[url_launcher] "market://" URLs open an in-app activity on some Android devices

[fleischsalod]

What package does this bug report belong to?

url_launcher

What target platforms are you seeing this bug on?

Android

Have you already upgraded your packages?

Yes

Dependency versions

pubspec.lock

# Generated by pub
# See https://dart.dev/tools/pub/glossary#lockfile
packages:
  async:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: async
      sha256: "758e6d74e971c3e5aceb4110bfd6698efc7f501675bcfe0c775459a8140750eb"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "2.13.0"
  boolean_selector:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: boolean_selector
      sha256: "8aab1771e1243a5063b8b0ff68042d67334e3feab9e95b9490f9a6ebf73b42ea"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "2.1.2"
  characters:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: characters
      sha256: f71061c654a3380576a52b451dd5532377954cf9dbd272a78fc8479606670803
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "1.4.0"
  clock:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: clock
      sha256: fddb70d9b5277016c77a80201021d40a2247104d9f4aa7bab7157b7e3f05b84b
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "1.1.2"
  collection:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: collection
      sha256: "2f5709ae4d3d59dd8f7cd309b4e023046b57d8a6c82130785d2b0e5868084e76"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "1.19.1"
  cupertino_icons:
    dependency: "direct main"
    description:
      name: cupertino_icons
      sha256: ba631d1c7f7bef6b729a622b7b752645a2d076dba9976925b8f25725a30e1ee6
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "1.0.8"
  fake_async:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: fake_async
      sha256: "5368f224a74523e8d2e7399ea1638b37aecfca824a3cc4dfdf77bf1fa905ac44"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "1.3.3"
  flutter:
    dependency: "direct main"
    description: flutter
    source: sdk
    version: "0.0.0"
  flutter_lints:
    dependency: "direct dev"
    description:
      name: flutter_lints
      sha256: "5398f14efa795ffb7a33e9b6a08798b26a180edac4ad7db3f231e40f82ce11e1"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "5.0.0"
  flutter_test:
    dependency: "direct dev"
    description: flutter
    source: sdk
    version: "0.0.0"
  flutter_web_plugins:
    dependency: transitive
    description: flutter
    source: sdk
    version: "0.0.0"
  leak_tracker:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: leak_tracker
      sha256: "6bb818ecbdffe216e81182c2f0714a2e62b593f4a4f13098713ff1685dfb6ab0"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "10.0.9"
  leak_tracker_flutter_testing:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: leak_tracker_flutter_testing
      sha256: f8b613e7e6a13ec79cfdc0e97638fddb3ab848452eff057653abd3edba760573
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "3.0.9"
  leak_tracker_testing:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: leak_tracker_testing
      sha256: "6ba465d5d76e67ddf503e1161d1f4a6bc42306f9d66ca1e8f079a47290fb06d3"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "3.0.1"
  lints:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: lints
      sha256: c35bb79562d980e9a453fc715854e1ed39e24e7d0297a880ef54e17f9874a9d7
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "5.1.1"
  matcher:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: matcher
      sha256: dc58c723c3c24bf8d3e2d3ad3f2f9d7bd9cf43ec6feaa64181775e60190153f2
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "0.12.17"
  material_color_utilities:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: material_color_utilities
      sha256: f7142bb1154231d7ea5f96bc7bde4bda2a0945d2806bb11670e30b850d56bdec
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "0.11.1"
  meta:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: meta
      sha256: e3641ec5d63ebf0d9b41bd43201a66e3fc79a65db5f61fc181f04cd27aab950c
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "1.16.0"
  path:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: path
      sha256: "75cca69d1490965be98c73ceaea117e8a04dd21217b37b292c9ddbec0d955bc5"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "1.9.1"
  plugin_platform_interface:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: plugin_platform_interface
      sha256: "4820fbfdb9478b1ebae27888254d445073732dae3d6ea81f0b7e06d5dedc3f02"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "2.1.8"
  sky_engine:
    dependency: transitive
    description: flutter
    source: sdk
    version: "0.0.0"
  source_span:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: source_span
      sha256: "254ee5351d6cb365c859e20ee823c3bb479bf4a293c22d17a9f1bf144ce86f7c"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "1.10.1"
  stack_trace:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: stack_trace
      sha256: "8b27215b45d22309b5cddda1aa2b19bdfec9df0e765f2de506401c071d38d1b1"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "1.12.1"
