We publish applications on Google Play and earn millions. How to place your application on Google play (Android Market) How to add an application to google play

The article contains screenshots from when the application store was called "Android Market". A generation of cats has already grown up who have never heard of this name. But general principle did not change. Left for history. I can't re-register to take new screenshots.

Since we are worried, we will practice on cats. Let's take, for example, an example from the article and try to post it in Google Play. If everything works out, then things will be easier.

Before proceeding further, make sure you have your own application icons and program name ready. It will be very strange to see a program with a standard icon and the name “HelloWorld” in the application store. And also check all the entries in the manifest file.

Step one. He's the hardest

Any application posted to the store must have a signed certificate. The certificate allows you to identify you as the author of the program. And if someone tries to upload a program with the same name as yours, they will be denied due to a name conflict. The application name refers to the full name of the package.

When you launched your applications on an emulator or your phone, the development environment automatically signed the program with a debug certificate. A debug certificate is not suitable for distribution through a store, and you need to sign the application with your own unique certificate. It's free, no registration or SMS required.

Let's create a signed APK file, which is something like an executable file like notepad.exe on Windows. If you have the Android Studio development environment open, select from the menu Build | Generate Signed APK....

A wizard dialog box will appear where you need to fill in the data.

In the first field you should specify the path to the key storage. If you have previously had to create programs before, including in Eclipse, then you can specify an existing repository using the button Choose existing.... If you are creating a repository for the first time, then select the button Create new.... A new dialog box will appear.

In the first field you need to select a folder using the button ... and enter a name for the storage file to which the extension will be assigned jks.

Now you create a key for the application. In field Alias(Nickname) enter a key name that is understandable to you and the cats. It is not necessary to create an alias for each application; you can use one alias for your applications and separate aliases for custom applications.

You also need to create a password for the key and confirm it.

The key is designed for 25 years. Field Validity (years) leave it unchanged (unless you have good reasons otherwise).

Finally, fill out your information.

After filling out the fields, you will return to the very first window of the wizard.

Click on the button Next and in the next window enter another password to access the password database.

You may not be able to do this step. It may appear if you have checked the "Remember password" option. I don’t remember the details, you can figure it out for yourself.

The last step is to press the button Finish.

It used to be last step. There are now new flags V1 (Jar Signature) And V2 (Full APK Signature). Check at least the first option V1- this corresponds to the old way. The second method is considered more reliable in terms of hacking and can be used for later APIs, at your discretion (see below).

As a result of complex manipulations with dialog boxes you will have the long-awaited APK - your beauty, which will open the door to the world of wealth and happiness.

Pressing the button Show in Explorer, you will launch Explorer on your computer with the folder where the signed file is located.

Be careful with the key you create. It is he who guarantees that the new version of the program was written by you. Therefore, if you lose the created key, you will have to upload the program under a different name with a new key.

The studio provides a mode for automatically creating a signed application. Click right click mouse on folder app and in the context menu select the item Open Module Settings. Choose a section app in section Modules. Select a tab Signing. Click on the plus sign button and fill out the fields.

Go to the tab Build Types and select the assembly release. In the dropdown list Signing Config select the newly created configuration. By default it has the name config.

Click OK to save the results.

You can also sign applications via the command line without the participation of the studio, if you are a pervert. You can read the documentation on this topic.

v2 Full APK

In 2017, Google changed the signing process slightly. There are now two schemes for obtaining APK signature: v1 JAR and v2 Full APK.

Signing v1 (which has been around since the beginning) does not protect some parts of the APK, such as ZIP metadata. The APK verifier must process many untrusted data structures and then discard data that is not signed, leaving a large attack surface. Additionally, the APK verifier must decompress all compressed entries, which wastes a lot of time and memory. To solve the problems, a new version v2 Full APK has been developed, which you will encounter when signing your application.

Scheme v2 runs on Android 7.0 Nougat (API 25). The scheme provides faster application installation and good protection against unauthorized changes to the APK. The APK content is hashed and signed, then the resulting APK signature block is inserted into the APK.

The new format is backwards compatible, so signed APKs new scheme, can be installed on older devices (which will simply ignore the new signature) if those APKs are also signed with the v1.

In older applications, I leave the checkbox next to the first version. Perhaps later they will force you to switch to the second version forcibly. It is important to note that you need to sign with scheme v1 before signing with scheme v2, since the APK will not pass verification under scheme v2 if it is signed with additional certificates after signing with scheme v2.

Strictly speaking, you can post an apk file on your website, and all your visitors can download and install it on their phone. But this is somehow undignified in our age of nanotechnology. Therefore, let's move on to the next step.

Step two. You must Fedya, you must

The next step is very unpleasant. You need to give 25 evergreens to a stranger. To make it less offensive to you, this operation was called a registration fee. You will need a credit card with the specified amount. Please note that Visa Electron, and even more so the discount card of the Perekrestok chain of stores, will not suit you. If you already have the card you need, then skip this paragraph. I can advise others to create a QIWI wallet and create a virtual card there. That’s exactly what I did, since I didn’t feel like going to the bank and writing all sorts of statements.

