Install Metamorphic on Your Phone — It Works Like a Native App
Metamorphic doesn't live in an app store. It's a progressive web app — which means you can install it directly from your browser, and it behaves almost identically to a native app: its own icon on your home screen, its own window in your app switcher, and — most importantly — push notifications that work even when the app is closed.
If you're on Android or Windows, the experience is essentially indistinguishable from a native app. On iOS, it's nearly there — you get the home screen icon, standalone window, and push notifications. The only gap: iOS doesn't support action buttons on web push notifications yet, so the one-tap "Check in ✓" from the notification itself isn't available (you still get the notification, you just tap it to open the app and check in).
Here's how to install it.
Android (Chrome)
This gives you the fullest PWA experience — home screen icon, standalone app window, full push notifications with action buttons.
- Open metamorphic in Chrome
- Log in to your account
- Tap the ⋮ menu (top-right)
- Tap "Install app" or "Add to Home screen"
- Confirm the install prompt
The app will always open to your preferred start page (Dashboard by default). You can change this anytime in Settings.
You'll now see the Metamorphic egg icon on your home screen. Tap it and the app opens in its own window — no browser chrome, no URL bar. It feels like any other app.
Alternative: via the address bar
When you visit Metamorphic in Chrome, you may also see an "Install" button directly in the address bar. Tap it to install in one step.
What you get
- Home screen icon — launches in its own window
- Push notifications — even when the app is closed
- Action buttons — tap "Check in ✓" directly from a notification (no app open needed)
- App switcher — appears as its own app, not a browser tab
- Chrome WebAPK — Android treats it as a real installed app
iOS
Apple's support for PWAs has improved significantly. You get the home screen icon, standalone window, and push notifications (iOS 16.4+). The only limitation is notification action buttons.
On iOS, all PWAs run through Safari's engine at the OS level — regardless of which browser you install from. This means you can add Metamorphic to your home screen from Safari, DuckDuckGo, Firefox, or any browser that exposes the "Add to Home Screen" option, and the result is the same: a full PWA with push notification support.
- Open metamorphic in your browser of choice
- Log in to your account
- Navigate to any page (the app will open to your preferred start page regardless)
- Tap the Share button (the square with an arrow pointing up)
- Scroll down and tap "Add to Home Screen"
- Name it "Metamorphic" (or whatever you prefer) and tap Add
The Metamorphic egg icon now sits on your home screen alongside your other apps.
What you get
- Home screen icon — launches in its own window (no Safari chrome)
- Push notifications — work when app is closed (iOS 16.4+)
- App switcher — appears as its own app
- Limitation: notification action buttons ("Check in ✓") are not supported on iOS web push yet — you'll still get the notification, but tapping it opens the app where you can check in
Enabling push on iOS
After installing, you'll need to enable push notifications — see the Enabling push notifications section below for full instructions. The short version: open the PWA, go to Settings → Notifications → toggle on.
Windows (Chrome or Edge)
Metamorphic installs as a standalone app on Windows too — great for desktop use.
- Open metamorphic in Chrome or Edge
- Log in to your account
- Look for the install icon in the address bar (a monitor with a down arrow), or:
- Chrome: click the ⋮ menu → "Install Metamorphic"
- Edge: click the ⋯ menu → "Apps" → "Install Metamorphic"
- Confirm the install
Metamorphic now appears in your Start menu and taskbar like any other Windows app.
macOS (Chrome or Safari)
- Open metamorphic in Chrome or Safari
- Log in to your account
- Chrome: click the install icon in the address bar, or the ⋮ menu → "Install Metamorphic"
- Safari: click File → "Add to Dock…"
It appears in your Dock and Launchpad.
Choose your start page
By default, the app opens to your Dashboard when you launch it from the home screen. But you can change this to any page you prefer, depending on your subscription plan — Schedule, Goals, Journal, Insights, Reflections, or Groups.
- Open Metamorphic and go to Settings
- Scroll to the App Start Page section
- Select your preferred page from the dropdown
The change takes effect immediately — the next time you open the app from your home screen, it'll land directly on your chosen page. No reinstall required.
