How to Use Spanish (Mexico) to Double US App Store Keywords
Take advantage of Apple's cross-indexing rules to gain 160 bonus characters in the US
How Cross-Locale Indexing Works in the US
In the United States, Apple indexes two primary languages for every search query: English (US) and Spanish (Mexico).
This was introduced by Apple to serve the large Spanish-speaking demographic in the US.
However, Apple does not restrict Spanish (Mexico) metadata to Spanish words. You can place English keywords inside your Spanish (Mexico) localization, and they will index for US users searching in English!
Step-by-Step Implementation
Add the 'Spanish (Mexico)' locale in App Store Connect.
If your target audience is purely English-speaking US users, fill the Spanish (Mexico) Title, Subtitle, and Keyword field with secondary English keywords you couldn't fit in your English (US) metadata.
Do not repeat keywords already in your English (US) set. Use this space for long-tail synonyms, problem queries, and feature variants.
How ASOGrade solves this
- Find 50+ high-demand keywords in ASOGrade.
- Assign your primary 15–20 keywords to your English (US) metadata.
- Assign the next 20–30 keywords to your Spanish (Mexico) metadata to double your total indexed keywords in the US App Store.
Frequently asked questions
- Does Apple reject apps for putting English keywords in Spanish (Mexico)?
- No. Thousands of top-ranking iOS apps utilize English keywords in their Spanish (Mexico) and Canadian French localizations without rejection.
- Can words from English (US) and Spanish (Mexico) combine into phrases?
- No. Apple combines words within a single localization (Title + Subtitle + Keywords in US), but does not cross-combine words between English (US) and Spanish (Mexico). Each locale forms its own phrase combinations.
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