Mobile SDK setup

How to set up your Mobile App with OneSignal.

Overview

The following guides will help you setup the OneSignal SDK in your mobile apps. For websites, see Web Setup.

For each platform your mobile app supports, will need to establish a connection with FCM (Android), APNS (iOS), HMS (Huawei), and/or AMD (Amazon). See the below options to configure your OneSignal App and Platform.

Configure your OneSignal app and platform

Required

If your team already has a OneSignal account, ask to be invited as an admin role so you can configure the app. Otherwise, sign up for a free account to get started.

Details on configuring your OneSignal app (click to expand)

You can configure multiple platforms (iOS, Android, Huawei, Amazon) within a single OneSignal app.

1. Create or select your app

  • Select your app and go to Settings > Push & In-App to add platforms to an existing app.
  • Or create a new app by clicking New App/Website.
Example shows creating a new app.

Example shows creating a new app.

2. Set up and activate a platform

  • If creating an app, choose a recognizable app and organization name.
  • Select a platform to activate.
  • Click Next: Configure Your Platform.
Example setting up your first OneSignal app, org, and channel.

Example setting up your first OneSignal app, org, and channel.

3. Configure platform credentials

Follow the prompts based on your platforms:

Click Save & Continue after entering your credentials.

4. Choose target SDK

Select your app's target SDK and click Save & Continue.

Select which SDK you are using to be navigated to the docs.

Select which SDK you are using to be navigated to the docs.

5. Install SDK and save your App ID

You’ll be shown your OneSignal App ID — make sure to save it, as you’ll need it during SDK installation.

If needed, invite a teammate or developer by clicking Invite, then click Done.

Save your App ID for SDK setup and invite any more team members.

Save your App ID for SDK setup and invite any more team members.


Continue through the rest of our documentation to complete the integration.


Setup Guides

Native SDKs

Cross-platform SDKs

Integrations


FAQ

Are the SDKs required?

No, but they're highly recommended - and they're open source on GitHub.

You can integrate OneSignal using only our server-side APIs, but using our SDKs simplifies and streamlines the process, especially for handling push notifications across platforms.

What you can do without the SDK:

You can use the following APIs directly:

📘

In-app messages requires our SDK

If you plan to use In-app messages, our SDK is required.

Why we recommend using the SDKs:

Push notifications have platform-specific requirements that our SDKs handle for you, including:

  • Obtaining push tokens across Android, iOS, Huawei, and Web
  • Managing subscription status and user prompts for opt-in
  • Displaying and processing push notifications on the client

For example:

  • Apple’s APNS and Google’s FCM use different payload formats.
  • OneSignal notifications include a custom payload parameter that our SDK parses to correctly display and track notifications sent from us versus others.

Building and maintaining this yourself adds complexity and requires deep platform knowledge. Read more in our article: Build vs. Buy: What Goes Into Building a Push Notification Platform.