How to handle app support as a solo developer (with reply templates)

Short answer: for a small app, good support is a clear support email, a short FAQ, a way to contact you from inside the app, and kind replies within a day or two. Use saved templates for common questions, batch support into fixed times, and send refund requests to the store. Most importantly, track what people ask: every repeated question is a bug, a missing feature or a confusing screen.

What do the stores require?

• Google Play: a contact email on your store listing. A website and phone number are optional.
• App Store: a support URL that leads to real contact information.

Use an address on your own domain, such as support@yourapp.com, so you can move it to a help desk later without changing your listings.

What should I set up before launch?

1. A support email that forwards to an inbox you check.
2. An FAQ page with the ten questions you expect: sign-in, restoring purchases, deleting an account, exporting data, privacy.
3. "Contact support" inside the app, in Settings. Pre-fill the app version, device model and OS version (and ask before including logs).
4. Saved replies in your email client or help desk.

A help desk tool helps once you get more than a handful of emails a day. Until then, email with labels works fine. Compare tools in best app feedback tools for indie developers.

How fast should I reply?

Within one or two working days is fine for most indie apps, as long as you say so on the support page. A quick first reply ("Thanks, I'm looking into it") calms people even when the fix takes longer. Batch support into one or two fixed sessions a day so it doesn't eat your build time.

Reply templates

Bug report:

Thanks for letting me know, and sorry about the trouble. I've reproduced it and I'm working on a fix for the next update. I'll write again when it's out. In the meantime, [workaround].

Feature request:

Thanks for the idea! I've added it to the list I use to plan updates. I can't promise when, but requests like yours decide what gets built next.

How-to question:

Good question. Here's how: [steps]. I've also added this to the FAQ: [link]. Let me know if it works.

Restore purchases:

Purchases are tied to your [Apple ID / Google account]. Open Settings › Restore purchases while signed in with the same account you bought with. If it still doesn't work, reply with the order number from your receipt and I'll check.

How do I handle refund requests?

For purchases made through the stores, the store handles refunds. On iOS, users request them at reportaproblem.apple.com. On Google Play, users can request refunds through Google Play's order history, and developers can also issue refunds from Play Console. Reply kindly, point to the right place, and never ask for a store rating in return for help.

How do I deal with angry users?

Read the message twice, and reply to the problem, not the tone. Apologize for the experience, explain what you'll do, and follow up when it's fixed. Many angry users become loyal ones after a fast, human reply. If someone is abusive, you can end the conversation politely. For public criticism, see how to respond to negative app reviews.

How do I learn from support?

Tag every message: bug, how-to, feature, billing, account. Once a month, count the tags. The top how-to questions point to confusing screens; fix the screen, not just the FAQ. Bugs go into your bug triage process, and feature requests into how you prioritize feedback.

Next steps

Set up the support email, FAQ and in-app contact before launch day, not after. For structured feedback from people who aren't your users yet, list your app on TrueLaunch for free: reviewers say what worked, what to improve and which bugs they found.