Screen Navigation Types

Overview

Every screen in Adalo has a Navigation Type setting that determines where it sits in your app's entry flow. This setting controls which screen users land on when they open your app, depending on whether or not they're logged in.

There are three navigation types:

Normal — A standard screen with no special entry behavior. Most screens in your app will use this.

Welcome Screen — The first screen shown to users who are not logged in or don't have an account yet. This is your app's front door for new and returning logged-out users.

Home Screen — The first screen shown to users who are already logged in. This is where authenticated users land when they open your app.

Together, the Welcome Screen and Home Screen create a simple gate: logged out users go one way, logged in users go the other. Every other screen is Normal and is reached through links and navigation.

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Walkthrough

Setting a Screen's Navigation Type

1. Click on the screen's title on the canvas.

2. In the left panel, find the Navigation Type dropdown.

3. Select Normal, Welcome Screen, or Home Screen.

That's it. The setting takes effect immediately.

How the Three Types Work Together

When a user opens your app, Adalo checks whether they have an active session:

• Not logged in → The user is sent to the screen marked as Welcome Screen.

• Logged in → The user is sent to the screen marked as Home Screen.

Every other screen in your app is set to Normal and is only reachable through link actions or navigation components.

A typical flow looks like this:

Welcome Screen → Sign Up or Login → Home Screen → Normal screens throughout the app

When to Change a Navigation Type

Most of the time you won't need to touch this setting. Adalo assigns the correct types to the default authentication screens automatically. You'd change it if you:

• Replace the default Welcome Screen with a custom onboarding or landing screen — set your new screen to Welcome Screen and switch the old one to Normal.

• Replace the default Home Screen with a different dashboard or landing experience — set your new screen to Home Screen and switch the old one to Normal.

• Build an app without authentication — you may not need a Welcome Screen at all. Set your main screen to Home Screen and leave everything else as Normal.

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Learn More

• Your app can only have one Welcome Screen and one Home Screen at a time. If you assign the type to a new screen, the previous screen with that type reverts to Normal.

• If you delete a screen that is set as the Welcome Screen or Home Screen, Adalo will automatically assign that navigation type to another screen in your app. This can lead to unexpected behavior — always reassign the navigation type to the correct screen before previewing your app.

• The Navigation Type setting only controls the initial entry point. It does not prevent logged-out users from reaching other screens through deep links or shared URLs.