” situations come from missing symbols. Make it a release step to upload:
If this is manual, it will get skipped during a busy week.
Decide what you need on day one: app version/build, device model, OS version, locale, and the last screen or action. If you have accounts, add a stable anonymous user ID and a “logged in/logged out” flag. Avoid personal data in logs.
Also capture non-fatal errors. In Flutter, plenty of issues show up as exceptions that don’t crash the app (parse errors, timeouts, unexpected nulls). Send these as non-fatal events with a short message and a few key-value fields.
Test this before release: make a staging build, trigger a forced crash (behind a debug menu or secret gesture), and confirm you see a readable stack trace with the right version and context.
Permissions are a fast way to lose trust on first launch. Before release, list every permission your app might request, the feature that needs it, and what the user gets in return. If you can’t explain it in one short sentence, you probably shouldn’t request it.
Keep the copy plain and specific. “We need access to your photos” is weaker than “Allow photos so you can attach a receipt to your expense.” Avoid technical words like “storage” unless you explain what it means in the moment.
Ask only when the user triggers the related action. Don’t ask for Photos permission on app start. Ask when they tap “Add photo,” after a short pre-permission screen that explains why.
When a user says no, the app should still feel usable. Plan the fallback upfront: keep the feature visible, explain what’s blocked, offer an alternative when possible, and save progress so they don’t lose work. If they choose “Don’t ask again,” guide them to Settings without nagging.
Double-check platform-specific text. iOS needs clear usage descriptions in Info.plist. Android needs correct manifest entries, and sometimes a short in-app explanation. Missing or vague text can cause review delays or user drop-off.
This is a lightweight pass meant to catch issues that only show up in a real release build. Keep it to something you can run in under an hour.
Write a simple script anyone can follow, even without developer tools. The rule: test what users do, not what developers can inspect.
Run it on at least one small phone and one larger device (and ideally one older OS version):
After the run, force-close and relaunch to confirm the app starts cleanly and doesn’t rely on a warm state.
If something fails, note the exact screen, the last action, and whether it only happens on one device size. That’s often enough for a fast fix.
A lot of launch stress comes from store pages, not code. Treat the listing like part of the release work and you avoid last-minute design requests, missing privacy answers, and screenshot chaos.
Collect what you’ll almost certainly need: app icon, screenshots, a short subtitle, a longer description, and whatever platform-specific graphics are required. Promo video is optional and only worth doing if you can keep it current.
For screenshots, pick your device sizes early and stick to them. Keep a consistent order (onboarding, core screen, key feature, settings, upgrade) so updates don’t turn into a scramble.
Write the description like a human: one clear sentence about what the app does, then a few short benefit lines, then a plain note about subscriptions or accounts if you have them. Don’t promise what you can’t support.
Also gather your privacy and data usage answers now. You’ll be asked about tracking, data types collected, and permissions. If your app requests location, contacts, or photos, explain why in simple words.
If you keep assets organized, updates become routine. A simple structure is enough (icon, screenshots by device type, copy, privacy notes, and release notes).
A dry-run is going through the store submission flow like you’re about to launch, but stopping before you hit Publish. It turns guesses into real answers.
Pick a build you’re willing to submit (even if you won’t ship it). Upload it, fill out the forms, and save everything as a draft. You want to find missing info while you still have time.
Verify:
Plan for “what if the first release is bad.” Decide how you’ll roll back (keep the previous signed artifact), how you’ll ship a hotfix, and what triggers a pause in rollout (crash spikes, login failures).
Also decide how you’ll collect early feedback in the first 48 hours. A small group channel, a support inbox you actually monitor, and an in-app “Send feedback” option can catch obvious issues before they turn into one-star reviews.
Most delays happen because the build you tested isn’t the build you ship. A debug or profile build can look perfect, then the release build fails on a real device because of minification, different config values, or missing runtime permissions.
Another time sink is mixing development and production settings: shipping the staging API URL, the wrong analytics key, or test payment settings. Treat production as its own environment and verify it on the exact release artifact.
These traps repeatedly burn teams:
Picture a Friday upload: a reviewer opens the app, taps a feature that requests access, and the text is vague. You fix the copy, but the signing key is on a colleague’s machine who’s offline. That’s two preventable days.
Use this the day before you cut your first store build. It’s short on purpose. If any item is a “maybe,” stop and fix it before you spend time on store forms.
If you’re building with a platform that can export source code, such as Koder.ai (koder.ai), add one more check: confirm the exported project produces the same signed release build you intend to upload.
A small team of three is getting their first Flutter app into the stores: one developer, one designer, and a part-time PM. They treat the first submission like a rehearsal.
On Monday, the developer generates the release build and realizes the signing key is sitting on a laptop about to be wiped. They fix it that day: move the key to a shared, access-controlled vault, document ownership, and confirm the CI machine can sign builds.
On Tuesday, the PM reads every permission prompt out loud. One stands out: the photo permission text says “required,” but the app only needs it for optional profile pictures. They rewrite the copy to explain the benefit and move the ask to the moment the user taps “Add photo.”
On Thursday, they do a full dry-run submission with final screenshots, release notes, and the production build. The store flags a mismatch between the description and an in-app subscription label. Because it’s a dry-run, they adjust the wording and resubmit before launch day.
They keep a simple timeline for next time:
The first launch teaches you what “ready” actually looks like. Capture it while it’s fresh.
Assign clear owners. Even on a small team, “everyone” usually means “no one,” and key tasks slip:
Turn what you just did into a repeatable checklist and release note template: the commands you ran, the approvals you needed, and the files you uploaded. Add the gotchas, too, like which flavor is production and which permission text reviewers questioned.
Schedule a 20-minute post-release review within a week. Focus on fixes, not blame:
If you build with Koder.ai, Planning Mode can help you track release tasks in one place, and snapshots can give you a known-good state before last-minute changes.
Release-ready means you can produce a signed production (release) build that installs on a clean device and can be submitted without last-minute fixes.
A practical baseline is:
Create a release build, then install it on a device that has never had your app installed.
Check:
If you only tested debug/profile, assume you haven’t really tested what you’re shipping.
Treat signing assets as production credentials:
If the key only exists on one laptop, you’re one accident away from being blocked from updates.
Keep signing tied to the Apple Developer account with clear admin access.
Do this early:
Start with two flavors: dev and prod.
Typical differences:
The goal is to avoid manual file edits right before release.
Use secrets injection instead of committing them.
Good defaults:
This prevents accidentally shipping staging endpoints or test payment settings.
Pick one crash reporting tool and make it part of the release process.
Minimum setup:
Then test it with a forced crash in a staging/release build and confirm the report looks usable.
Ask only when the user triggers the feature.
A good pattern:
Vague prompts and early permission spam are common causes of distrust and review delays.
Run a fast “release build smoke test” that anyone can follow:
Keep notes: last action, screen, device model, and whether it reproduces.
Do a dry-run submission and save it as a draft.
Verify you have ready:
Also decide your rollback/hotfix plan before you press Publish.
