Dad Hack: How to Actually Share App Store Purchases with Your Family

Mar 2025

Found myself in a classic parent moment yesterday. My older daughter wanted to learn Minecraft on her iPad, so I bought it for $6.99. When my younger one predictably wanted it too, the App Store presented me with the option to buy it again.

Since we were on a Family Sharing plan, I suspected we shouldn't have to buy it twice - that's the whole point of Apple's family features, right? Some digging on Reddit helped me find the solution:

  1. Open the App Store on your iOS device
  2. Tap your account icon in the upper right corner
  3. Select "Apps"
  4. Choose the family member account where you originally bought the app
  5. Find the app and tap the cloud icon to download (no second payment needed!)

Seems obvious in hindsight, but Apple doesn't make this clear at all. This works for any app eligible for Family Sharing, not just Minecraft.

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