Apple locks apps by country. A game available in Japan might not show up in the US store. Same with TV shows, music, and certain services. Changing your App Store region opens access to whatever's available in that country.
There are rules though. You need a payment method that works in the new region. And there's a balance requirement before switching. I'll walk through the whole process plus the gotchas.
Cancel subscriptions and spend your balance first
Before Apple lets you change region, you have to:
- Spend all of your Apple ID store credit (must be at zero)
- Cancel any active subscriptions (Apple Music, iCloud+, app subscriptions)
- Wait for any pending pre-orders to complete or cancel them
- Receive any refunds you're owed
- Have a valid payment method for the new country ready
The credit one trips most people up. If you have $2.31 from a refund or gift card, Apple refuses the region change until it's zero. Spend it on something cheap from the App Store first.
Change region on iPhone or iPad
Open Settings, tap your name at the top to open Apple ID settings. Pick Media & Purchases, then View Account. Sign in if asked. Tap Country/Region, then Change Country or Region, and pick the new one from the list.
Agree to the new terms and conditions. Then you'll get prompted to enter a new payment method and billing address. The address has to be a real one in that country. PO boxes work for some but not all countries.
Change region on Mac
On Mac, open System Settings, click your Apple ID, pick Media & Purchases, then Manage. Same flow as iPhone from there – change country, agree to terms, enter new payment.
You can also do it via the App Store app. Click your account icon bottom-left, hit Apple ID at the top, and follow the same prompts.
Payment method options for the new country
For most countries you need either a credit card billed in that country or a gift card from that country's App Store. PayPal works in some. Carrier billing works if you have a local phone number with a participating carrier.
Gift card route is the easiest for testing – buy a small gift card online for the target country, redeem it on your account, and Apple accepts "none" as payment method as long as there's credit on the balance. Some sites sell legitimate gift codes for international iTunes accounts.
What stays and what disappears
After the switch, your account moves to the new store. Some things change:
| Item | What happens |
|---|---|
| Purchased apps | Stay on your device but may not redownload if region-locked |
| Music in your library | Stays, but new purchases come from new region |
| TV shows / movies bought | May not be available in new region for download |
| iCloud storage | Unaffected, stays the same |
| Subscriptions you cancelled | Have to re-subscribe in new region |
So back up anything important. The apps you already downloaded keep working but you might lose access to redownload them if the country restricts that app.
Common errors during the switch
If you get "You cannot change your country or region because you have store credit", your balance isn't zero yet. Check the App Store for any leftover cents and spend them.
"Subscription must be cancelled" means at least one auto-renewing subscription is still active. Go to Settings then your name then Subscriptions and cancel them all. Wait for the current period to end if they show as "active".
What country are you trying to switch to? Tell me and I'll mention any specific blockers for that one.