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Which apps use WebView?

Which apps use WebView? Most do: social in-app browsers, hybrid apps, website wrappers and help screens. Here's how to check any app yourself.

GuidesNookesh Karri

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Most Android apps use WebView somewhere. The Chromium WebView FAQ puts it plainly: most apps you use every day use WebView in some way. The common cases are social apps that open links in their own browser, hybrid apps built with web code, website wrapper apps, and the help, terms and sign-in screens inside native apps.

So the useful question is less “which apps” and more “which part of an app”.

What WebView is, in one paragraph

WebView is the Android system component that lets an app show web pages inside its own screens, as the Chromium FAQ describes it. Because it’s shared, one WebView install renders web content for every app on the phone that uses it.

That shared engine is why a single WebView update can fix, or break, web content in dozens of apps at once. If yours is stuck on an old version, see how to update Android System WebView without the Play Store.

Which apps use WebView: the four main groups

Apps that use WebView fall into four groups, sorted by what the embedded browser is doing. A single app can sit in more than one group.

Group What WebView does Typical examples
In-app browsers Opens links you tap without leaving the app Social and messaging apps
Embedded pages Shows help, terms, ads or account pages inside a native app Shopping, banking and travel apps
Hybrid apps Renders most or all of the app’s interface from web code Apps built with Cordova and similar frameworks
Website wrappers Loads an existing website as the whole app Small-business and publisher apps

Usage isn’t new. A 2011 ACSAC study, Attacks on WebView in the Android System, found WebView in 86% of the top 20 most downloaded apps in 10 categories of the Android market. Treat that as a 2011 snapshot, not a current count.

In-app browsers in social apps

Social apps are the best-documented WebView users, thanks to public testing. In August 2022, Felix Krause tested the in-app browsers of TikTok, Instagram, Facebook Messenger, Facebook, Amazon, Snapchat and Robinhood. His tests ran on iOS, where the equivalent component is WKWebView.

His results split the apps clearly:

  • TikTok, Instagram, Messenger and Facebook could modify the pages they showed.
  • Snapchat and Robinhood showed no page changes and no metadata fetching.
  • TikTok had no button to open the page in your default browser. Every other tested app did.

In an earlier post, he reported that the Instagram app injects its JavaScript code into every website shown, including ads, and he checked Instagram on Android too. Meta said the injected script is required to respect a user’s App Tracking Transparency choice.

Krause also listed apps that sent links to Safari or the default browser instead. That list included Twitter, Reddit, WhatsApp, Slack, Gmail, Telegram, Signal, Spotify and Microsoft Teams. Apps change, so treat every name here as accurate for August 2022 only.

Embedded pages inside native apps

Native apps use WebView for the screens they don’t want to rebuild natively. The Android developer guide on web content recommends WebView for inline web content you control, such as your own pages, ads or legal text. It also notes that some apps use WebViews for their own sign-in flows.

A bank app whose “Terms and conditions” screen scrolls like a web page, with no address bar, is a typical example.

Hybrid apps built from web code

Hybrid apps run their whole interface inside a WebView. The Apache Cordova architecture overview says a Cordova app executes in a WebView within the native application wrapper you distribute to app stores. The WebView may provide the entire interface or sit next to native components.

The same idea exists on Windows. Microsoft’s WebView2 embeds HTML, CSS and JavaScript in native apps, using Microsoft Edge as the rendering engine.

Website wrapper apps

Website wrapper apps load an existing site full screen and add an app icon, name and navigation. This is what webtoapkfree.com builds. It’s a WebView-based app builder that packages an HTTPS website, self-contained HTML or text pages as a signed APK or AAB, and the apps it generates need Android 8.0 or newer.

Live website content changes without an app update, but sign-in, downloads, permissions and external links can behave differently than they do in Chrome. If that’s the app you want, this walkthrough covers the full process.

Why apps choose WebView over Custom Tabs

Apps choose WebView when they want control over the page, and Chrome Custom Tabs when they just want to show a link. The Custom Tabs overview says WebView fits if you exclusively host your own content inside your app, or need to inject JavaScript directly from your app. For links to other people’s sites, Custom Tabs are likely the better choice.

The differences matter for users:

  • WebView doesn’t support every web platform feature and doesn’t share state with your browser, so you may need to sign in again.
  • Custom Tabs share the browser’s cookies and permissions and use Google’s Safe Browsing.
  • Trusted Web Activity opens a browser tab with no UI at all, meant for a developer’s own Progressive Web App.

Google’s guide recommends Custom Tabs for in-app browsing and for third-party sign-in, because the credential stays isolated to the third-party site.

How to check whether a specific app uses WebView

You can check a specific app in a few minutes without any special tools. These three methods go from easiest to most technical.

  1. Look at the link screen. Tap a link inside the app. A page with the app’s own toolbar and an “Open in browser” option is an in-app browser. A Custom Tab usually shows your browser’s name or menu.
  2. Run the InAppBrowser test. Krause’s method: share the link https://InAppBrowser.com inside the app, tap it, and read the report. It lists JavaScript the app runs on the page.
  3. Try chrome://inspect (developers). The remote debugging guide shows that chrome://inspect lists debug-enabled WebViews on a connected phone. Debugging is off unless the app turns it on, so this works mainly for your own builds.

One caution from Krause himself: an app that injects JavaScript isn’t necessarily doing anything malicious, and his tool can’t see tracking done in native code. An empty report doesn’t prove an app is clean.

My take, and the limit of any list

My take: stop looking for a complete list and check the one app you care about. Brand lists online are mostly unverified, and an app can move from WebView to Custom Tabs in one update.

The real limitation is that only an app’s developer knows every place it uses WebView. The checks above catch in-app browsers well. They’re weaker at spotting a WebView quietly rendering a help page or an ad.

If you’re asking because you want to ship a WebView app yourself, read whether WebView apps get rejected by Google Play and whether online converters are safe to use first.

FAQ

Does Instagram use WebView?

Yes, for links. In Felix Krause’s August 2022 tests, Instagram opened external links in its own in-app browser and injected JavaScript into the pages it showed. Instagram also offers a way to open the page in your default browser.

Is it safe to disable Android System WebView?

Usually not. Many apps rely on WebView to show web pages, help screens, sign-in forms and ads, so disabling it can break those screens. Keep it installed and updated instead.

How can I tell if an app uses WebView?

Open a link inside the app and look for an “Open in browser” option, or share the InAppBrowser.com link inside the app and tap it to see a report. Developers can also use chrome://inspect for apps that enable WebView debugging.

Is a WebView the same as Chrome Custom Tabs?

No. A WebView is a browser engine embedded in the app and controlled by it. A Custom Tab is a tab of your default browser shown inside the app, sharing its cookies and permissions.

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