Impossible to download a file on PWA (Progressive Web App)

I am also encountered the same problem you described. Did you ever discover a solution?

So far the only solution I found was to link to a Google viewer using either

window.open('https://docs.google.com/gview?url=urltoyour.pdf')

Or and iframe with the src as shown

src='https://docs.google.com/gview?url=urltoyour.pdf&embedded=true'

One major drawback here is if using window.open() or if in the iframe and the user clicks to open in a browser; when the user returns to the PWA they will return to the specified landing page of the PWA. If you have a secure PWA this also means when the user returns they will have to log back in and navigate to where they were inside your PWA.

I encountered the same problem and did some testing.

It appears to be working on iOS 13 yet with restrictions.

See my thread for details: How to download locally generated text in a PWA?

Working for me!

    function downloadPDF(url) { 
      var xhr = new XMLHttpRequest();
      xhr.open('GET', url, true);
      xhr.responseType = 'blob';
      xhr.onload = function(e) {
        if (this.status == 200) {
          var myBlob = this.response;
          var link = document.createElement('a');
          link.href = window.URL.createObjectURL(myBlob);
          link.download = "yourname.pdf";
          link.click();
        }
      };
      xhr.send();
    }