  stream_channel:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: stream_channel
      sha256: "969e04c80b8bcdf826f8f16579c7b14d780458bd97f56d107d3950fdbeef059d"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "2.1.4"
  string_scanner:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: string_scanner
      sha256: "921cd31725b72fe181906c6a94d987c78e3b98c2e205b397ea399d4054872b43"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "1.4.1"
  term_glyph:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: term_glyph
      sha256: "7f554798625ea768a7518313e58f83891c7f5024f88e46e7182a4558850a4b8e"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "1.2.2"
  test_api:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: test_api
      sha256: fb31f383e2ee25fbbfe06b40fe21e1e458d14080e3c67e7ba0acfde4df4e0bbd
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "0.7.4"
  url_launcher:
    dependency: "direct main"
    description:
      name: url_launcher
      sha256: f6a7e5c4835bb4e3026a04793a4199ca2d14c739ec378fdfe23fc8075d0439f8
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "6.3.2"
  url_launcher_android:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: url_launcher_android
      sha256: "8582d7f6fe14d2652b4c45c9b6c14c0b678c2af2d083a11b604caeba51930d79"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "6.3.16"
  url_launcher_ios:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: url_launcher_ios
      sha256: "7f2022359d4c099eea7df3fdf739f7d3d3b9faf3166fb1dd390775176e0b76cb"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "6.3.3"
  url_launcher_linux:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: url_launcher_linux
      sha256: "4e9ba368772369e3e08f231d2301b4ef72b9ff87c31192ef471b380ef29a4935"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "3.2.1"
  url_launcher_macos:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: url_launcher_macos
      sha256: "17ba2000b847f334f16626a574c702b196723af2a289e7a93ffcb79acff855c2"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "3.2.2"
  url_launcher_platform_interface:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: url_launcher_platform_interface
      sha256: "552f8a1e663569be95a8190206a38187b531910283c3e982193e4f2733f01029"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "2.3.2"
  url_launcher_web:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: url_launcher_web
      sha256: "4bd2b7b4dc4d4d0b94e5babfffbca8eac1a126c7f3d6ecbc1a11013faa3abba2"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "2.4.1"
  url_launcher_windows:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: url_launcher_windows
      sha256: "3284b6d2ac454cf34f114e1d3319866fdd1e19cdc329999057e44ffe936cfa77"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "3.1.4"
  vector_math:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: vector_math
      sha256: "80b3257d1492ce4d091729e3a67a60407d227c27241d6927be0130c98e741803"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "2.1.4"
  vm_service:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: vm_service
      sha256: ddfa8d30d89985b96407efce8acbdd124701f96741f2d981ca860662f1c0dc02
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "15.0.0"
  web:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: web
      sha256: "868d88a33d8a87b18ffc05f9f030ba328ffefba92d6c127917a2ba740f9cfe4a"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "1.1.1"
  webview_flutter:
    dependency: "direct main"
    description:
      name: webview_flutter
      sha256: c3e4fe614b1c814950ad07186007eff2f2e5dd2935eba7b9a9a1af8e5885f1ba
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "4.13.0"
  webview_flutter_android:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: webview_flutter_android
      sha256: "769f34fc9855f7d7789b786b79b7c37a60e92ff08f71e3a429208d7f5b81d944"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "4.8.0"
  webview_flutter_platform_interface:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: webview_flutter_platform_interface
      sha256: f0dc2dc3a2b1e3a6abdd6801b9355ebfeb3b8f6cde6b9dc7c9235909c4a1f147
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "2.13.1"
  webview_flutter_wkwebview:
    dependency: transitive
    description:
      name: webview_flutter_wkwebview
      sha256: "71523b9048cf510cfa1fd4e0a3fa5e476a66e0884d5df51d59d5023dba237107"
      url: "https://pub.dev"
    source: hosted
    version: "3.22.1"
sdks:
  dart: ">=3.8.1 <4.0.0"
  flutter: ">=3.27.0"

Steps to reproduce

I can reproduce this issue on my Samsung Galaxy S23FE with Android 14, and also an a Xiaomi Device with Android 13.
Issue is not reproducible (everything works the expected way) using any emulated Google Pixel Device in Android Studio nor a real Google Pixel 6 with Android 16.
Issue is not reproducible (everything works the expected way) using a real Samsung Galaxy S23 Device with Android 13 via Browserstack.
Did not try to reproduce the issue on iOS devices.

