TL;DR: If your TGTG notifications not working means bags are already gone by the time you tap the alert, that's usually not a settings problem — it's a speed problem. Here's how to fix both.

What "Not Working" Actually Means

There are two completely different problems that both get described as TGTG notifications not working:

Notifications aren't arriving at all — you open the app and see bags were available an hour ago, with no alert.
Notifications arrive but bags are already gone — the notification fires, you tap it immediately, and the bag is sold out.

The first is a settings problem. The second is a structural limitation of how TGTG's notification system works. They need different fixes.

Is It a Settings Problem? (Troubleshooting Checklist)

If you're not receiving alerts at all, work through this list before assuming the app is broken:

In the TGTG app:

Open Settings → Notifications and confirm push notifications are enabled for your favorite stores.
Check that you've added the store as a favorite — TGTG only notifies you about stores you've saved.

On iPhone:

Go to Settings → Too Good To Go → Notifications and make sure "Allow Notifications" is on.
Check that your notification style is set to something visible (Banner or Alert, not None).
Do Not Disturb or Focus modes will silently block delivery. Check that TGTG isn't excluded.

On Android:

Go to Settings → Apps → TGTG → Notifications and confirm they're enabled.
Battery optimization is the most common cause of missed notifications on Android. Go to Settings → Battery → Battery Optimization (or similar, depending on manufacturer), find TGTG, and set it to "Unrestricted" or "Don't optimize." Android's aggressive background process killing — especially on Samsung, Xiaomi, and Huawei devices — will prevent the app from receiving push notifications while in the background.
Some Android skins have additional "Auto-launch" or "Background activity" toggles. Enable both for TGTG.

If you run through this list and alerts still aren't arriving at all, uninstall and reinstall the TGTG app. That resolves most persistent delivery failures.

When Notifications Work But Bags Are Already Gone

This is the more common complaint in competitive cities, and it's worth being direct about: your phone received the notification just fine. The problem is that it arrived 20-60 seconds after the bag was listed, and the bag sold out in 10.

This isn't a bug and it's not fixable with settings. It's how push notifications work.

When TGTG lists a bag, they send a push notification through Apple's APNs or Google's FCM infrastructure. Those systems queue and deliver the message to your device — but delivery isn't instant. It depends on your network state, whether your device was in deep sleep, server queue depth at that moment, and a dozen other factors. On a good day, delivery takes 5-15 seconds. Under load, it can be 30-60 seconds or more.

At a popular Whole Foods or Panera in a big city, bags are gone in under 10 seconds. Everyone gets the notification after the fact.

This is why so many people conclude their TGTG notifications aren't working — they technically are, but they're not useful. See our breakdown of why TGTG bags sell out so fast for more on the demand side.

Why TGTG Notifications Are Structurally Slow

TGTG's notification system is built around the assumption that you're going to act on the alert: read it, open the app, find the bag, and complete the purchase. That flow takes at minimum 15-30 seconds from notification delivery to checkout — and that's if you're already holding your phone.

The notification is the slowest possible way to compete for a bag. You're starting the race after the gun has already fired.

Monitoring tools that continuously poll the TGTG API can detect availability in under a second. That's not a minor improvement — it's the difference between consistently getting bags and never getting them at competitive stores. The best Too Good To Go monitors have detection latency measured in milliseconds, not seconds.

For a deeper look at what actually separates successful TGTG users from frustrated ones, this comparison of TGTG alert methods is worth reading.

What Actually Fixes the Speed Problem

If you've fixed your notification settings and you're still losing bags, the honest answer is that you need a different approach.

Option 1: Third-party alert tools. Several services monitor TGTG and send you a faster, more reliable alert than the native app. They detect availability immediately and notify you before TGTG's own push has even left the server. You still have to tap and buy — but you're getting notified faster. This helps at moderately competitive stores. See the full monitor comparison.

Option 2: Auto-purchase. For genuinely fast-selling stores, the only reliable fix is not waiting for a notification at all. BagRescue monitors your stores 24/7 and completes the entire purchase automatically the moment a bag becomes available — reserve, pay, confirm. By the time your phone buzzes, the bag is already yours. That's what never missing a TGTG bag actually looks like in practice.

BagRescue: No Notification Needed

The reason BagRescue works where notification-based approaches don't is that it removes the human from the critical path. There's no alert to read, no app to open, no checkout to rush through. The bag is secured before you've even looked at your phone.

You still get a notification — it just says "Your Trader Joe's bag was rescued" instead of "Bags available, hurry." It's a confirmation, not a call to action.

BagRescue Pro is $9.99/month and covers unlimited store monitoring with full auto-purchase, with no per-bag fees. Getting started is low-risk: you pay a one-time $1.99 to switch monitoring on, then nothing until BagRescue lands your first bag — that's when the $9.99/month kicks in. Cancel anytime. There's also a 30-day bag guarantee: if BagRescue doesn't get you a bag in your first month, the subscription never starts. See our pricing for the details.

If you're still deciding whether the app is worth it for your situation, this breakdown of whether Too Good To Go is worth it covers the demand landscape by city.

FAQ

Why does TGTG say available then sold out?

Because availability and your notification are not delivered at the same time. The bag becomes available on TGTG's servers, and the push notification is queued separately. By the time delivery completes on your device, other users — or auto-purchase tools — have already claimed the bag. This is especially common at high-demand stores where bags sell out in under 30 seconds.

How do I fix TGTG notifications on Android?

The most effective fix is disabling battery optimization for the TGTG app. Go to Settings → Battery → Battery Optimization, find TGTG, and set it to "Unrestricted." On Samsung devices, also check Settings → Apps → TGTG → Battery → Allow background activity. These settings prevent Android from killing TGTG's background processes, which is what causes notifications to be delayed or silently dropped.

How do I fix TGTG notifications on iPhone?

Go to Settings → Too Good To Go → Notifications and confirm Allow Notifications is enabled with a visible alert style (Banner or Alert). Also check that Focus modes and Do Not Disturb aren't blocking TGTG — you can add TGTG to the "Always Allowed" apps list in each Focus profile. If notifications were working before and suddenly stopped, a full reinstall usually resolves it.

Is there a faster way to get notified?

Yes — tools that poll the TGTG API directly can detect availability significantly faster than native push notifications. The best option for competitive stores is auto-purchase, which doesn't require you to respond to a notification at all. BagRescue completes the purchase automatically; you get a confirmation after the fact.

Do I need to leave TGTG open in the background for notifications to work?

On iPhone, no — iOS handles push delivery in the background regardless of whether the app is open. On Android, it depends on your manufacturer. Most Android OEMs aggressively kill background apps to save battery, which can prevent push delivery even when the app appears to be running. Disabling battery optimization (as described above) is the fix.

TGTG Notifications Not Working? Here's Why — and What Actually Fixes It