Salesforce just dropped an important announcement that’s easy to miss, but it has big implications for how integrations are built and secured going forward. Starting with the Spring ’26 release, Salesforce will disable the creation of new Connected Apps by default across all orgs, marking a major step toward their long-term retirement. In their place, Salesforce is pushing forward with External Client Apps (ECAs) as the new standard.

This change isn’t happening overnight, and existing Connected Apps aren’t suddenly breaking—but it is a clear signal that the future of Salesforce integrations is shifting.

What’s Actually Changing in Spring ’26?

Connected Apps aren’t disappearing yet, but Salesforce is officially closing the door on creating new ones unless you jump through extra hoops. Beginning in Spring ’26, customers won’t be able to create new Connected Apps through the UI or API unless Salesforce Support explicitly enables that capability for their org. The only exception is Connected Apps created as part of a managed package, which will continue to be supported.

If you already have Connected Apps in place, you can breathe easy for now. All existing Connected Apps will continue to function, and you’ll still be able to edit, install, deploy, or delete them as needed. Salesforce is intentionally giving customers time to transition rather than forcing a hard cutoff.

This follows the Winter ’26 update, where Connected App creation via the UI was already disabled by default in new orgs unless an admin manually turned it on. Spring ’26 tightens that further by requiring a Support request to enable Connected App creation at all—and Salesforce has been clear that this option will eventually go away entirely.

Why Salesforce Is Making This Move

External Client Apps are essentially the next generation of Connected Apps. Salesforce built ECAs to address long-standing pain points around security, packaging, and distribution, especially for orgs that rely heavily on integrations and third-party tools.

ECAs use second-generation managed packaging, making them more secure, more scalable, and easier to distribute across orgs. From Salesforce’s perspective, this change reduces risk, improves governance, and creates a clearer model for how external applications access Salesforce data.

In short: Connected Apps did their job, but ECAs are better built for where Salesforce is headed.

What You Should Be Doing Now

If you’re responsible for Salesforce integrations—especially in RevOps, IT, or security—this is the moment to get proactive.

Start by inventorying your existing Connected Apps. Know what they do, who owns them, and whether they’re still actively used. This alone uncovers a surprising amount of technical debt in most orgs.

Next, begin using External Client Apps for all new integrations. Even though you can request temporary access to create new Connected Apps after Spring ’26, that door will close in future releases. Anything new should be built on ECAs from day one.

And finally, make security awareness part of the process. Any time an app connects to Salesforce, it’s gaining access to your data. Only approve apps from trusted vendors, and if someone asks you to install an app via email or phone, don’t proceed. Report it to your admin team, your internal security team, and Salesforce directly at
👉 https://security.salesforce.com/contact

A Quick Look at External Client Apps

External Client Apps are created directly in App Manager and can be either local to a single org or packaged for distribution. They support modern OAuth flows, SAML authentication, Canvas apps, mobile configurations, push notifications, and more—all with tighter controls than legacy Connected Apps.

Admins with the right permissions can create ECAs in Lightning Experience across Professional, Enterprise, Unlimited, Performance, and Developer Editions. Configuration is modular, meaning settings and policies are applied per plugin, which makes governance far cleaner over time.

The Bottom Line

This Spring ’26 update doesn’t mean panic—but it does mean preparation. Connected Apps are officially on the path to End of Support, and Salesforce is giving customers a runway to modernize before that happens.

If your org relies on integrations (and let’s be honest—every org does), now is the time to plan your migration, clean up legacy apps, and standardize on External Client Apps. The teams that start early will avoid last-minute scrambles later.

And if you need help auditing your current setup or planning a smooth transition, that’s exactly where Revenue Ops teams can step in and lead the charge.