Looking for a Branch Alternative? DeepTap Does the Deep Linking, Without the SDK.
Branch is a mobile measurement platform that happens to include deep linking. DeepTap is only the deep linking: hosted apple-app-site-association and assetlinks.json, link routing, branded short links, and deferred deep linking — with no SDK in your app and no attribution suite to pay for. If you need cross-network ad attribution, Branch is the right tool and this page will tell you so. If you just need links that open the right screen, keep reading.
Published 2026-08-25 · Last updated 2026-08-25
What is the difference between DeepTap and Branch?
Branch is a mobile measurement platform (MMP): an SDK inside your app that attributes installs and in-app events back to ad campaigns, with deep linking as one feature of that platform. DeepTap is a focused deep-link host: it serves your iOS and Android association files, routes links, and returns deferred link context after install — without an SDK, and without the attribution layer. The practical consequence is that Branch can tell you which ad creative drove a purchase, and DeepTap cannot. In exchange, DeepTap adds no third-party code to your binary, nothing to re-integrate when iOS or Android changes, and costs a published $5.99–$49.99 per month.
This matters because the two products are usually compared as if they were the same category. They are not. Teams end up on Branch because they needed deep links, and stay on a measurement platform they use maybe a tenth of. Teams end up frustrated with SDK-free tools because they actually needed attribution and no configuration-only product can give them that.
The honest question is not "which is better" but "do you need to measure paid acquisition, or do you need links that work?"
How does deep linking work without an SDK?
iOS Universal Links and Android App Links are operating-system features, not vendor features. The OS decides whether a URL opens your app by reading two files hosted on the link domain. DeepTap hosts and serves those files correctly, then routes each click to your app or to the store. No SDK is involved because none is needed for the routing itself.
The two files that do the work
On iOS, your domain serves /.well-known/apple-app-site-association — JSON listing the app IDs allowed to handle your URLs and which paths they claim. It must be served over HTTPS with a JSON content type, with no redirects and no authentication. On Android, the equivalent is /.well-known/assetlinks.json, listing your package name and release signing fingerprints.
One detail worth correcting, because a lot of comparison articles get it wrong: since iOS 14, Apple does not fetch your association file on every tap. Apple's CDN retrieves it when your app is installed or updated, and the device uses the cached result. That is good for speed, but it means a malformed or briefly-unreachable file does not produce a visible error — Universal Links simply stop opening your app for everyone who installed during that window, and you may not notice for days. Correct, stable hosting of that file is the actual job, and it is the job DeepTap does.
You can check your own domain right now with our free AASA validator — no sign-up, works whether or not you use DeepTap.
Deferred deep linking: one call, not an SDK
Deferred deep linking is the case where someone clicks a link, does not have your app, installs it, and should still land on the right screen. This is the one place where SDK-free does not mean zero code, and we would rather be precise than sell you a slogan.
DeepTap stores the destination when the click happens and returns it to your app on first launch through a single HTTPS GET to /api/deferred-link. That is roughly fifteen lines using URLSession or OkHttp— your platform's standard networking, no dependency added to your build file, nothing to update when the OS changes. Compare that with an SDK, which is a versioned third-party library inside your binary that you re-integrate on someone else's schedule.
Full code for both platforms is in the iOS guide and the Android guide.
When should you choose Branch instead of DeepTap?
Choose Branch when attribution is the point. If you spend real money on user acquisition across ad networks and need to tie installs and post-install events back to specific campaigns and creatives, you need code running inside your app — and no configuration-only product can provide it. DeepTap does not compete for that job and will not pretend otherwise.
Branch is the better fit if you need
- • Install and event attribution across paid channels
- • In-app event tracking tied to campaigns
- • Cross-device and web-to-app identity resolution
- • Built-in referral and reward mechanics
- • Piping install data into a wider marketing stack
- • Ad-fraud detection on acquisition spend
DeepTap is the better fit if you
- • Need reliable deep links, not campaign measurement
- • Want zero third-party code in your app binary
- • Run a content, productivity, or internal app
- • Prefer a published price to a sales call
- • Are replacing Firebase Dynamic Links
- • Want your AI coding agent to configure it
A useful test: open your Branch dashboard and look at what you actually read each week. If it is click counts and whether links opened the app, you are paying a measurement platform to be a link host. If it is cohorts, creatives, and ROAS, stay where you are.
What DeepTap has that measurement platforms don't
A hosted MCP server
Connect DeepTap to Claude Code, Codex, or Claude Desktop over the Model Context Protocol and let the agent create a domain, set your Bundle ID, Team ID, and package name, and verify the result. Authentication is OAuth 2.1 — nothing to install, no API key to paste. MCP guide
A free Universal Links validator
Paste any domain and see whether its association file is actually valid — content type, redirects, app IDs, path patterns. No account required, and it works on domains that have nothing to do with DeepTap. Open the AASA checker
A public REST API and OpenAPI spec
Create and update domains programmatically with a machine-readable OpenAPI 3.1 description, so link configuration can live in your CI pipeline instead of a dashboard. API reference
A price you can read
$5.99, $14.99, or $49.99 per month, published, self-serve, no sales call and no annual commitment to find out what it costs. See plans
DeepTap vs Branch, feature by feature
Rows marked "not included" are genuinely not included. We would rather you find that out here than after signing up.
