Progressive web app
type of web application that can be cached through network and works as a standard native app
A progressive web application (PWA), or progressive web app, is a type of web app that can be installed on a device as a standalone application. PWAs are installed using the offline cache of the device's web browser.
PWAs were introduced from 2016 as an alternative to native (device-specific) applications, with the advantage that they do not require separate bundling or distribution for different platforms. They can be used on a range of different systems, including desktop and mobile devices. Packaging and publishing a PWA, as an installable app, to digital distribution systems, such as the Apple App Store, Google Play, or the Microsoft Store on Windows, can optionally be performed.
Because a PWA is delivered in the form of a webpage or website built using common web technologies including HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and WebAssembly, it can work on any platform with a PWA-compatible browser. As of 2025, PWA features are supported to varying degrees by Google Chrome, Apple Safari, Brave, Firefox for Android, Microsoft Edge,, Vivaldi and Firefox for Windows.
History
Predecessors
At Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference in 2007, Steve Jobs announced that the iPhone would "run applications created with Web 2.0 Internet standards". No software development kit (SDK) was required, and the apps would be fully integrated into the device through the Safari browser engine. This model was later switched to the App Store, as a means of appeasing frustrated developers.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Progressive web app” as type of web application that can be cached through network and works as a standard native app. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the general reference register because the source frames it as type of web application that can be cached through network and works as a standard native app. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 4, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q23679990. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 2016, 2025 and 2007.
The absence of detail may reflect summary conventions rather than a lack of surviving documentation. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Progressive web app”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Progressive web app primary sources, Progressive web app archive and Progressive research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Progressive web app”?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Progressive web app” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.