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What is the difference between conditionalMediation and conditionalGet in WebAuthn?

Learn why there is a different naming in the WebAuthn standard (conditionalGet) and Apple's implementation (conditionalMediation) for Client Capabilities.

Vincent Delitz
Vincent Delitz

Created: October 15, 2024

Updated: May 12, 2026

difference conditionalget conditionalmediate webauthn

What is the difference between conditionalGet and conditionalMediation in WebAuthn Client Capabilities?#

The short answer is that there is no difference. For some reason, Apple decided to not adhere to the standard give the same WebAuthn client capability a different name. This means that the WebAuthn client capability conditionalMediation (on Safari) is the same as conditionalGet in the WebAuthn standard (Level 3 Editor's Draft).

  • conditionalGet and conditionalMediation describe the same WebAuthn client capability.
  • For some reason, Apple decided to take a different wording compared to the WebAuthn standard
  • Both are client capabilities within WebAuthn to improve user flows and reduce friction in passkey experiences.

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