Common Issues general

Real-Time Features Not Working (Chat, Notifications, Live Updates)

Your app has real-time features (chat, live notifications, real-time data updates) but they don't work. Messages don't appear until you refresh, notifications are delayed or missing, or the live update feature requires manual refreshing.

Common Causes

  • WebSocket connection failing or not supported by the hosting platform
  • Real-time subscriptions not set up correctly in the database
  • The app uses polling but the interval is too long or the polling broke
  • Hosting platform doesn't support persistent connections (serverless limitation)
  • Supabase Realtime not enabled for the relevant tables

How to Fix It

  1. Check the browser console for WebSocket connection errors
  2. If using Supabase, verify that Realtime is enabled for the tables you need
  3. Check if your hosting platform supports WebSockets (some serverless platforms don't)
  4. Verify the real-time subscription code is listening to the correct channel/table
  5. As a fallback, implement polling (periodic refresh) until WebSockets are fixed

Real developers can help you.

Stanislav Prigodich Stanislav Prigodich 15+ years building iOS and web apps at startups and enterprise companies. I want to use that experience to help builders ship real products - when something breaks, I'm here to fix it. Yovel Cohen Yovel Cohen I got a lot of experience in building Long-horizon AI Agents in production, Backend apps that scale to millions of users and frontend knowledge as well. Matt Butler Matt Butler Software Engineer @ AWS Costea Adrian Costea Adrian Embedded Engineer specilizing in perception systems. Latest project was a adas camera calibration system. Meïr Ankri Meïr Ankri Full-stack developer specializing in React / Next.js / Node.js with 6+ years of experience. I've worked across various sectors including automotive (Reezocar/Société Générale), healthcare (Medical Link SaaS), and e-commerce (Glasman). I build web apps end-to-end, from architecture to production, with a focus on scalability, performance, and code quality. I also mentor junior developers and contribute to technical decisions and code reviews. Dor Yaloz Dor Yaloz SW engineer with 6+ years of experience, I worked with React/Node/Python did projects with React+Capacitor.js for ios Supabase expert Matthew Butler Matthew Butler Systems Development Engineer @ Amazon Web Services rayush33 rayush33 JavaScript (React.js, React Native, Node.js) Developer with demonstrated industry experience of 4+ years, actively looking for opportunities to hone my skills as well as help small-scale business owners with solutions to technical problems Rudra Bhikadiya Rudra Bhikadiya I build and fix web apps across Next.js, Node.js, and DBs. Comfortable jumping into messy code, broken APIs, and mysterious bugs. If your project works in theory but not in reality, I help close that gap. Luca Liberati Luca Liberati I work on monoliths and microservices, backends and frontends, manage K8s clusters and love to design apps architecture

Describe what's wrong in plain English. No technical knowledge needed.

Get Help

Frequently Asked Questions

Chat messages only appear after I refresh the page. Why?

The real-time subscription is probably not working. This could be a WebSocket connection issue, incorrect subscription setup, or a hosting platform limitation.

Can real-time features work on any hosting platform?

Not all platforms support WebSockets. Serverless platforms often can't maintain persistent connections. A developer can recommend the right setup for your needs.

Related Common Issues Issues

Can't fix it yourself?
Real developers can help.

You don't need to be technical. Just describe what's wrong and a verified developer will handle the rest.

Get Help