This is especially handy if you use Metamorphic primarily for one workflow — for example, if you check your Schedule first thing every morning, set it as your start page and save yourself a tap.
Why install instead of just bookmarking?
A bookmark opens Metamorphic in a browser tab. An installed PWA opens in its own window — no address bar, no browser UI. But the real difference is push notifications:
| Feature | Browser tab | Installed PWA |
|---|---|---|
| Push (tab open) | Yes | Yes |
| Push (browser closed) | Chrome, Edge, Safari | Yes |
| Notification action buttons | Chrome, Edge | Chrome, Edge (Android/Windows) |
| Home screen icon | No | Yes |
| Standalone app window | No | Yes |
| Smartwatch notifications | No | Yes |
If you want reminders that actually reach you when you're not already looking at the app — which is the whole point of a reminder — you need the installed PWA.
And yes — smartwatch support works too. If you have an Apple Watch paired with your iPhone, Metamorphic notifications appear on your wrist just like any other app notification. You'll see the habit reminder, the habit name, and can dismiss or tap to open. Android smartwatches (Wear OS) should mirror notifications from the phone as well, since the PWA's push notifications are delivered through the standard OS notification system.
A note on browsers and privacy settings
We're fans of privacy-first browsers — that's why Metamorphic is zero-knowledge encrypted in the first place. But some privacy-focused browsers limit or disable the Web Push API and service workers entirely, which affects notification delivery.
Here's the breakdown:
- Chrome, Edge: Push works even with the browser fully closed (they maintain a background service). Works as both a browser tab and installed PWA. On Android and Windows, the installed PWA also gets notification action buttons ("Check in ✓" directly from the notification).
- Safari: Push works with the browser closed since macOS Ventura and iOS 16.4. On iOS, you must install as a PWA for push to work. No notification action buttons on any Apple platform.
- Firefox: Push works, but only while Firefox is running (even minimized). If you fully quit Firefox, notifications won't arrive until you reopen it. No notification action buttons.
- DuckDuckGo, Brave, Arc: Varying support for in-browser push. DuckDuckGo blocks service workers in its browser tab — but on iOS this doesn't matter, since installing as a PWA from DuckDuckGo still produces a Safari-backed app with full push support. Brave allows push but may require toggling settings. Arc uses Chromium under the hood so push generally works.
- Privacy extensions: Extensions like uBlock Origin, Privacy Badger, or strict cookie-blocking settings can interfere with service worker registration. If push isn't working, check your extensions.
Our recommendation: Use whatever browser you trust for daily browsing. For push notifications specifically, install the PWA from Chrome on Android/Windows for the full experience (including one-tap check-in from the notification). On iOS, install from any browser that supports "Add to Home Screen" (Safari, DuckDuckGo, Firefox all work) — the PWA always runs through Safari's engine, so push notifications work regardless. Your data stays end-to-end encrypted regardless of which browser delivers the notification — the push payload is encrypted in transit (push services can't read it), and your habit names are never included in the payload. Personalized notification text is resolved entirely on-device from a local encrypted cache.
The notification experience
Once installed with push enabled, here's what happens:
Android / Windows (full experience)
You'll receive a native notification at your reminder time with an action button to check in without opening the app:
Tap "Check in ✓" and your habit is recorded — no need to open the app at all. If you want to add a note or reflection, open the app afterward and it'll prompt you to enrich the quick check-in.
You'll also get notifications for goals and events:
iOS (nearly full experience)
You'll receive a native notification that opens the app when tapped:
Tap the notification to open the app, then check in. The one-tap action button isn't available on iOS web push yet, but the notification itself works perfectly.
Personalized notifications
Metamorphic uses your actual habit names in notifications (encrypted locally, decrypted only on your device). If you set a custom notification label in your reminder settings, that label appears instead of the default. And it's not just habits — you get push notifications for goals and calendar events too, so Metamorphic can remind you about upcoming events just like a native calendar app.
Enabling push notifications
Push notifications need to be enabled inside Metamorphic and granted at the browser/OS level. Here's the key thing to know: each browser is a separate subscription. If you install the PWA on your phone and also use it on your laptop, you'll need to enable push on each device independently.
