Set Up Firebase for Push Notifications

Push notifications require Firebase Cloud Messaging (FCM): Google's free notification delivery service. Before you can build an app with push notification support, you need a Firebase project configured for your app and a google-services.json file to upload to WebToAppConvert.

This guide covers the complete Firebase setup process. If you've already set up Firebase and have your google-services.json, skip to the Uploading to WebToAppConvert section.

What You Need

• A Google account (Gmail or Google Workspace)
• Your app's package name (e.g., com.yourcompany.yourapp): must match exactly what you set in WebToAppConvert

Step 1: Create a Firebase Project

1. Go to firebase.google.com and click Get started
2. Click Add project
3. Enter your project name (e.g., your app or company name). This is internal: users never see it.
4. Choose whether to enable Google Analytics (optional: useful for tracking notification open rates)
5. Accept the terms and click Create project
6. Wait for project creation to finish, then click Continue

Step 2: Add an Android App to Your Firebase Project

1. On the project overview page, click the Android icon (the Android robot logo) to start the Android app setup. If your project already has other apps, go to Project Settings → Your apps → Add app and select Android instead.
2. Enter your Android package name: this must exactly match the package name in your WebToAppConvert app configuration (e.g., com.yourcompany.yourapp). Package names are case-sensitive. A mismatch here is the most common setup mistake: the build succeeds but push notifications are never delivered.
3. Enter an optional app nickname (internal label, not shown to users)
4. Skip the SHA-1 fingerprint field: it is only needed for Google Sign-In and Dynamic Links, not for push notifications
5. Click Register app

Step 3: Download google-services.json

1. Click Download google-services.json
2. Save the file: you'll upload it to WebToAppConvert in the next step
3. Click Next through the remaining setup screens: skip the SDK integration instructions, as WebToAppConvert handles all of that automatically

The google-services.json file contains your Firebase project configuration: project ID, app identifiers, and a restricted Android API key. These values are also compiled into your APK, so anyone who installs the APK can extract them. They are not server secrets, but make sure your Firebase Security Rules (for Firestore and Storage) are locked down if you use those services.

Step 4: Upload to WebToAppConvert

1. In your WebToAppConvert app configuration, navigate to Integrations → Push Notifications
2. Upload your google-services.json file
3. Verify the package name shown matches your app's package name exactly
4. Save the configuration

Step 5: Build with Professional Tier

Push notifications require the Professional build tier (100 credits). Run a Debug build first to verify the Firebase configuration is accepted and the package name is correct, then run a Professional build for your production AAB.

Debug builds can receive push notifications: FCM delivery works the same on debug and release builds. A successful debug build with working notifications means your production build will work too.

Verifying FCM Setup

After installing a build on a device, verify FCM is working:

1. Open the Firebase Console and navigate to your project
2. In the left sidebar, go to Engage → Messaging
3. Click New campaign → Notifications
4. Enter a notification title and body
5. Under Target, select your Android app
6. Click Send test message to send to a specific device, or send to all users to confirm delivery to any installed device

See Send Notifications with FCM for full options including OneSignal and automated triggers.

Troubleshooting

Notifications not arriving: The most common cause is a package name mismatch between Firebase and WebToAppConvert. Open your Firebase project, go to Project Settings → Your apps, and confirm the Android package name listed there is identical to the package name in your WebToAppConvert app configuration, character for character.

Notifications delayed on some devices: Android's Doze mode batches background network activity on idle devices. For time-sensitive notifications (order updates, appointment reminders), use HIGH priority in your notification payload. Standard promotional notifications can use normal priority.

FCM API shows as disabled: On Firebase projects created before 2024, the Firebase Cloud Messaging API (V1) may need to be manually enabled. Go to Project Settings → Cloud Messaging: if the API shows as disabled, click the three-dot menu next to it and select Manage API in Google Cloud Console to enable it. Projects created in 2024 or later have it enabled by default.

Firebase Free Tier

Firebase's Spark (free) plan covers all push notification needs. FCM message delivery is always free regardless of volume. The Spark plan limits apply only to other Firebase services (Firestore database, Cloud Functions, Cloud Storage). For push notifications alone, you will never hit a billing limit.