Bug report: iOS app save breaks product (critical error) and removes Rank Math metabox

[marko66git]

Describe the bug
Saving an existing product via the WooCommerce iOS app corrupts critical product metadata (theme/builder keys) and effectively bricks the product:

The product page on the front-end fails with a WordPress critical error (HTTP 500).

In wp-admin, the Rank Math SEO metabox for that specific product disappears.

The corruption persists across subsequent saves (Android app or wp-admin) and the product does not recover without manual repair (restoring meta or duplicating the item). Editing/saving the same product via the Android app or via wp-admin does not trigger the issue.

To Reproduce

Use a product that relies on a single-product template/builder (e.g., Woodmart + Elementor).

Open the product in the WooCommerce iOS app.

Edit a basic field (title/price/description) and Save.

Open the product on the front-end → critical error (HTTP 500).

Open the same product in wp-admin → the Rank Math metabox for this product is missing.

Expected behavior
Saving a product via the iOS app should not modify or delete third-party post meta (Elementor/Theme/SEO) unless explicitly edited. The product should render normally on the front-end and the Rank Math metabox should remain available in wp-admin.

Isolating the problem (mark completed items with an [x]):

I have deactivated other plugins and confirmed this bug occurs when only WooCommerce plugin is active.

This bug happens with a theme Woodmart

I can reproduce this bug consistently using the steps above.

Mobile Environment

Device: iPhone 17 Pro

iOS version: 26.0.1

WooCommerce iOS version: latest App Store release (Oct 2025)

WordPress Environment

WordPress: 6.8.3

PHP: 8.4.11

WooCommerce (plugin): 10.2.2

Notes: Saving via Android app or wp-admin does not cause the problem; only the iOS app does.

Additional notes / hypothesis
After the iOS save, some builder-related post meta become empty or removed (e.g., _elementor_data, _elementor_edit_mode, _elementor_template_type, _woodmart_single_product_builder). With those missing, the single-product template fatally errors on render, and the Rank Math UI for that product fails to load. Please ensure the iOS app’s REST update does not wipe or overwrite unknown third-party meta keys unless the user explicitly changes those fields.

Workarounds

Duplicate the broken product and publish the clone with the original slug; trash/redirect the broken one, or

Manually restore the missing builder meta from a healthy product; then the product works again.

[dangermattic]

🚫 Please add a type label (e.g. type: enhancement) and a feature label (e.g. feature: stats) to this issue.