Universal links vs. deep links: What's the difference?

Deep linking, known for conversion-boosting, is an essential component of mobile marketing. Given the ongoing challenges of complex user journeys that both app users and developers face, the ability to seamlessly guide users to your app—from any platform—is increasingly necessary. Among this conversation, the term ‘universal links’ appears. Let’s look at what differentiates them from the broader, parent category of ‘deep links.’

Simply put, universal links are Apple’s way of linking to a page within an app. Of course, in practice there are some nuances to how this works.

When a user taps a universal link from their smartphone, one of two things will happen:

1. If the app is installed, it will launch and the user be sent to the relevant content.
2. If the app is not installed, the page is opened within a web browser like a traditional URL.

Universal links are available in iOS version 9 and above, and work even when the app isn’t installed on a user’s device as described above. The ability for these URLs to send the user to either your app or your website is where the ‘universal’ concept comes from. 

This journey was built by Apple to follow through on the user’s assumed intent. While technically this is known as the user’s “entitlement” (more on the complexities of this in a minute), it essentially intends to reflect that if a user has the app installed, they would generally like to open your link in the associated app, while if they do not, they would like to open the link in your mobile website. In practice, however, this gets a little messy–see limitations below.

What is the difference between universal links and deep links?

Broadly, there aren’t many differences between universal links and traditional deep links. In fact, universal links are a type of deep link. The primary difference lies in that universal links are exclusive to Apple devices running iOS. On a technical level, they also differ in format to traditional deep links-Universal links, like Android App Links, use an HTTPS scheme, whereas traditional deep links use a URI scheme. Here’s how that looks in its simplest form.

To activate universal links, a developer will first provide a map between the website and app. In essence, this step matches a set of web pages to their corresponding location in-app. Technically, Apple refers to this as “supporting associated domains”. The associated domain file is added to your website under a path determined by Apple. If you’re leveraging universal links with Adjust, this step is taken care of by us, as we host the file on your behalf.

When this is done, you’ll need to update your app delegate to respond to the updates in the NSUserActivity object, which is triggered when a user opens one of the associated domains. Then, once activated, when a user has installed the app, and taps a universal link, iOS will automatically redirect the user to the app. There are, however, a couple of exceptions to this rule. The page will open in Safari, rather than your app, when:

1. A user does not have your app installed (or does not have the correct version installed).
2. A user is browsing your website in Safari and taps a universal link in the same domain. Think, you’re browsing the mobile website of Reddit, you tap a universal link to a specific subreddit, and instead of being directed to open this subreddit in the app, you continue your journey in the mobile browser.

It’s not possible to track clicks from these links, given that the app opens immediately from the universal link and a redirect through a webpage to count the click is not possible.

Adjust’s TrueLink allows you to create multi-platform, all-purpose deep links in the click of just a few buttons—including universal links. TrueLink deep links are highly customizable and personalizable, meaning you can easily create smooth user journeys that boost engagement and conversions. 

Whether you want to create a deep link URL or universal link for a campaign you are running with a partner or for your owned and earned traffic (i.e. a social media post), you can generate a deep link within Campaign Lab in the Partner or Custom Links sections. Simply copy and paste the generated link into whichever campaign you’ve set–TrueLink deep links work for all environments, including Android and iOS, greatly improving workflows while minimizing room for error.

Ready to get started with universal links or deep linking in general? Learn more about Adjust TrueLink, reach out to your contact person, or request a demo today to learn how we can take your deep linking, and app marketing, to the next level.