Embedding web content into your app as primary or supporting content

Android lets you build on the power of the web within your app. So, you can benefit from the flexibility and efficiency of displaying certain types of content.

Embedding content using WebView

The WebView API gives you access to the capabilities of a mini-browser for displaying web content within your app. This lets you provide web-powered experiences as a core or supporting part within your app, as seen in Figure 1.

Android app open to Google Play, with the primary web view highlighted in a red box Android app open with supporting text inside a red box.
Figure 1. Web content embedded within the app with `WebView` objects as primary (left) and supporting content (right).

What WebView can do

You can do the following with WebView in your app:

  • Embed web: A WebView is integrated into an app's user interface as a component, much like a button or text field.

  • Load content: WebView can load web content from various sources:

    • Remote URLs: It can fetch and display web pages from the internet, just like a regular browser.
    • Local files: It can load HTML, CSS, and JavaScript files stored within the app's resources.
    • Dynamically generated content: The app can generate HTML content dynamically and provide it to the WebView.

  • Render: WebView uses its browser engine to parse and render the HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, displaying the resulting web page within its designated area in the app's UI.

  • Execute JavaScript: WebView can execute JavaScript code within the context of the loaded web page. This allows for dynamic interactions and updates within the WebView.

  • Interact with your app: This is where WebView gets more powerful. It enables bidirectional communication between the web page and the app.

    • JavaScript to app code: JavaScript code running in a WebView can call host APIs of the app, enabling access to device features like camera, GPS, or sensors.

    • App code to JavaScript: The app can also inject JavaScript code into a WebView, manipulate the web page's content, or respond to events triggered by the web page.

How WebView differs from a browser

A WebView is a highly custom component that provides the core functionality of a window into the web. Unlike a browser, which provides a navigation bar and other user interface elements to navigate the web more broadly, the overall experience of a WebView is shaped by your app's design and purpose.

To better understand how WebView differs from standard browsers, see the following explanations:

UI: A WebView is used for displaying web content and doesn't have its own header or UI like most other common browsers, for example, a home button, address bar, or settings menu.

Features: Many browsers have built-in features to augment the browsing experience, such as bookmarks, permissions, or history.

Updates: Because Android WebView is a system service on Android, updates are pushed and integrated into the apps automatically on a monthly basis. Browsers rely on their corresponding app updates and then for end users to apply the update on their devices.

Get started

For information on how to use WebView in your app, see the document Build web apps in WebView.

Additional resources

To develop web pages for Android-powered devices using WebView objects or Custom Tabs, see the following documents: