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China Holiday Screenshot Refresh Calendar 2026–2027: When to Swap Store Assets for Double 11, Spring Festival and 618
The hard part is timing, not design
Most teams agree that holiday creative helps. In practice, someone remembers on November 11 itself. Screenshots need design time and review, and sometimes a rejection and resubmission. By the time the new assets go live, half the traffic peak is gone. Forget to roll them back, and your listing still shows red lanterns in March, which makes the app look unmaintained.
Our seasonal screenshot strategy guide covers why to refresh. This one covers when, for the China calendar specifically. If you also ship to Western storefronts, pair it with the US & EU holiday refresh calendar.
First: what changes fast and what doesn't
"Swapping the screenshots" costs very different amounts of effort depending on what you change and where. Get this table straight and the calendar falls into place.
| What you want to change | App Store | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Promotional text | Anytime, no resubmission | Up to 170 characters, shown above the description |
| Product page header / search results creative assets | Submit standalone in advance, then Publish onto the live version once approved | iOS 27 / iPadOS 27 and later; see creative asset sizes |
| Screenshots / app previews | Normally submitted with a new version | Product page optimization tests without alternate icons can be submitted independently of a new version |
| Chinese Android store screenshots | Updating listing info triggers review again | Huawei, Xiaomi, OPPO, vivo and Honor each work differently; follow the console |
Sources: Apple's platform version information (promotional text), Manage your App Store assets (creative assets) and product page optimization.
The takeaway: the closer you are to the holiday, the more you should rely on the fast levers. Submit screenshot changes early. In the final days, touch only promotional text and creative assets that are already approved.
The 2026–2027 calendar
The "suggested" dates below are our own planning rule of thumb, not platform requirements. Official public holiday arrangements come from China's State Council.
| Moment | Date | Finalize assets | Go live | Roll back |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Double 11 | November 11 | Late October | Early November | Soon after November 12 |
| Double 12 | December 12 | Reuse Double 11 visuals, tweak | Early December | Mid-December |
| New Year | January 1 | Mid-December | Late December | Early January |
| Spring Festival 2027 | February 6 (New Year's Eve February 5) | Early January | Mid-to-late January | After the Lantern Festival (February 20) |
| 618 mid-year sale | June 18 | Late May | Early June | After June 19 |
A few notes:
- Spring Festival is the one worth the most effort. Under China's current national holiday rules it's a four-day statutory holiday (New Year's Eve plus the first three days). The detailed 2027 schedule had not been published when we wrote this. Your own team, and anyone you depend on, will start taking leave a week or two before, so lock assets by early January.
- Double 11 and 618 suit shopping, budgeting and utility apps. If your app has nothing to do with spending, you don't have to join in, and forcing it can look odd.
- Rolling back matters as much as launching. Put the rollback date on the calendar when you schedule the launch.
What to change: only a few key frames
A holiday refresh is not a redesign. A safer pattern:
- Keep the frame that best explains your core feature, so returning users and search visitors still recognize you.
- Swap the first frame or add one themed frame, using color, illustration and a seasonal scene for atmosphere.
- Write captions about the moment, not the price. A budgeting app might say "See every holiday expense at a glance". A fitness app might say "Keep moving through the break".
In the screenshot editor, duplicate your existing project and change the background and headline. The layout can stay as is. For Chinese Android stores, the 1080×1920 preset covers most of them; per-store differences are in China app store screenshot sizes.
Red lines for holiday assets
No prices or discounts in screenshots. App Review Guideline 2.3.7 says metadata such as app names, subtitles, screenshots and previews should not include prices. Guideline 2.3.14 for creative assets explicitly bans specific or discounted pricing. Google Play's metadata policy lists promotional text like "10% off" or "free for limited time only" as violations, along with ranking claims like "#1" or "Best of Play".
Chinese Android stores also screen for advertising-law language. Superlatives such as "best", "No. 1" or "lowest price anywhere" are high-risk; see China store naming and advertising-law pitfalls.
If you need to tell people a promotion is running:
- App Store: use promotional text or an in-app event.
- Android stores: use release notes or the store's own campaign slots, following each console's rules.
- In screenshots, show only seasonal mood and real functionality.
Did it work?
A holiday lasts a few weeks, so don't expect airtight statistics. You can still:
- On the App Store, use product page optimization to compare the holiday set against the original, changing one thing at a time.
- On Android stores, compare detail-page conversion for two weeks before and after the swap, and note any other promotion running at the same time.
- Archive the assets, dates and numbers, so next year you can reuse and improve them.
Quick timeline
- Now (late October): finalize Double 11 assets; submit any App Store screenshot changes with a version.
- Early November: Double 11 assets go live; start New Year and Spring Festival work.
- Mid-December: finalize Spring Festival assets and get creative assets approved in Asset Library.
- Mid-to-late January: Spring Festival assets go live.
- After February 20 (Lantern Festival): roll back to your regular listing.
Platform rules follow Apple App Store Connect Help, Google Play Console Help and each Android store's console. Last checked October 21, 2026.