"Intent URIs are a hyperlink format for Android that allow links to launch apps directly from a webpage. They are not allowed in WebView or Deep Link attachments." That's from Snapchat's own Deep Link Specifications page for advertisers. It's the one Snapchat rule to know before you use the generator's intent form. Snapchat's reason: intent links allow redirects that its ad review can't verify.
The add link in three forms
- The https link (
https://www.snapchat.com/add/yourhandle). The file snapchat.com publishes for Apple claims every path except /scan/, /referral/ and /w/, and Google's file (assetlinks.json) lists com.snapchat.android. So the add link opens your profile in Snapchat, or loads your public profile page. - The custom scheme (
snapchat://add/yourhandle). No Snapchat page we could read documents this form, so treat it as unconfirmed. Like any scheme, it opens nothing without the app. - The Android intent. Chrome on Android opens your profile in Snapchat from it, or the add page if Snapchat is missing. Keep it out of Snapchat ads, per the rule above.
The generator reads add links only
It takes the name after /add/, or the first part of the path if there's no /add/, and rebuilds the link as snapchat.com/add/ plus that name. A pasted snapchat.com/yourhandle comes back as an add link, and an @ is dropped. Any other snapchat.com link gets read as if its first path segment were a username, so only paste add links.
Snapchat ads don't need a generated link
If the goal is an ad that opens your Snapchat profile, you don't need a generated link. Snapchat's help center describes it: turn on the Link Brand Name to Public Profile toggle, pick the Deep Link attachment, and under App Name choose Deeplink to my Public Profile.
How to test it
- Try the add link on a phone with Snapchat and on one without.
- Test the intent form by tapping it on a web page in Chrome on Android. Chrome's documentation says it won't launch an app for an intent that arrives by redirect from a typed-in address or fires without a tap, and uses the fallback address in those cases.
Instagram's scheme, unlike Snapchat's, is published by the platform itself, and the Instagram deep link page shows where. For a chat link rather than a profile, the Telegram page fits. The deep link generator handles every supported platform.