Firebase is Shutting Down Dynamic Links. Branch Has You Covered.
Romain Berton
Customer Experience l Digital Growth for Brands we Love I AI & Automations
Google announced that they will shut down Firebase Dynamic Links, their deep linking solution, leaving app developers in need of an alternative. Deep links help people quickly get to the exact content in your mobile app they want to see — whether it’s a specific dress they want to buy or TV show they want to stream.
With this deprecation, it’s time to explore alternatives to Firebase Dynamic Links. Branch makes it easy to transition deep links from Firebase so you can continue creating great user experiences and ensuring your marketing efforts effectively drive new customers to your app.
Alternatives to Firebase Dynamic Links
Branch is a great alternative to Firebase Dynamic Links as Branch’s deep links make it even easier to handle the complexity of linking across platforms like iOS and Android, channels, and use cases. With Branch, you can create and manage links for owned, earned, and paid channels without needing to set up and manage different tools for each.
For example, businesses use Branch deep links to:
Branch offers even more than Firebase Dynamic Links
Moving from Firebase to Branch will not only ensure your deep links don’t break, but also it will open up new opportunities to grow your app. Comparing Firebase Dynamic Links to Branch deep links, we consider deep links as the framework on which to enable everything else: smart banners, email, breaking out of walled gardens on social media, QR codes, SEO attribution, connected TV, and paid ads.
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Additional benefits of Branch compared to Firebase:
Most importantly, Branch deep links are built to handle tricky edge cases with deferred deep linking support, including both deterministic and probabilistic methods.
Branch is also the only integrated mobile linking platform (MLP) and mobile measurement partner (MMP). This means you get reliable linking and attribution for your owned and earned as well as paid advertising campaigns.
How to start your Firebase Dynamic Links migration plan now
As of May 2023, Firebase Dynamic Links is no longer recommended for new projects. Firebase messaging notes developers will have a minimum of 12 months to migrate Dynamic Links, but it’s important to start testing alternatives before this critical functionality goes away.
Branch is the best alternative to Firebase Dynamic Links, especially as it’s free to get started and free for apps with under 10K monthly active users (MAUs). Setup is easy and starts with creating a Branch dashboard account.
You can also run Branch alongside your existing Firebase setup as you plan for migration. Once the Branch SDK is integrated into an app, we can detect which Branch Links are leading to installs, re-opens, and users’ actions. Enabling this integration and completing the relevant code will result in Branch automatically forwarding referred events to Google Firebase, in the exact format Firebase expects.
We have been a partner to more than 100,000 apps since 2014, trusted especially to help chart a path through complex privacy and industry changes. We understand the disruption that the shut down of Firebase Dynamic Links could cause your business without an alternative, and we’re here to help.
As you’re researching free alternatives to Firebase, sign up for a free trial or for larger apps request a Branch demo today.