VPP (Volume Purchase Program)

Apple’s program (now in ABM/ASM) for purchasing app licenses in bulk. Enables silent installation (Managed Distribution) without user Apple IDs.

What to Know

VPP fundamentally changes how organizations deploy App Store apps by eliminating the requirement for users to have personal Apple IDs to install managed apps. Before VPP, IT departments had to either share a single Apple ID across devices (violating Apple’s Terms of Service), require users to purchase apps with personal accounts (creating ownership confusion), or skip App Store apps entirely. VPP licenses are organization-owned and can be silently installed, revoked, and reassigned as needed.

For organizations managing large fleets, VPP also provides critical cost control and license management capabilities. Licenses can be purchased in bulk with volume discounts, tracked centrally, and automatically reclaimed when employees leave or no longer need specific apps. This prevents the “license sprawl” common with traditional software licensing where organizations continue paying for unused seats or lose track of which users have which apps installed.

Common Scenarios

Enterprise IT: Purchase licenses for productivity apps (Microsoft Office, Adobe Creative Cloud), collaboration tools (Slack, Zoom), or industry-specific software (AutoCAD, Epic Haiku for healthcare) and silently deploy them to the appropriate user groups. Revoke licenses when employees transition roles or leave the company, then reassign those licenses to new hires without additional procurement delays.

MSP: Manage VPP licenses across multiple client organizations by maintaining separate ABM/ASM accounts per client or using reseller APIs. Deploy standard productivity tools to all client devices while tracking per-client license consumption and costs. Particularly valuable for recurring service contracts where app costs can be billed back to clients based on actual license usage.

Education: Deploy educational apps (GarageBand, iMovie, Swift Playgrounds) to student devices without requiring students to have Apple IDs or make purchases. Use device-based assignment to allocate licenses to shared iPad carts that rotate between classrooms, ensuring licenses follow the device rather than individual students who may graduate or transfer schools.

In Addigy

Addigy integrates with Apple Business Manager and Apple School Manager through VPP location tokens to manage app licenses. Admins upload their VPP token in Addigy’s Apple Apps section, which then syncs available apps and licenses. From there, apps can be deployed to devices or users with automatic license assignment and revocation. Addigy supports both device-based and user-based VPP assignment, tracks license consumption across the fleet, and alerts admins when licenses are running low. Addigy also handles automatic license revocation when devices are unenrolled or when apps are removed from policy assignments.