diff --git a/web/app/api/device-tokens/route.ts b/web/app/api/device-tokens/route.ts
index 5ab9c447a75c..70a20ec3bd2f 100644
--- a/web/app/api/device-tokens/route.ts
+++ b/web/app/api/device-tokens/route.ts
@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@ import {
   MAX_PUSH_REQUEST_BYTES,
   normalizeApnsBundle,
   readBoundedJsonObject,
+  registrationApnsBundle,
 } from "../../../services/apns/routePolicy";
 import {
   AccountDeletionMutationBlockedError,
@@ -321,7 +322,7 @@ function parseRegistrationInput(
   const installationId = typeof body.installationId === "string" ? body.installationId.trim() : "";
   const pushKeyId = typeof body.pushKeyId === "string" ? body.pushKeyId.trim() : "";
   const pushPublicKey = typeof body.pushPublicKey === "string" ? body.pushPublicKey.trim() : "";
-  const bundle = normalizeApnsBundle(bundleId);
+  const bundle = registrationApnsBundle(normalizeApnsBundle(bundleId), body.environment);
   if (!HEX_TOKEN.test(deviceToken)) return { ok: false, response: jsonResponse({ error: "invalid_device_token" }, 400) };
   if (!bundle) return { ok: false, response: jsonResponse({ error: "invalid_bundle_id" }, 400) };
   if (!/^[A-Za-z0-9._:-]{1,255}$/.test(clientNamespace) || (clientNamespace !== "legacy" && clientNamespace !== bundle.bundleId)) {
diff --git a/web/services/apns/routePolicy.ts b/web/services/apns/routePolicy.ts
index 7cb10937f21e..27aa92d9032f 100644
--- a/web/services/apns/routePolicy.ts
+++ b/web/services/apns/routePolicy.ts
@@ -109,6 +109,23 @@ function boundedString(value: unknown, maxChars: number): string | null {
   return text;
 }
 
+/**
+ * The APNs environment to store for one registration. A production bundle
+ * defaults to the production host, but a Simulator or development-signed
+ * install of that bundle only receives sandbox tokens and declares
+ * `environment: "sandbox"`; sending those to the production host fails with
+ * BadDeviceToken and prunes the row. Development bundles stay sandbox-only.
+ */
+export function registrationApnsBundle(
+  bundle: ApnsBundlePolicy | null,
+  requestedEnvironment: unknown,
+): ApnsBundlePolicy | null {
+  if (bundle?.environment === "production" && requestedEnvironment === "sandbox") {
+    return { bundleId: bundle.bundleId, environment: "sandbox" };
+  }
+  return bundle;
+}
+
 export function normalizeApnsBundle(bundleId: string): ApnsBundlePolicy | null {
   const normalized = bundleId.trim();
   if (PROD_BUNDLE_IDS.has(normalized)) {
diff --git a/web/tests/apns.test.ts b/web/tests/apns.test.ts
index 5daa2db0bcf5..244ef306928f 100644
--- a/web/tests/apns.test.ts
+++ b/web/tests/apns.test.ts
@@ -35,6 +35,7 @@ import {
   normalizeApnsBundle,
   parsePushPayload,
   readBoundedJsonObject,
+  registrationApnsBundle,
 } from "../services/apns/routePolicy";
 
 describe("apns payload", () => {
@@ -495,6 +496,21 @@ describe("apns route policy", () => {
     expect(normalizeApnsBundle("dev.cmux.ios.-bad")).toBeNull();
   });
 
+  test("stores sandbox for a production bundle only when the install declares it", () => {
+    const official = normalizeApnsBundle("com.cmux.app")!;
+    // A Simulator or development-signed install only has sandbox tokens.
+    expect(registrationApnsBundle(official, "sandbox")).toEqual({
+      bundleId: "com.cmux.app",
+      environment: "sandbox",
+    });
+    expect(registrationApnsBundle(official, "production")).toEqual(official);
+    expect(registrationApnsBundle(official, undefined)).toEqual(official);
+    expect(registrationApnsBundle(official, "SANDBOX")).toEqual(official);
+    const dev = normalizeApnsBundle("dev.cmux.ios.push1")!;
+    expect(registrationApnsBundle(dev, "production")).toEqual(dev);
+    expect(registrationApnsBundle(null, "sandbox")).toBeNull();
+  });
+
   test("allows the internal TestFlight bundle id as a production APNs topic", () => {
     // The scheduled internal TestFlight lane ships dev.cmux.app.internal
     // (.github/workflows/ios-testflight.yml); TestFlight uses the production