| DeepTap | Branch | |
|---|---|---|
| Primary purpose | Deep-link hosting and routing | Mobile measurement, with deep linking inside it |
| SDK in your app | None | Required |
| iOS Universal Links | Yes | Yes |
| Android App Links | Yes | Yes |
| Deferred deep linking | Yes — one HTTPS call, no SDK | Yes — via the SDK |
| Ad attribution | Not included | Core product |
| In-app event tracking | Not included | Yes |
| Marketing-stack integrations | Not included | Extensive |
| Branded short links | Yes | Yes |
| Analytics | Clicks, device, platform, referrer, routed-to-app vs sent-to-store | Full attribution reporting |
| Setup by an AI agent (MCP) | Yes — hosted MCP server | No |
| Free Universal Links validator | Yes, no sign-up | No |
| Pricing | $5.99–$49.99/mo, self-serve | Free tier, then MAU-based; growth pricing on request |
Branch features and pricing change; this table reflects our reading of their public documentation as of 2026-08-25. Check branch.io/pricing for their current numbers rather than relying on any vendor comparison, including this one.
An honest note on deferred deep linking accuracy
DeepTap matches a click to an install using a server-side fingerprint built from IP address and user agent — the same SDK-free approach the big platforms use as their fallback. It is most reliable when the click and the first app launch happen on the same network. If someone clicks on mobile data, installs, and opens the app on a different Wi-Fi network, or is behind CGNAT, a VPN, or iCloud Private Relay, the match can fail: the link still opens your app, just without the saved deep-link context. No fingerprint method avoids this entirely without an SDK in your app, which is the tradeoff we deliberately do not make. We also do not publish a single headline match-rate percentage, because the honest answer depends on your traffic mix and anyone quoting you one number is guessing.
What does migrating off Branch involve?
One app release. You remove the Branch SDK and its initialisation code, keep the associated-domains entitlement and Android intent filters you already have, point your links at your DeepTap domain, and add the deferred-link call if you use deferred deep linking. The native OS configuration carries over unchanged, because Branch was using the same Universal Links and App Links mechanism underneath.
Keep your Branch account alive until traffic to old app.link URLs dries up — links printed on packaging or baked into older app versions outlive your migration plan.
Frequently asked questions
Is DeepTap a drop-in replacement for Branch?
Only for the deep-linking half. DeepTap replaces Branch links, iOS Universal Links, Android App Links, short links, deferred deep linking, and click analytics. It does not replace Branch ad attribution, in-app event tracking, or marketing-stack integrations. If you use Branch purely for links, it is a direct swap. If you use it to attribute paid campaigns, keep a measurement platform.
Does DeepTap really require no SDK?
There is no SDK and nothing added to your dependency graph. Universal Links and App Links are handled natively by iOS and Android. Deferred deep linking uses one HTTPS GET to the DeepTap API on first launch — roughly fifteen lines with your platform standard networking, and no library to update when the OS changes.
How accurate is deferred deep linking without an SDK?
DeepTap matches a click to an install with a server-side fingerprint of the client IP and the device platform, within a short window after the click. It is most reliable when the click and the first app launch happen on the same network. It degrades with CGNAT, iCloud Private Relay, VPNs, or a network switch between click and launch — in those cases the link still opens your app, just without the saved deep-link context. We deliberately do not publish a single match-rate percentage, because the real number depends on your traffic mix.
Do I have to rebuild my app to switch from Branch?
You need one app release. Remove the Branch SDK and its init code, keep your existing associated-domains entitlement and Android intent filters, point your links at your DeepTap domain, and add the deferred-link call if you use deferred deep linking. The native Universal Links and App Links configuration carries over unchanged, because both platforms rely on the same OS mechanism.
What does DeepTap cost compared to Branch?
DeepTap is self-serve and published: $5.99, $14.99, or $49.99 per month depending on domains, short links, and analytics retention. Branch offers a free tier and paid plans that scale with monthly active users, with growth and enterprise pricing quoted on request — check the Branch pricing page for current numbers rather than trusting a comparison table.
Can an AI coding agent set up DeepTap for me?
Yes. DeepTap ships a hosted Model Context Protocol server with OAuth 2.1 authentication, so Claude Code, Codex, or Claude Desktop can create a domain, configure your iOS and Android credentials, and verify the result without you editing config files by hand.
What happens to my existing Branch links after I migrate?
They keep resolving for as long as your Branch account is active. The safe order is to move newly created links to DeepTap first, leave the Branch account running until traffic to the old links drops off, and cancel only then. Links already printed on packaging or embedded in old app versions are the reason not to cancel on day one.
Related reading
Migrating from Branch
Step-by-step guide with iOS and Android code changes.
Firebase Dynamic Links alternative
FDL shut down in August 2025. Here is the replacement path.
iOS Universal Links guide
Entitlements, AASA, and deferred links in Swift.
Free AASA checker
Validate any domain's Universal Links setup, no sign-up.
Try the deep linking half on its own
Seven-day free trial, then $5.99/month. If it turns out you needed attribution after all, cancel and stay on Branch — we would rather you pick correctly.