Push notifications (expo-notifications) in React Native - Practice Problems & Coding Challenges

Challenge - 5 Problems

❓ ui_behavior

intermediate

What happens when a notification is received while the app is in the foreground?

Using expo-notifications, what is the default behavior when a push notification arrives while the app is open and active on the screen?

A The notification is received silently without any alert or sound.

B The notification is shown as a system alert banner automatically.

C The app crashes due to unhandled notification event.

D The notification triggers a vibration but no visual alert.

💡 Hint

Think about how notifications behave when the user is already using the app.

By default, expo-notifications does not show system alerts for notifications received in the foreground. Instead, the app receives the notification data silently, allowing custom handling.

🧠 Conceptual

intermediate

Which permission is required to receive push notifications on iOS?

To receive push notifications on an iOS device using expo-notifications, which permission must the app request from the user?

A LOCATION

B NOTIFICATIONS

C CAMERA

D CONTACTS

💡 Hint

Think about what permission controls alerts and badges on iOS.

iOS requires explicit user permission for notifications. The app must request the NOTIFICATIONS permission to show alerts, sounds, or badges.

❓ lifecycle

advanced

When is the push token generated and how to handle it?

In expo-notifications, when is the push notification token generated and what is the best practice to handle it in your React Native app?

A The token is generated on app launch after permissions are granted; handle it by requesting permissions and then calling getExpoPushTokenAsync.

B The token is generated only on Android devices; iOS does not use tokens.

C The token is generated automatically without any permission; no need to handle it explicitly.

D The token is generated only after the user taps a notification; handle it in notification response listener.

💡 Hint

Consider when the app can communicate with the notification service and what steps are needed.

The push token is generated after the app requests and receives notification permissions. Then calling getExpoPushTokenAsync returns the token to send to your backend.

🔧 Debug

advanced

Why does this notification handler not trigger on Android?

Consider this code snippet in a React Native app using expo-notifications: import * as Notifications from 'expo-notifications'; Notifications.setNotificationHandler({ handleNotification: async () => ({ shouldShowAlert: true, shouldPlaySound: false, shouldSetBadge: false, }), }); useEffect(() => { const subscription = Notifications.addNotificationReceivedListener(notification => { console.log('Notification received:', notification); }); return () => subscription.remove(); }, []); Why might the console.log never appear on Android when a notification arrives while the app is foregrounded?

A The listener is removed immediately after being added, so it never receives notifications.

B Android requires a different notification handler setup; this code only works on iOS.

C The notification is not received because the app lacks notification permissions on Android.

D The notification is handled by the system and not delivered to the listener because the notification handler returns shouldShowAlert: true.

💡 Hint

Think about how the notification handler affects delivery to listeners.

When shouldShowAlert is true, the notification is shown by the system and not delivered to the listener on Android in the foreground. To receive it in the listener, shouldShowAlert must be false.

❓ navigation

expert

How to navigate to a specific screen when a notification is tapped?

In a React Native app using expo-notifications and React Navigation, how can you navigate to a specific screen when the user taps a push notification that opens the app?

A Use Notifications.addNotificationReceivedListener to detect taps and call navigation.navigate inside it.

B Use React Navigation's useFocusEffect to check if the app was opened by a notification and navigate accordingly.

C Use Notifications.addNotificationResponseReceivedListener to detect notification taps and then call navigation.navigate with the target screen.

D Set a deep link URL in the notification payload and configure React Navigation to handle it automatically without listeners.

💡 Hint

Consider which listener specifically handles user interaction with notifications.

addNotificationResponseReceivedListener listens for when the user taps a notification. Inside its callback, you can safely call navigation.navigate to the desired screen.