About Screen for Your App: What to Show and Examples
An about screen shows your app's version, support contact, licenses and privacy policy. Here's what to put on it and how to add one to a web or mobile app.
Overview & context
The about screen is the one place in an app everybody knows exists and nobody has opened since the first release. Yet it's exactly where users look when they report a bug or need a support contact. Below you'll find what belongs on an app about page, examples by app type and how to add one to web and mobile apps.
1. What an about screen is for
Users open it a handful of times over the life of an app. But every time, they need something: to report a bug, check whether they're on the latest version or find the terms of use. If the version number isn't there, support has to ask around and a developer digs it out of the source code or the deployment history.
The about screen also has a legal job. Your privacy policy and the licenses of the open source components you use have to be reachable somewhere. About is where users look first.
2. What to show on an app about page
Not everything has to be visible right away. The version and support contact go at the top. Legal documents and licenses can be links.
3. About screen examples by app type
Where the about screen lives and what it can't miss depends on the type of app. Users look for it where other apps on the same platform put it.
| App type | Where users look | Must include |
|---|---|---|
| Web app | Footer or Help menu | Version, what's new, support, service status |
| Internal company app | Footer or user menu | Version, who maintains it, where to report bugs, documentation |
| Mobile app | Settings → About | Version and build, privacy policy, licenses, contact |
| Desktop app | Help → About | Version, edition or license, update check |
| Library or API | Documentation site | Version, changelog, repository |
4. How to add an about screen in Flutter, Android and web apps
Flutter ships a ready-made showAboutDialog and an AboutListTile for your settings page. Both include a button that opens the licenses of every package you use. Don't hardcode the version in the dialog. Read it at runtime instead, for example with the package_info_plus package.
On native Android, Google's Gradle plugin builds the license list for you, see Include open source notices. On the web, a plain page or dialog linked from the footer is enough.
final info = await PackageInfo.fromPlatform();
showAboutDialog(
context: context,
applicationName: info.appName,
applicationVersion: '${info.version} (${info.buildNumber})',
applicationLegalese: '© 2026 Acme',
);5. A ready-made about screen with AboutTheApp
A hand-built about screen has one weak spot: every new link or corrected terms URL means a new app release. The AboutTheApp About box is a ready-made card you add to your app once. It shows the logo, name, version, description, links to support, docs and legal documents, plus the release notes. You edit the content in the dashboard, so changing a link doesn't need a release.
The About box is a Web Component, so it works in React, Vue, Angular, WordPress and plain HTML. The React guide walks through it step by step. The About box can't read the version number from your app. Record it in AboutTheApp by hand or from CI/CD. You can also have your app pass it in the version attribute. The list of third-party components with their licenses lives on the app's About page under Components & Licenses and the card links there.
AboutTheApp has no native component for Flutter, iOS or Android. From your about screen, open the direct link to the app's About page or load the data from the JSON API (https://aboutthe.app/api/v1/abouts/<alias>) and render it in your own screen.
Frequently asked questions
What should an about screen include?
The app's name and description, the version and build number, what's new, a support contact, links to the privacy policy and terms of use and a list of open source licenses. A button that copies diagnostic info for bug reports is useful too.
Where should the about screen be in an app?
Where users on that platform expect it. In a mobile app that's Settings, in a desktop app the Help menu and in a web app the footer or the Help menu.
Do I have to show open source licenses in my app?
For most licenses, yes. MIT and Apache 2.0, for example, require the copyright notice and license text to ship with the software you distribute. Mobile and desktop apps usually handle this with a separate licenses screen linked from the about screen.
Should the about screen show the build number?
Yes, if one version can ship in several builds. That's typical for mobile apps, where you upload several builds with the same version to the store. The build number then tells support exactly which build the user has.
Can I change the about screen without releasing a new app version?
Only if the content loads at runtime instead of being hardcoded. The AboutTheApp About box loads links, description and release notes from the dashboard every time it's shown. The version number still has to be recorded in AboutTheApp or passed in from your app.
In short
Users rarely open the about screen, but when they do, they need the version, a contact or the terms. That's why it should be current and have everything in one place.
Want an about screen without building one?
Add your app to AboutTheApp for free, attach your links and drop the About box into your app.