How to Build a PWA With Ionic Capacitor

Progressive Web Applications (PWAs) are becoming increasingly popular due to their ability to provide users with a native app-like experience while being accessible through web browsers. Building a PWA with Ionic Capacitor allows developers to harness the power of web technologies, offering offline functionality, home screen installation, and push notifications. In this guide, we will walk through the steps to create a PWA using Ionic Capacitor.

Step 1: Setting Up Your Environment

Before you start building your PWA, ensure you have the necessary development environment set up:

Node.js (latest LTS version)
npm (Node package manager)
Ionic CLI installed globally (use the command npm install -g @ionic/cli)

Step 2: Create a New Ionic Application

To create a new Ionic application, run the following command in your terminal:

ionic start myPWA blank --type=angular

This command creates a new Ionic project named "myPWA" using an Angular template. You can replace "blank" with other templates if desired.

Step 3: Integrate Capacitor

After creating your Ionic app, navigate to the project directory:

cd myPWA

Next, initialize Capacitor:

ionic build

npx cap init myPWA com.example.mypwa

Replace "myPWA" and "com.example.mypwa" with your app name and package identifier, respectively.

Step 4: Add Platforms

To enable PWA features, add and configure the web platform:

npx cap add web

This will create the web build of the application that Capacitor can serve as a PWA.

Step 5: Configure PWA Settings

Open the capacitor.config.ts file to configure your PWA. Here, you can define important settings such as:

appId: Your application ID (usually in reverse domain format)
appName: The name of your application
webDir: The output directory for web assets (default is www)
bundledWebRuntime: Set to true to reduce app size

Make sure you have enabled PWA-specific settings like service workers and icons.

Step 6: Implement Service Workers

Service workers are essential for enabling offline capabilities and caching. You can utilize the Angular service worker by enabling it during the build process:

ng add @angular/pwa

This command adds all necessary configurations for the service worker to your project. Review the generated files—especially ngsw-config.json—to customize caching strategies as needed.

Step 7: Build Your Application

Now that everything is set up, build your Ionic application:

ionic build

After the build completes, you can deploy your application to your preferred hosting service. Capacitor can also help in serving the app locally during development:

npx cap serve

Step 8: Testing Your PWA

To test your PWA, open your web browser and navigate to the local server, typically http://localhost:8100. Check the application in the browser's developer tools to ensure the service worker is registered and caching is functioning as expected.

Step 9: Deploying Your PWA

Once you're satisfied with your PWA, you can deploy it. Platforms like Firebase Hosting, Vercel, and Netlify are excellent choices for hosting PWAs. Follow the platform's guide to upload your www folder contents.

Conclusion

Building a PWA with Ionic Capacitor is a straightforward process that allows developers to deliver a rich, interactive user

How to Build a PWA With Ionic Capacitor