Firebase Dynamic Links Alternatives 2026: 5 Best Replacements Compared
Firebase Dynamic Links officially shut down in August 2025, breaking deep links across millions of apps. Here are the five best replacements compared by features, pricing, and migration effort.
Firebase Dynamic Links shut down on August 25, 2025.
If your app still has page.link URLs in emails, push notifications, ads, or hard-coded in your backend, those links are now broken or behaving unpredictably. By early 2026, deferred deep linking through Firebase is definitively gone. Even links that still redirect are no longer preserving install context.
Over 1,500 brands have already migrated to a replacement. This post compares the five best alternatives so you can pick the right one based on your app size, budget, and use case.
The short answer: ChottuLink is the closest direct replacement for Firebase Dynamic Links, with a free tier up to 25K MAU and all six SDK platforms. Branch and AppsFlyer are more feature-complete, but they bundle deep linking inside expensive MMP suites starting at $500 per month. That is more than most apps need.
What Firebase Dynamic Links Did
Firebase Dynamic Links gave developers three things. Deferred deep linking: a user clicks a link before installing the app, completes the install, and lands on the specific screen that was linked, not the app home screen. Smart redirection: one URL that routes to the iOS App Store, Google Play, or a web fallback depending on the user's device. And link analytics: click counts, installs, re-opens, and platform breakdowns, though full analytics required a separate BigQuery connection that many teams found cumbersome to set up.
Google shut down the service citing ecosystem changes that made it difficult to provide a consistently stable post-install experience. Apps that have not migrated are seeing 20 to 30 percent conversion drops on flows that depended on deep link routing.
The 5 Best Firebase Dynamic Links Alternatives in 2026
1. ChottuLink
ChottuLink is a deep linking platform built specifically as a drop-in replacement for Firebase Dynamic Links. It covers every core FDL feature, and now includes Link Attribution and Meta Conversions API (CAPI) for teams that want to see which links actually convert, without bundling the full MMP overhead of Branch or AppsFlyer.
Features:
- Deferred deep linking across iOS, Android, and web (iOS ATT-compatible, no IDFA required)
- Smart redirection with 100 percent browser coverage, including Huawei, Vivo, Samsung Internet, and Opera Mini, which are browsers where Firebase links frequently broke
- SDKs for Android, iOS, Flutter, React Native, Unity, and Capacitor
- Branded custom domains (for example,
link.yourapp.com) on paid plans - Link Attribution on the Growth plan and above: tracks the full funnel from click through install, signup, and revenue conversion for links created in ChottuLink.
- Real-time analytics dashboard with device, location, referrer, and UTM breakdowns, with no BigQuery connection required
- Unlimited QR codes, auto-generated per link
- Bulk link import from Firebase via CSV
Who has migrated: Fortune India, elmenus, Sahl Pay, and Zapia AI migrated during the August 2025 shutdown period. Royal Enfield uses ChottuLink for their RE Prime motorcycle app with over 1M+ users.
Real migration example: Higher, a K-pop fan voting app with 500,000+ installs, migrated millions of fans from Firebase Dynamic Links to ChottuLink on a custom domain with zero downtime. Their links have handled more than 300K clicks through ChottuLink. The transition had no service interruption.
Pricing:
| Plan | MAU | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Free | Up to 25,000 | $0/month |
| Growth | Up to 150,000 | $39/month |
| Scale | Up to 500,000 | $99/month |
Good fit for teams that used Firebase Dynamic Links for deep linking and want a drop-in replacement without paying for attribution infrastructure they do not need.
2. Branch
Branch is the most feature-complete deep linking and mobile attribution platform available. It goes well beyond Firebase Dynamic Links: multi-touch attribution, paid media integrations, audience segmentation, and enterprise SLAs.
Pricing: Branch starts at $500 per month with annual contracts. Exact pricing is negotiated based on volume. There is no self-serve free tier.
Enterprise mobile teams running heavy paid acquisition campaigns will get the most from Branch if they need attribution and deep linking in a single platform. Small teams or teams that only need deep linking will find it overkill at that price.
3. AppsFlyer OneLink
AppsFlyer is primarily a mobile measurement partner. OneLink is its deep linking layer, sold as part of the AppsFlyer suite rather than as a standalone product.
Pricing: AppsFlyer pricing starts at approximately $500 to $2,000 per month depending on install and event volume. There is no deep-linking-only plan.
Teams already using AppsFlyer for paid UA attribution can consolidate deep linking under the same vendor without introducing a second SDK. If you do not run significant paid ad budgets, you would be paying for an MMP you do not use.
4. Airbridge
Airbridge is an attribution and deep linking platform with a free tier up to 10,000 MAU. Its DeepLink plan covers deep linking without full MMP features; the MMP plan adds multi-touch attribution at a substantially higher price.
Pricing: The DeepLink plan starts at approximately $199 per month above the free tier. MMP pricing is custom and starts around $500 per month.
A reasonable choice for teams in Korea or APAC where Airbridge has strong local support, or teams that want attribution bundled with deep linking but find Branch pricing prohibitive.
