PopIn has three notification channels (push, email, SMS) and four notification tiers. Channel routing lets you decide which tier goes through which channel.
Tiers, channels, and the defaults
| Tier | Examples | Default channels |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 - Critical | Event cancellations, security alerts, urgent host broadcasts | Push + Email + SMS |
| Tier 2 - High priority | RSVPs on events you host, DMs from friends, mentions | Push + Email |
| Tier 3 - Standard | New posts from friends, reactions, comments | Push only |
| Tier 4 - Low priority | Batched summaries | Email only |
Change a tier's channels
Open Settings → Notifications
Each tier has its own card with three toggles - Push, Email, SMS.
Flip the channels you want for that tier
Saves on its own. A little Saved pill pops up in the bottom corner to confirm.
Tier 1 must have at least one channel on. You can't turn all three off - event cancellations and security alerts matter too much to be silenced entirely.
Push vs email vs SMS
| Channel | Strength | Limitation |
|---|---|---|
| Push | Instant, free | Needs OS-level push enabled; tab/PWA open or background push allowed |
| Reaches everyone | Several-minute delay, lower urgency-read rate | |
| SMS | Fastest path to a phone | May incur carrier charges depending on your plan |
Common adjustments
If you check the app often, mute Tier 3 push - you'll still see the in-app badge. If OS-level push isn't enabled, swap it for email on Tier 2 so you don't miss anything. If your inbox is loud, drop email from Tier 1 and rely on push + SMS for criticals.
SMS charges
Any SMS charges come from your carrier, not PopIn. If you've disabled SMS for a tier but still receive an event reminder text, that's a transactional message triggered by the event host (not by the tier routing). The PopIn toggle controls notifications generated by PopIn's tiers, not host-triggered transactional reminders.