iOS Browser Considerations

iOS users can reach the Variant Launch viewer in a number of ways.

Safari

When launching in standard Safari session, the user will see the App Clip Launch Card configured for the experience pop up:

By tapping 'Open App Clip', the URL you specified will open in the Variant Launch viewer. If the user accidentally hits 'View in Safari', the Launch Card will transform into a top-banner, and the Launch page will encourage the user to tap the banner to open the Variant Launch viewer.

Direct App Clip URLs

Direct App Clip URLs are intended for standard Safari sessions. If the user opens one from Chrome, an in-app browser, or another browser without App Clip support, they may see Apple's App Clip preview page instead of launching your experience.

When a direct App Clip URL is opened outside Safari, the user sees Apple's generic App Clip preview page, which can be confusing.

If you use a direct App Clip URL, your own page needs to guide the user into Safari first. If you do not want to build and maintain that browser guidance yourself, use the default Launch Card flow. The Launch Card is designed to detect the user's browser and show the right instructions before opening the Variant Launch viewer.

Safari Private & browsers without App Clip support

App Clip Launch Card do not show up on Private sessions, so we instead encourage the user to tap and hold a button to launch the App Clip directly, or copy & paste the URL into a standard Safari session.