1. scroll down to "Optimize click behavior"
2. in "href clickt tests" click on one of the Links for "Google Play Store (market://)"

Expected results

Link should open in Google Play Store

Actual results

Link opens in in-app WebView

Code sample

Code sample

import 'package:flutter/material.dart';
import 'package:webview_flutter/webview_flutter.dart';
import 'package:url_launcher/url_launcher.dart';

void main() {
  runApp(
    MaterialApp(
      theme: ThemeData(useMaterial3: true),
      home: const WebViewApp(),
    ),
  );
}

class WebViewApp extends StatefulWidget {
  const WebViewApp({super.key});

  @override
  State<WebViewApp> createState() => _WebViewAppState();
}

class _WebViewAppState extends State<WebViewApp> {
  late final WebViewController controller;

  @override
  void initState() {
    super.initState();
    controller = WebViewController()
      ..loadRequest(
        Uri.parse('https://google.github.io/webview-ads/test/'),
      );
  }

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return Scaffold(
      body: WebViewStack(controller: controller),
    );
  }
}

class WebViewStack extends StatefulWidget {
  const WebViewStack({required this.controller, super.key});

  final WebViewController controller;

  @override
  State<WebViewStack> createState() => _WebViewStackState();
}

class _WebViewStackState extends State<WebViewStack> {
  Future<void> loadUrlInBrowser(String url) async {
    Uri uri = Uri.parse(url);

    if (await canLaunchUrl(uri)) {
      await launchUrl(uri, mode: LaunchMode.externalApplication);
    } else {
      throw "Could not launch url [$url] in external browser.";
    }
  }

  @override
  void initState() {
    super.initState();
    widget.controller
      ..setNavigationDelegate(
        NavigationDelegate(
          onNavigationRequest: (navigation) async {
            if (!navigation.isMainFrame) {
              return NavigationDecision.navigate;
            }

            await loadUrlInBrowser(navigation.url);
            return NavigationDecision.prevent;
          },
        ),
      )
      ..setJavaScriptMode(JavaScriptMode.unrestricted);
  }

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return Stack(
      children: [
        WebViewWidget(
          controller: widget.controller,
        ),
      ],
    );
  }
}

Screenshots or Videos

Screenshots / Video demonstration

Using my Samsung Galaxy S23 FE (Android 14) with my minimal Test-Project (see code above).

Opening both links from "Google Play Store (market://)" will open the Play Store in the in-app WebView.

Opening any link from "Google Play Store (https://)" will open in Google Play Store application.

Screen_Recording_20250718_095221.mp4

Logs

Logs

Flutter Doctor output

Doctor output

[✓] Flutter (Channel stable, 3.32.6, on macOS 15.5 24F74 darwin-arm64, locale de-DE) [1.111ms]
    • Flutter version 3.32.6 on channel stable at /Users/luisgraml/development/flutter
    • Upstream repository https://github.com/flutter/flutter.git
    • Framework revision 077b4a4ce1 (vor 9 Tagen), 2025-07-08 13:31:08 -0700
    • Engine revision 72f2b18bb0
    • Dart version 3.8.1
    • DevTools version 2.45.1

[✓] Android toolchain - develop for Android devices (Android SDK version 35.0.1) [2,9s]
    • Android SDK at /Users/luisgraml/Library/Android/sdk
    • Platform android-35, build-tools 35.0.1
    • Java binary at: /Applications/Android Studio.app/Contents/jbr/Contents/Home/bin/java
      This is the JDK bundled with the latest Android Studio installation on this machine.
      To manually set the JDK path, use: `flutter config --jdk-dir="path/to/jdk"`.
    • Java version OpenJDK Runtime Environment (build 21.0.6+-13391695-b895.109)
    • All Android licenses accepted.

