Expo push notifications in production: the setup checklist that prevents silent failures

UpdatedSeptember 4, 2026

AI-built React Native apps usually reach TestFlight with push notifications half-wired: the token code runs on a simulator where it can never work, the server key is still the legacy FCM credential Google is retiring, and nobody tested what happens when the user taps the notification. Then launch week arrives and pushes silently fail for half your users.

This post is the production checklist that prevents that. It covers how Expo push tokens actually work, the exact credentials you need on both platforms before your first production build, the token-registration code, the backend send logic, foreground and tap handling, and the four silent failure modes that eat launches.

This is an excerpt. Read the full post at otf-kit.dev/blog/expo-push-notifications-production — full-stack kits your AI coding agent can actually ship to production. Browse the kits →

#react-native #cross-platform #backend

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OTF — kits your AI coding agent can ship to production

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Engineering notes on shipping production apps with AI coding tools — Claude Code, Cursor, Codex, Lovable, Bolt — and the stack underneath: React Native, Expo, Next.js, Supabase. Honest takes on what works, what breaks, and the full-stack kits that get you to production faster. By OTF.

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