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Tools & Signups Guide

Tools & Signups — Every Website You Need, and Why

Every account you need for this system, what it's for in plain English, what it costs, and the exact signup steps. Do these in order — later ones sometimes need earlier ones done first.

1. Apple ID (free, do this first)

What it is: your personal Apple account — the same one you'd use for iCloud or the App Store on your phone. Why you need it: everything else Apple-related (Developer Program, App Store Connect, Expo Go itself) is built on top of this. Cost: free.

Signup:

  1. Go to appleid.apple.com
  2. Click "Create Your Apple ID"
  3. Fill in your info, verify your email/phone
  4. If you already have one from owning an iPhone, skip this — you're done.

2. Claude (claude.ai account + Claude Code)

What it is: Claude.ai is Anthropic's AI assistant. Claude Code is the version that runs in your terminal and actually writes/edits code for you — it's the engine behind this entire system. Why you need it: this is what builds your app. Cost: $20/month (Pro tier — plenty for this course).

Signup:

  1. Go to claude.ai
  2. Sign up with an email (or Google account)
  3. Subscribe to a paid plan — Settings → Billing → choose Pro ($20/mo)
  4. Install Claude Code on your machine (see 01-environment-setup.md)
  5. Run claude in your terminal the first time — it opens a browser tab, log in there once, and you're connected

3. GitHub

What it is: where your project's code lives and gets versioned — the standard place developers store code. Why you need it: EAS (see below) ties into a GitHub repo for builds, and it's good practice regardless. Cost: free.

Signup:

  1. Go to github.com
  2. Sign up with an email
  3. No further setup needed until Claude Code walks you through connecting a project

4. ChatGPT

What it is: an AI image generation tool — this is what creates your app's icon, illustrations, and visual assets from text descriptions. Why you need it: Claude Code writes the prompts describing what each image should look like, but ChatGPT is what generates the actual image files. Cost: free tier works for basic use; $20/month (Plus) for higher volume/quality.

Signup:

  1. Go to chatgpt.com
  2. Sign up with email or Google
  3. Free tier is enough to start — upgrade only if you hit limits generating assets in Phase 3

5. Expo

What it is: the platform this whole system is built on — scaffolds your project, and Expo Go (their free companion app) lets you preview it live on your phone. Why you need it: this is how you see your app running without ever needing a Mac or a simulator. Cost: free.

Signup:

  1. Go to expo.dev, sign up with email or GitHub
  2. Install Expo Go on your iPhone from the App Store (free) — see 01-environment-setup.md
  3. No further setup needed until Phase 2, when Claude Code scaffolds your first project

6. EAS (Expo Application Services)

What it is: the cloud build service — compiles your app into a real iOS binary and submits it to the App Store, entirely from your Windows machine. Why you need it: this is the piece that replaces Xcode entirely. Without it, there's no way to produce a real, installable/submittable iOS app from Windows. Cost: free tier (15 iOS builds/month, lower-priority queue) is enough for course use if you test in Expo Go first. Paid tiers ($19-199/mo) exist for faster queues/more builds — not needed for this course.

Signup:

  1. Uses your Expo account — no separate signup
  2. Install the CLI: npm install -g eas-cli (see 01-environment-setup.md)
  3. Run eas login once you have a project

7. Apple Developer Program

What it is: the paid membership that lets you build apps with native features (ads, in-app purchases) and publish to the real App Store. Why you need it: required the moment you add any native module — not just at final submission. EAS needs real Apple credentials to build anything beyond a pure-JS Expo Go preview. Cost: $99/year.

Signup:

  1. Go to developer.apple.com
  2. Sign in with your Apple ID
  3. Click "Enroll" under the Developer Program
  4. Choose Individual — simpler and cheaper for one person
  5. Pay the $99 — approval can take anywhere from a few hours to a couple of days

Explainer: if your app stays pure-JS (no ads, no IAP, no other native modules), you never need this — Expo Go preview is free and Mac-free indefinitely. This is a real design decision for a course project, not just a formality.

8. App Store Connect

What it is: the dashboard where you manage your published apps — metadata, screenshots, pricing, reviews, analytics. Why you need it: this is where your app actually gets submitted (via eas submit) and where you see its real-world performance after launch. Cost: included with the Apple Developer Program.

Access: once your Developer Program membership is approved, go to appstoreconnect.apple.com and sign in with the same Apple ID.

9. Vercel (free website hosting)

What it is: a hosting service for simple websites — this is where your app's privacy policy page, support page, or marketing landing page lives. Why you need it: Apple requires a privacy policy URL and (often) a support URL when you submit an app. Cost: free for this use case.

Signup:

  1. Go to vercel.com
  2. Sign up (GitHub account makes deploying easiest)
  3. No further setup needed until you're ready to deploy a page

10. Hostinger (domain name — optional)

What it is: a domain registrar — where you buy a real web address instead of using a free Vercel subdomain. Why you need it: entirely optional, cosmetic. Cost: ~$9.99/year.

Signup:

  1. Go to hostinger.com
  2. Search for your desired domain name
  3. Purchase, point it at your Vercel deployment when ready

Quick reference: cost summary

| Service | Cost | When you pay | |---|---|---| | Apple ID | Free | — | | Claude Code | $20/month | Ongoing, entire course | | GitHub | Free | — | | ChatGPT (assets) | Free or $20/month | Phase 3 (Assets) | | Expo | Free | — | | EAS | Free tier | Phase 8 (Build/Submit) | | Apple Developer Program | $99/year | Once you add any native module (ads/IAP), or before real submission | | Vercel | Free | — | | Hostinger domain | $9.99/year | Optional | | A Mac | Not needed, ever | N/A |