> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.getrivet.ca/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Magic link not working

> The email arrived, you tapped the link, and nothing happened — or the wrong screen opened. The three causes and the fix for each.

The magic link is a one-time URL that signs you in and routes you into
the app. If it doesn't work, one of these three things happened.

## 1. The link expired

Magic links expire one hour after Rivet sends them. If you requested one
last night and came to it this morning, it's stale — the link will
return an error page when you open it.

**Fix:** Go to the sign-in screen, enter your email, and request a fresh
link. The new link replaces the old one; the old one stops working the
moment the new one is sent.

## 2. You tapped the link on the wrong device

The magic link signs in whichever device opens it. If the email landed
on your work laptop and you tap it on your phone, your phone gets signed
in — not the laptop. If you wanted both, you need a separate link sent
to each device.

**Fix:** Open the link on the device you want to use Rivet on. If you
need to sign in on a second device, request a second link from the
sign-in screen on that device.

<Tip>
  On iPhone and Android, tap the link directly from the email rather
  than copy-pasting it into a browser. The Rivet app catches the link
  and signs you in inside the app — exactly what you want. A copy-paste
  lands you in the browser, which signs you in to the web app instead.
</Tip>

## 3. The iOS Universal Link race — link opens Safari instead of the app

On iPhone, if you signed up before installing the Rivet app, the magic
link sometimes opens in Safari instead of the app. This is an iOS quirk:
when you sign up, the operating system doesn't know yet that
`app.getrivet.ca` belongs to the Rivet app, because the app isn't
installed. By the time you install it, the link in your email already
exists and Safari has "claimed" it.

**Fix (three options, any one works):**

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open the link from the app's sign-in screen">
    Install Rivet from the App Store, open it, tap **Sign in with
    email**, enter your email, and request a new link. The new link
    knows about the installed app and opens it directly.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Long-press the link in Mail and pick Open in Rivet">
    If "Open in Rivet" appears, tap it. iOS will then remember that
    `app.getrivet.ca` belongs to Rivet for all future links.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Sign in via the web, then come back to the app">
    Tap the link in Safari, sign in to the web app at
    `next.getrivet.ca`, then open the Rivet app and sign in with the
    same email there. The app sends its own fresh link, which now opens
    correctly.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## What if I still can't sign in after all of that?

Email **[hello@getrivet.ca](mailto:hello@getrivet.ca)** with:

* The email address on your Rivet account
* The device you're trying to sign in on (iPhone, Android, MacBook, etc.)
* A screenshot of what you see when you tap the link

We'll send you a one-time sign-in another way and figure out what's
breaking on our end.

## Related articles

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Can't log in" icon="user-lock" href="/troubleshooting/cant-log-in">
    The link never arrived — start here instead.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Contacting support" icon="envelope" href="/troubleshooting/contacting-support">
    What to include so we can fix it on the first reply.
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