Digital Asset Links: Remove the URL Bar From Your App

If your converted app still shows a browser address bar at the top, one thing is missing: Digital Asset Links verification. Until Chrome can prove that the app and the website belong to the same owner, it keeps the URL visible as a security signal.

What assetlinks.json does

The file lives at https://yourdomain.com/.well-known/assetlinks.json and lists the package name and SHA-256 signing fingerprint of the apps allowed to open your domain full screen. Chrome fetches it on first launch. Match confirmed, address bar gone.

The shape of the file

• relation — delegate_permission/common.handle_all_urls.
• package_name — the exact package name of your build, for example com.yourcompany.app.
• sha256_cert_fingerprints — the fingerprint of the certificate the APK/AAB was signed with.

Hosting rules that trip people up

• It must be served over HTTPS, from the root domain used in start_url — not a subdirectory.
• Content type should be application/json, and the response must be 200 with no redirect.
• No authentication, geoblocking or bot protection in front of the /.well-known/ path.
• Serve it from www or non-www exactly as your app's URL is written.

Play App Signing changes the fingerprint

If you enrol in Google Play App Signing, Google re-signs your bundle with its own key. The fingerprint you must publish is the one shown in the Play Console under Setup → App signing, not the fingerprint of your upload key. Publishing the wrong one is the single most common cause of a stubborn address bar.