How to enable
- Open Metamorphic (either in the installed PWA or your browser)
- Go to Settings (tap the navigation menu)
- Find the Notifications section
- Toggle Push Notifications on
- Accept the browser permission prompt when it appears
You'll see a confirmation that the subscription is active. If you use Metamorphic on multiple devices (phone, tablet, laptop), repeat this on each one — each device gets its own subscription.
Custom notification text
When you create or edit a reminder on a habit, goal, or event, you can set a custom notification label. This is the text that appears in the notification body instead of the default. Want your 7am reminder to say "Breathe. 5 minutes." instead of the habit name? Set it as the notification text.
Custom labels are encrypted on your device before being stored — we never see them. They're cached locally so the service worker can display them even when you're offline.
Managing and disabling
- Disable on one device: Go to Settings → Notifications → toggle off. That device stops receiving push, but your other devices still do.
- Disable all push: Toggle off on every device, or revoke the notification permission in your browser's site settings.
- Per-reminder control: You can also disable individual reminders on specific habits, goals, or events without turning off push entirely.
The system respects your choices per-device — turn on push on your phone for habit reminders while keeping your laptop silent, or vice versa.
Troubleshooting
"Install" option doesn't appear
- Android: Make sure you're using Chrome (not a third-party browser that doesn't support PWA installation). You must be on the actual site, not a cached page — try a hard refresh.
- iOS: Use any browser that shows the "Add to Home Screen" option in its share menu. Safari, DuckDuckGo, and Firefox all support it. The installed PWA runs through Safari's engine regardless of which browser you used.
- Desktop: Chrome and Edge have the best PWA install support. Safari on macOS supports "Add to Dock" via File menu.
Push notifications not working
- Make sure push is enabled in Settings → Notifications within Metamorphic
- Check that you accepted the browser permission prompt — if you denied it, you'll need to reset it in your browser or device settings
- Android: Check system settings → Apps → Metamorphic → Notifications → enabled
- iOS: Check iPhone Settings → scroll to Metamorphic → Notifications → Allow Notifications enabled
- Privacy browsers: DuckDuckGo blocks service workers in the browser tab, so push won't work as a tab. But if you've installed as a PWA on iOS, push works fine (it runs through Safari)
- Desktop (Firefox): Push only works while Firefox is running. If you fully quit it, notifications won't arrive until you reopen it
Notifications stopped working after a while
This can happen if the browser clears the service worker registration or if your push subscription expires. Simply open the PWA — the service worker re-registers automatically on every page load, and a new push subscription will be created if needed.
If you've changed your device password or reset your browser data, you may need to re-enable push in Settings → Notifications.
iOS: notifications only work sometimes
iOS web push has some quirks:
- Notifications may not arrive if your iPhone is in Low Power Mode
- The PWA must have been opened at least once after installation for push to register
- iOS may throttle notifications if you don't interact with the PWA regularly — open it at least once a week to keep the subscription active
- Make sure Background App Refresh is enabled for Metamorphic in iPhone Settings
Still stuck?
If you've tried everything above and notifications still aren't working, open a support ticket directly from the app. Tap the navigation button (bottom-right), then go to Account → Support — it's a direct, encrypted channel to our team. We can help diagnose notification issues specific to your device and browser setup.
One important note about privacy
When you install Metamorphic as a PWA, your encryption keys are stored locally in your browser's storage (IndexedDB + sessionStorage). They never leave your device. Push notifications work because the service worker runs locally on your phone — it decrypts notification labels from your local cache, not from our servers.
The server stores only opaque ciphertext. Even the push notification payload contains no personal data — just item IDs that your phone resolves locally. This is zero-knowledge architecture, and it works even in a PWA context.
Bottom line
If you want Metamorphic to feel like a real app on your phone — and you want push notifications that actually work when the app is closed — install it as a PWA. It takes 10 seconds, and it's the difference between "I have to remember to open the app" and "the app reminds me at the right time."
The best habit tracker is the one you actually use. Make it easy on yourself.