How to enroll in the Apple Developer Program in 2026
A practical preparation checklist for individuals and organizations.
This guide covers an Individual enrollment: from creating an Apple Account to confirming the paid membership. Organization enrollment has different requirements, including legal-entity verification and usually a D‑U‑N‑S Number.
What you need before you start
Official requirements
- Your real legal first and last name
- Legal age of majority in your region
- An email address and phone number you can keep
- Two-factor authentication enabled
- A real residential address — P.O. boxes are not accepted
- Your own credit card if you choose credit-card payment on the web
Practical recommendations
- Use an up-to-date Safari, Chrome or Firefox
- Use a stable home or mobile connection
- Avoid VPN, proxy and Tor during enrollment
- Keep country, address, phone and billing data consistent with real records
- Have a government-issued photo ID ready in case Apple requests verification
Apple does not publish a universal rule requiring the IP country, phone country and card-issuing country to match. Treat this as a consistency recommendation, not a guarantee of approval.
Step-by-step enrollment
Create an Apple Account
Open account.apple.com and choose Create Your Apple Account. Enter your legal name, country or region, date of birth, email, password and a phone number you can always access.
Verify email, phone and security
Enter the verification codes sent by Apple. Confirm that your email and trusted phone are available and that two-factor authentication is enabled. Creating an Apple Account alone does not activate the paid Developer Program.
Sign in to Apple Developer
Open developer.apple.com, choose Account and sign in. Review and accept the Apple Developer Agreement to register as a free developer before starting paid enrollment.
Start enrollment
Open the Apple Developer Program enrollment page and select Start Your Enrollment. Choose Individual / Sole Proprietor when enrolling in your own name. Do not choose Organization unless a legal entity is applying.
Review identity and agreements
Check your legal name, phone and residential address carefully. Your legal name becomes the App Store seller name for an Individual membership. Apple may ask for identity documents or additional information.
Pay for the membership
After verification, accept the Program License Agreement and complete the purchase. Membership is 99 USD per year or the local-currency price shown by Apple. If paying by credit card on the web, use your own card.
Wait for activation
A payment or order confirmation is not always the final activation notice. Wait for Apple’s membership confirmation, then check Membership details and access to App Store Connect.
Common problems
Frequently asked questions
Do I need an iPhone or Mac?
Not to create the account or complete web enrollment. A Mac with Xcode is normally needed to build, sign and submit iOS apps.
Can I enroll from Windows?
Yes, the web enrollment can be completed in a supported modern browser.
How long does enrollment take?
There is no guaranteed universal time. Straightforward individual applications may complete quickly; identity or payment checks take longer.
Can I use another person’s card?
For an Individual web enrollment paid by credit card, Apple says to use your own credit card. Otherwise processing may be delayed and identity documents requested.
Individual or Organization?
Individual shows your legal personal name as seller. Organization shows the verified legal-entity name and supports a team, but has additional verification requirements.
Can I change the country later?
Membership name, address and contact changes may require a request to Apple and supporting documents. Enter accurate data from the start.
Official Apple resources
Fact-checked against Apple documentation on 13 October 2026