A lot of people open Shadowrocket for the first time and treat it like a finished product: pay once, get online. They paid in the store, the icon is on the Home Screen, then the list is empty and the switch just clicks. The app isn’t broken. Two completely different bills got treated as one.
Shadowrocket is a network client for iOS and iPadOS. What it does is specific: it reads the nodes or subscription you provide, asks the system for a VPN configuration, and forwards traffic the way you choose. It does not assign addresses, rent bandwidth, know how many days are left on a plan, or drop in a working line the moment you buy the app. Search the exact name Shadowrocket in the store, and match the listing. A similar name is not this app.
So it’s more like a radio than a radio station. Buy the official set; tune the frequency yourself. Client only, no working line: the switch clicks and nothing happens. Line only, wrapped in a shady shell: the risk sits on the other side. This site explains the client side only. No servers, subscription links, or invite codes.
What you actually bought in the store
What you pay on the App Store is a software license—one-time, tied to this copy of the app on this device. The app ID is 932747118. One-time means you don’t pay the developer a monthly “software rent.” It does not mean a node stays alive forever, or that any line provider is bound to this icon.
On a new device, restore the purchase with the Apple ID that paid. What you restore is the app. Whether the subscription shows up too depends on whether you saved the link elsewhere, and whether the provider lets this new device pull the list. An iCloud backup alone may not bring back the VPN configuration and node list in full. After you delete the app, the local list may be wiped, but if the subscription URL is still in your email or the provider’s dashboard, you can import it again after reinstalling.
Whether Family Sharing can pass the app to family members follows Apple’s current rules and whether this app supports it. Even if family can install the app, the line does not travel with it. That’s a separate contract.
Who holds the line’s bill
A node is an exit: host, port, password, and transport. A subscription is a provider-controlled URL the client fetches on a schedule, refreshing the whole set at once. Whoever holds the link can change your exit. So ask where it came from before you ask whether it connects. A mystery subscription from a forum or group chat has already handed your exit to someone else the moment you paste it.
Whether a node expired, data ran out, or you hit a device limit is not something the client can see in full. It can only tell you: is the list empty, can this row handshake, what’s the latency. Revive a plan, add a device, change a port—those go back to the provider who gave you the config. Tapping Update over and over will not resurrect an expired plan, and it will not bring back a node already removed from the remote list.
A green speed test only means this hop is still alive, not that pages will be fast. Third-party “speed test” apps measure the whole device’s exit, which may not be the node you selected, so they can’t convict a single row. When it feels slow, update the subscription, switch to a node you just tested, then consider settings. Don’t start by changing ciphers, randomly swapping ports, or turning on MITM.
Three common mix-ups when the bills get tangled
- The app is still there, pages won’t open: check the subscription and nodes first, don’t reinstall the client. Reinstalling fixes the software, not an empty remote list or a stopped plan.
- The switch is on, only some sites work: usually mode, rules, or DNS—not “you didn’t buy the official app.” Switch to Proxy to verify, then go back to Config and add a rule.
- New phone, everything gone: you restored the app, not the line. Recover the purchase account first, then the subscription URL, then allow VPN again.
A quieter mix-up: treating “buy it again in the store” as a line renewal. The client has no monthly rent. What you renew is the service, not another copy of Shadowrocket—unless you changed devices and can’t restore the purchase.
Line up three things before you start
Official app, a working line, and system VPN permission. Missing any one of them, no amount of UI fluency will get you through. Permission is the normal iOS door for every app in this class: the first connect asks to add a VPN configuration, confirmed with Face ID or a passcode. Allowing only means traffic can be taken over. With no node, pages will not improve. If you tapped Don’t Allow, delete the old configuration in Settings and flip the switch in the app again.
The phone’s own Wi-Fi or cellular has to work too. Switch to Direct first to check: if Direct can’t get online, don’t blame the client. After an iOS update you may need to re-authorize once—again, don’t start by editing node parameters.
If the words still feel unstable, open the glossary. For import, picking a node, the three modes, and layered troubleshooting, follow the tutorial. For buying, switching regions, and spotting fakes, see the download page.