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Knowledge Base

Publishing

Publishing an app means releasing a stable, finished version of your project for users to see and use. While you continue tweaking and testing in your preview (or development) version inside Instance, users only interact with the polished, published version. This way, they get a smooth experience — no broken layouts or half-finished features — while you stay free to experiment behind the scenes.

Publish your app with the click of a button

While you can always look at your preview link — the one that starts with preview–--, there is no guarantee that this link will stay online. If you want to share an app with users, ensure to publish first.

The preview link always displays your app's current (or development) version that you see within Instance.

The preview link of your app

On the web, you'll find your app's preview link in the Preview tab. You can open the preview link in your preferred browser to test your app in full-screen mode.

On mobile, you'll find your app's preview link by tapping on ... and then selecting Share app link or Open in browser to either share the link or open it directly with your mobile browser.

You can access the preview version of your app with a web browser of your choice

The published link consistently directs to your published version, regardless of any changes you make to your app within Instance.

A published app

You'll see your app's publish link once you have successfully published your app. This is the link you can share with your users.

Working with a database

Keep in mind that when you work with a database, your app only has access to one shared database, even after publishing. If you add data to the database in the preview version, it will also be reflected in the live version. Learn more about databases.

Platform differences

Currently, publishing your app is only available through https://instance.so, not through the mobile apps.