webviews

Webviews are components that render web content within a native application or within another app. They enable hybrid apps and in-app browsers, allowing developers to reuse web interfaces and dynamic content while maintaining a native look and feel.

A webview embeds a browser engine such as WebKit, Blink, or Edge rendering. It processes HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, while a bridge or messaging interface connects the web content to the host application. This bridge lets the page request native features and the app injects data or commands. Rendering, scrolling, and layout are handled by the embedded engine, while the surrounding UI is provided by the native app.

Common platforms include Android WebView, iOS WKWebView, Windows WebView2, and macOS WebKit views. Many cross-platform toolkits expose similar components or rely on the same underlying engines to display web content inside mobile or desktop apps.

Security and privacy considerations are important. Webviews inherit browser-like risks from executing JavaScript and loading remote content. Recommended practices include restricting JavaScript access when not needed, enforcing content security policies, validating and sanitizing content, applying origin checks, isolating sensitive features, and keeping the engine up to date. When possible, minimize the surface area exposed to the web content and use sandboxing.

Limitations include varying feature parity with native code, potential performance differences, and platform-specific APIs. Webviews are well suited for hybrid apps, in-app documentation, simple editors, or embedding external pages. Alternatives include progressive web apps, or native UI components that render content directly without using a webview.