Why do my push notification links open the app on iOS instead of the web browser?

If a push notification URL opens your app on iOS instead of launching a browser (while Android opens the browser), the usual cause is Universal Links, not the notification itself.

On iOS, Pushwoosh opens a notification URL through the system continueUserActivity path. If your app declares the link's domain in its Associated Domains entitlement (applinks:yourdomain.com) and Apple's apple-app-site-association file matches the path, iOS hands the URL to your app instead of Safari. Android has no equivalent claim unless you configure App Links, which is why the behaviour differs per platform.

What to check

1. Verify the push configuration. Make sure the URL is set in the Action settings of the notification for both iOS and Android.

2. Check your Associated Domains / AASA file. If the URL's domain and path are covered by your app's applinks: entitlement, iOS will always route the link into the app. Either narrow the paths in your apple-app-site-association file, or use a URL on a domain your app does not claim.

3. Handle it in your app. If the app must receive the activity but you want the link shown in a browser, open it yourself from your continueUserActivity handler with UIApplication.shared.open(url).

4. Fallback control. If swizzling or a plugin makes continueUserActivity return the wrong value and links behave inconsistently, the iOS SDK exposes the Pushwoosh_DISABLE_URL_FALLBACK boolean key in Info.plist to disable the automatic Safari fallback.

5. Keep the SDK current. Update to the latest Pushwoosh iOS SDK (7.2.0 at the time of writing) so you are on current URL-handling behaviour before troubleshooting further.