LinkTrace is a mobile attribution and deep linking API that tracks which links drove app installs and routes new users to the right in-app screen after they install — with two API calls and no SDK. These 34 questions cover how the integration works, how installs are attributed without an SDK, how LinkTrace compares with Firebase Dynamic Links, Branch, and AppsFlyer, and what it collects.
34 questions · Last updated
What the product is, who it is for, and which platforms it covers.
LinkTrace is a mobile attribution and deep linking API for app developers and startups. It tracks which links drove app installs, enables deferred deep linking so new users land on the right in-app screen after installing, and powers referral programs — all with two API calls and no SDK required.
LinkTrace is built for indie developers, startups, and small app teams who need install attribution and deferred deep linking without an enterprise contract. It suits teams running a referral program, measuring which campaigns produce installs, or replacing Firebase Dynamic Links after its shutdown. Teams that need a full mobile measurement partner with ad-network postbacks, fraud scoring, and media-buying integrations are better served by Branch or AppsFlyer.
LinkTrace works on iOS and Android, and with any framework that can make an HTTP request — the documentation includes copy-paste examples for Swift, Kotlin, React Native, and Flutter. Because integration is a plain REST API rather than a native SDK, there is no platform-specific binary to add and nothing to update when the OS changes.
Yes, for the link and click side. A LinkTrace link can point at a web destination and still record the click, source, campaign, and custom payload, which is what a web-to-app referral flow needs. Install attribution itself is a mobile concept: it fires when your iOS or Android app makes its first-launch attribution call.
What you actually have to build, and how long it takes.
No. LinkTrace is entirely API-based. Integration requires two standard HTTP POST requests: one from your server to create a tracking link, and one from your mobile app on first launch to record the install. There is no SDK to download, configure, or keep updated.
Most developers complete the full integration in under an hour. The first API call creates a referral or campaign link. The second API call, made from your mobile app on first launch, records the attribution. Both endpoints require only an API key and one required parameter each.
The first is POST /api/v1/referral-links, called from your backend to mint a link for a referrer or campaign; it returns a short URL. The second is POST /api/v1/attributions, called once from your app after the user completes sign-up, passing a stable userId; it returns the referrer, source, campaign, medium, and custom payload of the link that brought them in, or attributed: false if there is no match. Everything else in the API is optional.
An API key is issued automatically when you create a LinkTrace account, and is available under Settings → API Key in the dashboard. Send it in the x-api-key header on every request. Keep it server-side where possible — it authenticates link creation as well as reads.
A backend is recommended but not mandatory. Link creation should happen server-side so your API key is never shipped inside an app binary where it can be extracted. The attribution call is made from the app itself. If you have no backend at all, you can create links manually in the dashboard and still attribute installs from the app.
Yes. Link creation accepts a stage environment that routes clicks to your staging store URLs instead of your live ones, and stage traffic is excluded from your plan quota. Switch to production when you ship, and your test links stop counting against your limits.
Deferred deep linking, Universal Links, and what the difference is.
Deferred deep linking solves a specific problem: a user clicks a link before they have the app installed. Without it, they get sent to the App Store, install the app, and open the home screen — losing the original context entirely. With deferred deep linking, that context is preserved. LinkTrace captures the intended destination at click time, routes the user through the App Store or Play Store, and on first launch delivers them directly to the right in-app screen — a product page, referral welcome, or personalised onboarding flow. It works on both iOS and Android with no SDK required.
A deep link opens a specific screen in an app that is already installed. A deferred deep link survives an install: the user does not have the app yet, so the destination is held while they go through the App Store or Play Store, then delivered on first launch. Ordinary deep links break in that gap, because the store hands the app no context about the link that sent the user there. Deferred deep linking is the harder half of the problem and the reason most teams reach for a service instead of building it.
Yes, once your app is configured for Apple Universal Links and Android App Links. Those require the link to be served from a domain associated with your app, which on LinkTrace means a branded subdomain such as yourbrand.linktrace.in — a Scale plan feature. Without it, links still work: they open in the browser and route the user onward. Setup for both platforms is covered in the Enable Deep Linking guide.
Yes, on the Scale plan, in the form of a branded subdomain such as yourbrand.linktrace.in. Branded links raise click-through because the destination is recognisable, and they are also the prerequisite for Universal Links and Android App Links on your own brand.
The click is still recorded, and the user is routed to the destination you configured — typically your website or a store listing. Attribution then completes normally if that person later installs the app on a device that matches the click within the attribution window.
How an install is matched to a link, and what comes back.
LinkTrace uses a 24-hour attribution window. If a user installs the app within 24 hours of clicking a referral link, the install is attributed and the API returns the full link metadata — including referrer, source, campaign, and custom payload. Installs outside this window return attributed: false.
Attribution happens at the server and redirect layer rather than inside your app binary. When someone taps a LinkTrace link, the redirect service records the click along with a device fingerprint. When your app makes its first-launch attribution call, LinkTrace matches that call against recent clicks and returns the winning link. On Android, the Play Install Referrer API supplies a deterministic signal that makes the match exact.
