Share and inter-app data flow
Apps SHOULD participate in the platform's share and inter-app data exchange mechanisms to integrate with other apps and workflows. Users expect to move data between apps without friction.
- Support both sending and receiving data through the platform share sheet
- Register as a handler for relevant file types and UTIs/MIME types
- Support drag and drop for content that makes sense in multi-window contexts
- Validate all received data — inter-app data is an untrusted input boundary
Apple (iOS / macOS)
Implement UIActivityViewController (iOS) or NSSharingServicePicker (macOS) to share content. Create Share Extensions to receive content from other apps. Register UTI declarations in Info.plist for file type associations. Support drag and drop via NSItemProvider on iPadOS and macOS. On macOS, support the Services menu via NSServices for system-wide text operations.
Android
Declare <intent-filter> with ACTION_SEND and appropriate MIME types to receive shared content. Use Intent.createChooser() to send. Implement Direct Share targets with ChooserTargetService for frequently shared-to contacts. Support ContentProvider for structured data sharing between apps. Register as a document provider via DocumentsProvider for the system file picker.
Windows
Implement the Share Contract (DataTransferManager) to send and receive content. Register as a share target in the app manifest. Support drag and drop via DragDrop APIs. Register file type associations in Package.appxmanifest for Open With integration. Support clipboard with rich content formats.
Web
Use the Web Share API (navigator.share()) to invoke the native share sheet. Register as a share target in the Web App Manifest (share_target). Support drag and drop via the HTML Drag and Drop API. Use the File Handling API to register as a handler for specific file types in PWAs.