5. Adjust
Adjust (acquired by AppLovin in 2021) is primarily an attribution platform. It includes deep linking as part of its SDK but positions itself as a measurement tool rather than a dedicated deep linking service.
Pricing: Custom. Adjust is priced in the MMP range, generally starting at $500 per month for serious install volumes.
EU and APAC teams with strict data residency requirements tend to choose Adjust for its strong local market presence. Teams already using Adjust for attribution can add deep links without changing vendors, though deep linking is not its primary focus.
Key Features to Look For in a Firebase Dynamic Links Alternative
Before comparing specific products, here are the criteria that matter:
1. Cross-Platform Routing — Links should route correctly to iOS, Android, and web without the user noticing the mechanism. Look for coverage of in-app browsers (WhatsApp, Instagram, Telegram) where Firebase links frequently broke.
2. Deferred Deep Linking — Users who click a link before installing the app should land on the specific in-app screen after install, not the home screen. This is the hardest feature to replicate yourself and the one most apps relied on Firebase for.
3. SDKs and Integration Effort — Check whether the platform has an SDK for your stack (Android, iOS, Flutter, React Native, Unity, Capacitor). The migration timeline depends heavily on how close the new SDK's callback structure is to what you already have.
4. Branded Custom Domains — Generic third-party domains (page.link, app.link) reduce click-through rates. A replacement should let you map your own domain.
5. Analytics Without Extra Infrastructure — Firebase required BigQuery for anything beyond basic click counts. Look for a platform that includes device, location, referrer, and UTM breakdowns in the base product.
6. Reliability Across Browsers — Test in Samsung Internet, Huawei Browser, Opera Mini, and in-app browsers. Firebase links failed silently in several of these; the replacement should not.
7. Pricing That Matches Your Scale — If you only need deep linking (not full MMP attribution), you should not have to pay for attribution. Separate the two when evaluating cost.
Feature and Pricing Comparison
| ChottuLink | Branch | AppsFlyer | Airbridge | Adjust
---|---|---|---|---|---
Deferred deep linking | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes
Custom domain | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No
REST API | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Limited
Free tier | 25K MAU | No | No | 10K MAU | No
Starting price | $0/mo | $500+/mo | $500+/mo | $199+/mo | Custom
Unity SDK | Yes | No | No | No | No
Analytics (no extra tool) | Yes | Partial | Partial | Partial | Partial
Firebase drop-in fit | Direct | Partial | No | Partial | No
Branch and AppsFlyer require BigQuery or a separate data pipeline to get full analytics. ChottuLink and Airbridge both include analytics in the base product. Firebase also required BigQuery for anything beyond basic click counts. ChottuLink eliminates that requirement entirely.
How to Migrate from Firebase Dynamic Links
The migration process is the same regardless of which platform you choose. With ChottuLink, basic setup takes under 15 minutes:
- Export link metadata from the Firebase Console while it is still accessible
- Create a ChottuLink account and configure your custom domain, iOS Bundle ID, and Android package name
- Replace the Firebase Dynamic Links SDK with ChottuLink's SDK. The callback structure is near-identical.
- Recreate links using the bulk importer (CSV upload from your Firebase export) or the REST API for large volumes
- Test deferred deep link flows on a physical device across iOS, Android, and key in-app browsers including WhatsApp, Instagram, and Telegram
- Update all external references: email campaigns, push notifications, paid ads, CMS content, and any hard-coded backend links
- Monitor via the ChottuLink analytics dashboard for the first 48 hours to confirm link health
Use the ChottuLink Deep Link Tester to identify any Firebase links still live in your codebase before you start. The tester flags page.link URLs and shows which ones are still resolving versus returning errors.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are Firebase Dynamic Links still working in 2026?
No. The shutdown was August 25, 2025. As of early 2026, link creation, analytics, and deferred deep linking are all broken. Some page.link URLs still redirect intermittently, but this behavior is unpredictable and deferred deep linking does not work even when a redirect resolves. Any app still depending on Firebase Dynamic Links is running on borrowed time.
What is the best free Firebase Dynamic Links alternative?
ChottuLink offers the most complete free tier: up to 25,000 MAU, deferred deep linking, smart redirection, REST API, QR codes, and real-time analytics at no cost. Airbridge offers a free tier up to 10,000 MAU but has more limited API access on the free plan.
Do I need to change my link URLs when migrating?
No. With ChottuLink you set up a custom domain (for example, link.yourapp.com) so your links keep your brand in the URL. The page.link Firebase URLs need to be replaced, since those are dead, but the destination paths and parameters carry over. The bulk importer handles this in one step.
Is ChottuLink available in multiple countries?
Yes. ChottuLink is a global service. It is currently used by apps in India, the United States, the UAE, Egypt, Pakistan, Vietnam, and the United Kingdom, among others.
Why not just use Android App Links and iOS Universal Links?
Platform-native tools handle basic redirects, but they do not support deferred deep linking without a custom server-side session matching system you have to build, host, and maintain. They also provide no analytics. Deferred deep linking was a core part of most Firebase setups, and replicating it yourself is a non-trivial infrastructure project. A third-party service is the practical path.