Android attribution is effectively deterministic, because the Play Install Referrer API passes the referrer value through the install itself. On iOS, matching is probabilistic within the 24-hour window and is strongest for the referral and campaign flows LinkTrace is built for, where the user clicks and installs in one sitting. Any attribution product without a device-level identifier faces the same ceiling — LinkTrace reports attributed: false rather than guessing when there is no confident match.
Yes. When creating a link you can attach a customPayload of up to three key-value string pairs — promo codes, onboarding variants, CTA labels, or anything else. LinkTrace stores them at click time and returns them verbatim when the install is attributed, so you can drive personalised onboarding or reward logic without extra infrastructure.
Yes, on the Scale plan, using POST /api/v1/events. Post-install events let you measure the actions that matter after the install — a completed sign-up, a subscription, a first purchase — against the link that brought the user in, so you can judge referral quality rather than raw install counts.
Pass a stable userId on the attribution call. LinkTrace deduplicates on that identifier, so a repeated call for a user who is already attributed does not create a second install. Use your own database user ID rather than anything regenerated per session.
How LinkTrace compares with Firebase Dynamic Links, Branch, and AppsFlyer.
Yes. LinkTrace is purpose-built as a Firebase Dynamic Links replacement. Firebase Dynamic Links reached end-of-life in August 2025. LinkTrace provides the same core functionality — deferred deep linking, install attribution, and referral tracking — with a free plan and paid tiers from $9.99/month, with no SDK requirement.
Google shut Firebase Dynamic Links down in August 2025, after announcing the deprecation in 2023. Existing links stopped resolving, so any app that relied on them for referral flows or post-install routing had to migrate. Google pointed teams at third-party alternatives rather than shipping a direct replacement, which is why the search for one is still active.
Replace the two things Firebase was doing for you. Wherever your backend created a Dynamic Link, call POST /api/v1/referral-links instead and store the short URL it returns. Wherever your app read the pending dynamic link on first launch, call POST /api/v1/attributions and read the destination out of the custom payload. Because there is no SDK, migrating means deleting the Firebase dependency rather than swapping it for another one.
Branch is a full mobile linking and measurement platform billed on volume, typically ~$500/mo at entry, with an annual contract and an SDK to integrate. LinkTrace covers the deep linking and install attribution that most small teams actually use from that feature set, at a flat rate with a free tier and no SDK. Branch remains the better fit for large-scale paid acquisition with many ad-network integrations.
AppsFlyer is a mobile measurement partner aimed at teams buying paid media at scale: ad-network postbacks, fraud protection, incrementality, and an SDK, typically ~$800/mo at entry. LinkTrace is not an MMP. It answers a narrower question — which link or referrer produced this install, and where should this user land after installing — with two API calls and no SDK. If you are not running significant paid acquisition, the MMP feature set is largely cost you do not use.
Only if you are buying paid media at a scale where ad-network postbacks and fraud protection change your spending decisions. Teams growing through referrals, organic social, email, and partnerships need to know which link drove an install and where to send that user next — which is what LinkTrace does, without the contract or the SDK. The usual signal to move up is a monthly ad budget large enough that a percentage point of measurement accuracy is worth more than the platform fee.
What LinkTrace collects, and what it deliberately does not.
No. LinkTrace does not use Apple's IDFA or Android's GAID advertising identifiers. Attribution is done by matching a device fingerprint recorded at click time against your app's first-launch call, plus the Play Install Referrer on Android, so no cross-app advertising identifier is involved.
LinkTrace is designed to work without prompting for App Tracking Transparency, because it does not read the IDFA or track users across other companies' apps and websites. Your own ATT obligations depend on everything else in your app, so confirm with whoever handles your privacy review — but LinkTrace itself does not add an ATT requirement.
LinkTrace is built to be privacy-first: no advertising identifiers, and only the link, click, and attribution data needed to answer which link produced an install. It is designed for compatibility with the GDPR, India's DPDP Act, Apple's ATT framework, and the Android Privacy Sandbox. As with any processor, your own consent notices and privacy policy remain your responsibility; the Terms of Use page sets out the data handling in full.
Link metadata you supply (referrer, source, campaign, medium, custom payload), click events, and the identifier you pass on the attribution call. LinkTrace does not collect advertising identifiers and does not build cross-app profiles. Pass a non-PII userId — your internal database ID works well — and no personal data needs to leave your systems at all.
Getting started, limits, and where to find full pricing detail.
Yes. The Starter plan is free forever and includes 100 Dynamic Links, 1,000 attributed installs, deferred deep linking, and referral tracking — enough to fully validate the integration and run a small referral program. No credit card is required to sign up.
Link creation and attribution stop counting new usage against an exhausted allowance until you upgrade — existing links keep resolving. You are never billed an overage: every LinkTrace plan is a flat monthly rate with no per-install or per-click charge. Upgrading takes effect immediately from the dashboard. Full limits for each plan are on the pricing page.
Email contact@linktrace.in and you will normally get a reply within 24 hours on weekdays. Paid plans include hands-on support to get the integration live, which in practice means someone reading your actual request and response payloads rather than pointing you back at the docs.
Answered in full on the pricing page, so there is exactly one page on this site that quotes a price.
The documentation covers the integration end to end — every endpoint, parameter, and error code. Anything it does not answer, email us.
Email contact@linktrace.in — we reply within 24 hours on weekdays.