Preparings Apps for Google Play Android 10 Requirements

This post has been republished via RSS; it originally appeared at: Microsoft Developer Blogs.

For the Northern Hemisphere, Summer is here! Which means there are some new requirements coming to Google Play when it comes to publishing your apps. Over years there have been several updates to the requirements for publish new apps. As well as updates to Google Play. This year, it is all about updating your app to target Android 10 (API 29). Below are the important dates that all developers must hit. Android 10 Requirement Dates: August 3rd, 2020 - New apps must target Android 10 (API 29). November 2nd, 2020 - All apps and app updates must target Android 10 (API 29). Today, let us walk through upgrading your existing Android app to be fully compliant. Compile Target The first step is to go into your projects properties and set the Compile Target to Android 10 (API 29). This tells Visual Studio to compile your Android application against API 29 and give access APIs found in this version. This does not impact the minimum version of Android that is required by your users. If you do not have the API 29 SDK installed you will see an * by API 29. When selected, you will be prompted to install the SDK. Target API The next step is to verify the Target API under the Android Manifest section of the project properties. This setting notifies Google Play and Android that you are compliant with Android 10 (API 29). This property will automatically be set to Android 10, though it is best practice to verify it. Additionally, in this section you will find the Minimum Target that acts as a filter for Google Play for what devices can install your application. AndroidX When you target Android 10 (API 29), you should also consider migrating fully to AndroidX libraries. These are the replacements for the older Android Support Libraries, and both Xamarin.Forms and Xamarin.Essentials now use AndroidX when you target Android 10 (API 29). Be sure to read through the full blog post and documentation on migrating. Learn More There are several other policy updates to be aware of including changes to subscriptions, location access, 64-bit support, and more. You can find up to date information on requirements for Android apps on the Google Play policies website.