[✓] Xcode - develop for iOS and macOS (Xcode 16.4) [2,3s]
    • Xcode at /Applications/Xcode.app/Contents/Developer
    • Build 16F6
    • CocoaPods version 1.16.2

[✓] Chrome - develop for the web [11ms]
    • Chrome at /Applications/Google Chrome.app/Contents/MacOS/Google Chrome

[✓] Android Studio (version 2025.1) [10ms]
    • Android Studio at /Applications/Android Studio.app/Contents
    • Flutter plugin can be installed from:
      🔨 https://plugins.jetbrains.com/plugin/9212-flutter
    • Dart plugin can be installed from:
      🔨 https://plugins.jetbrains.com/plugin/6351-dart
    • Java version OpenJDK Runtime Environment (build 21.0.6+-13391695-b895.109)

[✓] VS Code (version 1.86.2) [9ms]
    • VS Code at /Applications/Visual Studio Code.app/Contents
    • Flutter extension can be installed from:
      🔨 https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=Dart-Code.flutter

[✓] Connected device (4 available) [6,2s]
    • SM S711B (wireless) (mobile)        • adb-RZCX111QAGV-AA6x7z._adb-tls-connect._tcp • android-arm64  • Android 14 (API 34)
    • iPhone von Luis (wireless) (mobile) • 00008030-001E70813E00202E                    • ios            • iOS 18.5 22F76
    • macOS (desktop)                     • macos                                        • darwin-arm64   • macOS 15.5 24F74 darwin-arm64
    • Chrome (web)                        • chrome                                       • web-javascript • Google Chrome 138.0.7204.158

[✓] Network resources [655ms]
    • All expected network resources are available.

• No issues found!

[tirth-patel-nc]

@fleischsalod thanks for the report. We tested this on a Pixel 6a, Poco M3 & S10+ (from colleague), all four options (Google Play http _blank, Google Play http _top, Google Play market _blank, and Google Play market _top) open as follows:

I'm not sure if this is a plugin issue, it might depend on how different devices handle market:// urls.

if possible, could you check how the native app behaves with those links on your device where you're seeing the issue? that could help narrow things down.

[stuartmorgan-g]

await loadUrlInBrowser(navigation.url);

Have you verified that this line is actually running when you see the unexpected behavior? The title of the issue indicates that url_launcher is opening the link incorrectly, but it could also be that the system webview on this device is never even calling the delegate for these URLs, and the link is opening in the webview your code created, not a url_launcher-created webview.

[fleischsalod]

await loadUrlInBrowser(navigation.url);

Have you verified that this line is actually running when you see the unexpected behavior? The title of the issue indicates that url_launcher is opening the link incorrectly, but it could also be that the system webview on this device is never even calling the delegate for these URLs, and the link is opening in the webview your code created, not a url_launcher-created webview.

I debugged my application and i can verify that loadUrlInBrowser is called. Actually everything seams to be called the expected way. I debugged until i saw that this line opened the Play Store in the in-app webview (launchUrl in messages.g.dart:163):

await pigeonVar_channel.send(<Object?>[url, headers]) as List<Object?>?;

I could not fully follow the code that executed afterwards, but as far as i could tell, there was no error thrown.
Nevertheless the url opened in the in-app webview and did not launch the Play Store app.

Does this answer your questions @stuartmorgan-g @tirth-patel-nc?

Please let me know, if you need any more information.

[stuartmorgan-g]

I debugged until i saw that this line opened the Play Store in the in-app webview (launchUrl in messages.g.dart:163):

That's calling the expected code, which means it will do this on the native side. I don't know what activity is displaying the market:// content in your video, but it is not url_launcher's webview, as that is only used by opeUrlInApp, which is a completely different codepath.

So the plugin is correctly handing off the activity to the system, and whatever handler the system passes it to is doing this. What is this code logging when you call canLaunchUrl on these devices?

[fleischsalod]

What is this code logging when you call canLaunchUrl on these devices?

I/UrlLauncher(10294): component name for market://details?id=com.google.android.googlequicksearchbox is {com.android.vending/com.google.android.finsky.transparentmainactivity.TransparentMainActivity}