To publish a paid app on the Salesforce AppExchange you need six things: Salesforce Partner Program membership, a managed package, a registered namespace, the License Management App to track licenses, a passed security review ($999 per submission), and a published listing in the Partner Console. The two requirements unique to paid apps are the License Management App and the $999 review fee; free apps need everything else.

Pro Tip

TL;DR: A paid AppExchange app requires Partner Program membership, a managed package with a namespace, the License Management App (LMA) to enforce licensing, and a passed security review costing $999 per submission (Salesforce ISVforce Guide). Free apps need the same managed package and review but skip the LMA and the fee.

Six requirements gate a paid listing. Miss any one and you cannot charge for the app.

1. Salesforce Partner Program membership, with the Partner Program Agreement accepted and a Partner Business Org provisioned.

2. A managed package. Paid distribution requires a managed (not unmanaged) package so it can be licensed and upgraded.

3. A registered namespace, the globally unique 1 to 15 character prefix on your components.

4. The License Management App (LMA), registered in your Partner Business Org to issue, track, and enforce customer licenses. This is what makes an app sellable.

5. A passed security review. Paid apps pay $999 per submission (Salesforce Trailhead).

6. A published listing created in the AppExchange Partner Console.

The requirements overlap heavily. Both paid and free apps need a managed package, a namespace, and a passed security review. Only two requirements are unique to paid apps.

Pro Tip

Our finding: Many first-time builders assume "paid" adds heavy extra engineering. It does not. The deltas are licensing (the LMA) and the $999 fee. The managed package work is identical, which is why generating it no-code applies equally to free and paid apps.

The License Management App is a free Salesforce app you install in your Partner Business Org. It records every install of your package, lets you set license type (seat-based, site-wide, free trial), and lets you activate, suspend, or expire a customer's access. Without it, you cannot enforce who has paid, so it is the practical dividing line between a free and a commercial app.

No. The requirements describe artifacts (a managed package, a namespace, an LMA registration, a passed review), not who built them. A no-code platform generates the managed package and namespace and prepares the code for the security review, leaving you to handle the partner-program and LMA setup, which are configuration tasks, not coding. See our guide on building a managed package without a Salesforce developer.

Partner Program membership, a managed package with a namespace, the License Management App to track licenses, a passed security review ($999 per submission), and a published listing (Salesforce ISVforce Guide).

Both need a managed package and a passed security review. Paid apps additionally need the License Management App to enforce licensing and pay the $999 review fee plus a 15% revenue share. Free apps skip both.

A free Salesforce app installed in your Partner Business Org that records installs and lets you issue, track, and enforce customer licenses. It is required to sell a paid app because it controls who has access.

The security review is $999 per submission, and Salesforce takes a 15% revenue share under the ISVforce model. Build cost is separate and runs $25,000 to $150,000+ if you hire developers, or a subscription if you generate the package no-code.

About the author. Sunny Chauhan is the founder and CEO of Appnigma AI, a no-code platform that generates Salesforce AppExchange-ready managed packages. He helps SaaS teams meet AppExchange publishing requirements without an engineering build.

Publishing a paid Salesforce AppExchange app requires Partner Program membership, a managed package with a namespace, the License Management App to enforce licensing, a passed security review ($999 per submission), and a published listing. The License Management App and the fee are the only requirements unique to paid apps; free apps need the same managed package and review. Appnigma AI generates the managed package no-code.

• How to get your app on the Salesforce AppExchange

• How to build a managed package without a Salesforce developer

• How does the AppExchange revenue share work

• What is a managed package in Salesforce

1. Salesforce ISVforce Guide, publish and manage your listing

2. Salesforce Trailhead, ISV Security Review module

3. Salesforce ISVforce Guide, License Management App