Push notifications have the highest friction-to-value ratio of any UI pattern. They interrupt users in the middle of whatever they're doing, in a context you can't control, with no guarantee the timing is appropriate. Used well, they're genuinely valuable. Used poorly, they train users to ignore or disable them — and once a user disables notifications, you've permanently lost that channel.
The Permission Ask
The notification permission prompt appears once. If users deny it, you have to navigate them to system settings to re-enable it. This makes the permission request itself a critical UX moment.
The worst pattern: requesting permission on app first launch before the user understands the value. The best pattern: requesting permission in context, right before a moment where notifications would deliver obvious value. "We'll let you know when your transfer arrives" converts significantly better than a generic permission dialog.
Notification Hierarchy
Not all notifications have equal urgency. A payment failure is time-sensitive and high stakes. A weekly summary report is neither. Mixing these in the same notification channel trains users to ignore everything. Use notification categories with different sound/vibration profiles that users can control independently.
Opt-Out Is a Trust Signal
Giving users granular control over which notifications they receive, and making that control easy to find and use, builds trust. It signals that you respect their attention. Users who feel in control of their notifications are less likely to disable them entirely.