SharePoint “App Model” is renamed to “Add-in Model”

The name “apps for SharePoint” is changing to “SharePoint Add-ins” & its official (https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/office/fp179904(v=office.15).aspx#Minor). Any references to the app with-in the SharePoint eco-system will now be termed as Add-in. This is not limited to SharePoint but also Office.

But why this change? Some reasons we get from experts,

• Microsoft’s multi-platform support of Office client across the Windows/Mac, iOS, Android and Windows 10 environments ended terming the Office client as “apps”, and so having “apps” within “apps” was causing confusion
• Microsoft received multiple feedback that “apps” weren’t working in the enterprise space who were building something that was valued at much more than a simple app.

The notion also needed to be consistent here with the name change across both Office & SharePoint for the Office Store perspective.

Whatever may be the reasons, we just need to update our pointers from Apps to Add-ins. Below is the table that might help you to do that.

Original name	New name	Applies to
apps for Office	Office Add-ins	Office
mail app for Outlook	Outlook Add-in	Office
app for Excel	Excel Add-in	Office
app for PowerPoint	PowerPoint Add-in	Office
app for Word	Word Add-in	Office
apps for SharePoint	SharePoint Add-ins	SharePoint
app part	add-in part	SharePoint
app web	add-in web	SharePoint
SharePoint App Model	SharePoint Add-in Model	SharePoint
SharePoint Hosted App	SharePoint Hosted Add-in	SharePoint
SharePoint Provider Hosted App	SharePoint Provider Hosted Add-in	SharePoint