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If the Home Assistant Companion app will not update or a feature stops working, check compatibility, the app’s release notes, permissions, and background settings before treating it as an app bug. Then try the same task in Safari or Chrome: that comparison can help distinguish an app problem from a Home Assistant frontend or custom-component issue.

Is your phone and Home Assistant server compatible?

The general getting-started requirements in Home Assistant’s Companion app guide are iOS 16.4 or later, Android 6 or later, and Home Assistant 0.104.0 or later. The guide also lists iPhone 8 or later, iPad (5th generation or later), and Apple Watch Series 4 or later. These are general baselines, not guarantees that every feature works on every device: individual features can have newer requirements. Check the current release notes and the documentation for the specific feature you are troubleshooting.

Updates are distributed through different channels, and the official release pages do not establish one rollout date that applies to every store and device. Check the release notes for the platform and distribution channel you actually use: Android releases or iOS releases.

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Why won’t the Home Assistant app update?

First identify how the app was installed. On Android, the full flavor is distributed through Google Play and requires Google Play Services. The minimal flavor is available as an APK from the GitHub releases or through F-Droid; it does not require Google Play Services, but has feature differences, including no location tracking or Matter commissioning. F-Droid builds releases independently, so its updates may arrive later than releases from other channels. Check the Android flavors documentation before concluding that a missing feature is an update failure.

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For either platform, confirm that the device has enough available storage, a working internet connection, and access to the store or distribution channel used to install the app. Compare the installed version with the release notes for that channel; do not assume every user receives an update at the same time.

Which update fixes the tag-link security issue?

Home Assistant’s security advisories identify Android 2026.5.3 or later and iOS 2026.5.0 or later as patched versions for an issue in which a link delivered through an operating-system routing mechanism could be treated like a physical NFC or QR tag scan and forwarded without user confirmation. The fixes add an explicit approval step in the app. See the Android security advisories and iOS security advisories for the platform-specific details. Until the patched version is installed, avoid using tag triggers for sensitive physical-security automations unless additional safeguards are in place.

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Which permissions and background settings should you check?

Permissions affect particular functions rather than the app as a whole. Menu names vary by OS version and, on Android, by device manufacturer; use the current labels shown on your phone.

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Area iOS Android
General minimum OS in the getting-started guide iOS 16.4 or later Android 6 or later
Background location wording in the documentation “Allow Always” or “Always” “Allow all the time”; the documented tracker steps call for precise location on Android 12 or later
Background behavior iOS controls and may throttle background refresh Battery optimization, manufacturer power modes, and data restrictions can interfere
Android app flavor Not applicable Full flavor through Google Play requires Google Play Services; minimal flavor omits some features
Patched version for the tag-link issue 2026.5.0 or later 2026.5.3 or later

For location-based features, grant the required location access and background access, and allow the app to use background data. On Android, check whether battery optimization or a manufacturer-specific power mode is restricting the app; allow unrestricted background activity if those limits are preventing updates. For the documented tracker setup, Android 12 or later also requires precise location. On iOS, background sensor updates are tied to location updates and can be throttled by the operating system. The sensor documentation says Android sensors update periodically at 15-minute intervals as well as in response to certain conditions. Actual sensor availability depends on the device and permissions.

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Location permission may also be used to read the Wi-Fi SSID so the app can choose between internal and external server URLs. The networking documentation says remote connections require encryption; do not expose an unencrypted Home Assistant server publicly. See the networking guidance and error troubleshooting page when investigating URL or connection problems.

Why are notifications missing or is notify.mobile_app unavailable?

  1. Check OS permission. Confirm that notifications are allowed for the Companion app in the phone’s system settings.
  2. Check Android channels. If you use Android, confirm that the relevant notification channel is enabled; a disabled channel can block a notification even when app notifications are allowed.
  3. Send a simple test. Verify the notification payload with a basic test message before investigating a more complex automation.
  4. Restart Home Assistant after setup. The troubleshooting FAQ says to restart Home Assistant after initial setup so the mobile action can register.
  5. Reopen the app and retry registration. If the action still does not appear, force-quit the app on iOS or force-stop it on Android, reopen it, and restart Home Assistant again.
  6. Check iOS app settings. Inspect the Companion app’s notification settings and push ID if notifications still fail.

The notification troubleshooting FAQ states that each app target is limited to 500 notifications per day for the free notification service, with the limit resetting daily at midnight UTC. Treat that as the limit documented by the FAQ; service limits can change.

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Why have location or background sensors stopped updating?

Start by checking whether the affected sensor is available on the device and whether its permission is enabled. Sensor updates do not necessarily happen immediately: the Android sensor documentation describes a periodic 15-minute interval, alongside updates triggered by certain conditions. On iOS, background sensor updates depend on location updates and may be throttled by iOS.

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For Android, check the location and background-access permissions, battery optimization, manufacturer power-saving settings, and background-data restrictions. For iOS, check the app’s location access and allow background refresh where available, while recognizing that iOS controls when background activity runs. Consult the location tracking documentation for the relevant setup steps.

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Why does Home Assistant work in a browser but not in the app?

Open the same Home Assistant instance in Safari or Chrome and reproduce the issue. If it also happens in the browser, the cause may be in the Home Assistant frontend or a custom component; follow the relevant frontend or component reporting route. If it happens only in the Companion app, report it to the appropriate iOS or Android app project, including what happened in the browser comparison. The Companion app troubleshooting FAQ recommends this distinction.

How do you clean-reset the Android app?

Use the documented reset sequence only after less disruptive checks, such as logging out and back in, have failed. Clearing storage removes local app data, so consider preserving any configuration you need first. The official Android troubleshooting FAQ warns that uninstalling and reinstalling is not necessarily equivalent, because reinstalling may trigger auto-backup.

  1. Update Home Assistant Core, the Android Companion app, and Android System WebView.
  2. Log out of the Companion app and log back in. If the problem remains, continue.
  3. Clear the Companion app’s storage using the Android system settings for the app.
  4. Remove the affected Mobile App integration entry in Home Assistant.
  5. Restart Home Assistant.
  6. Open the Companion app and sign in again with your Home Assistant credentials.

What information should you include in a bug report?

  • Your phone or tablet model, OS version, and Companion app version.
  • For Android, whether you installed the full or minimal flavor and which distribution channel supplied it.
  • The Home Assistant version and the feature or action that failed.
  • Which permissions and relevant background or battery settings are enabled.
  • Whether the same behavior occurs in Safari or Chrome.
  • The steps that reproduce the problem and any error message shown.

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