Automatic update

If you have created new version program, fixing various bugs and adding new photos of the cat, then you need to increase the version number (attribute) in the manifest by one versionCode) and replace versionName for yourself (will be shown on Google page Play). IN latest versions studio, these properties are now located not in the manifest, but in the file build.gradle module of your application. Upload the new version to Google Play and users will receive the update automatically.

We follow the reviews

Install the Google Play Developer Console app on your device so you don't miss out new review to your program. You can also view statistics.

Changing storage passwords and key aliases

I haven’t had to use it for several years, so I don’t know if this information is relevant.

Let's say you sold your program with source code to another company. In order for it to post program updates, the company must sign the application with the same key that you signed with. Otherwise, the program will be considered different and the name of the package will have to be changed. But then old users will not be able to receive updates.

But if you sign all your programs with the same key and password, for example cat cat, then the company can sign your other applications with the same key, placing their programs with the same package name, and you will not prove anything to anyone.

Therefore, you need to take care of changing the key to transfer it to the new owner.

Let's assume our storage has the structure:

Repository name (keystore): old.keystore Repository password: cat1 Alias: my_alias Alias ​​password: cat2

Make a copy of your storage and store it somewhere else. This should have been done during the first creation, because if you lose the storage, you will not be able to restore access to your programs when updating.

Make a copy of your repository again and rename it, for example, new.keystore. We will work with him.

Launch the utility keytool with the command:

Keytool -storepasswd -keystore new.keystore

You will be prompted to enter your current password, and then enter a new password and repeat it. Something like this:

Enter keystore password: New keystore password: Re-enter new keystore password:

The first part of the task is completed, the password for the storage has been changed.

If you also want to change the password for the alias, then run the utility again with the command:

Keytool -keypasswd -keystore new.keystore -alias my_name

You will be asked to enter your current vault password (your new password), then your alias password. You can enter a new password and it will replace the old password.

Enter keystore password: Enter key password for

The nickname password has been changed.

If changing the password is not enough for you and you want to change the name of the nickname (maybe you used the name of your favorite cat, why should others know about it), then continue working.

Let's run the command:

Keytool -changealias -keystore new.keystore -alias my_alias -destalias my_new_alias

You will be asked to enter the vault password, then the password for the new alias (current password), then the new password and repeat it. The nickname name will be changed.

So it took us three steps to create a new repository and an alias to transfer to a stranger. The new owner should do the same to be sure that you will not use the changed files for your own purposes. However, this is his problem.

Signing the finished application

Such a case may arise when you have lost the source code and only have the APK. Most likely, this is relevant for pirates who re-sign other applications (don’t do this with other people’s programs).

First change the extension from apk to zip. Delete the folder in the archive META-INF. Restore the extension. You have deleted the old signature.

Now you need to sign the application with a new key. Enter the command.

Jarsigner -keystore keystore-file.jks -storepass keystore_password -keypass alias_password --signedjar signed-apk-file.apk apk-file.apk alias_name

If successful, you will receive a message that the application is signed. Next we execute another command.

ANDROID_SDK_PATH/build-tools/LAST_BUILD_TOOLS_VERSION/zipalign -v 4 signed-apk-file.apk aligned-apk-file.apk

The result should be an APK file signed with the new key. I've never used it myself.

Storing keys with Google

In 2017 Google added new opportunity store keys in a cloud storage. The main difference is that you sign the app with a special upload key, which Google verifies and removes, replacing it with the original app signing key you provided.

It can be used to manage app signing keys for both new and published apps, which will be stored by Google in their own key vault. To join this program, you must subscribe to it in your Google Play Console. It is worth noting that it will no longer be possible to unsubscribe from it.

This method is very useful - if you lose your key storage, Google Play App Signing will allow you to reset the key to install a new one. You won't have to republish the application with a new package name and key.

The traditional method of delivering your application to the user by installing an APK file has one significant drawback - the user receives a bunch of unnecessary material that he will never use. For example, resources for other languages, pictures of different resolutions for each screen type. As a result, the finished application becomes bloated and takes up a large amount of space.

The new format (available in Android 3.2 and above) allows the user to download a special version of your application that contains only desired language(value-en/strings.xml), an image of the required resolution (xxhdpi) and other specific resources. As a result, the final application is much smaller in size.

The new App Bundle format has an extension .aab(Android App Bundle). You upload a file with this extension to the Play Store instead of an apk file. Based on your file, the app store will create different versions of your application (apk).

You can view the App Bundle structure through the menu Build | Build Bundle(s)/APK(s) | Build Bundle(s). First, the studio will show a pop-up window indicating the location of the created file.

Follow the link locate and we see our file app-debug.aab. The path to the file could be like this: ..\YourApp\app\build\outputs\bundle\debug. The file is a standard zip file that can be viewed through any suitable archiver.

The archive consists of folders base, BUNDLE_METADATA and file BundleConfig.pb.

There may also be directories with additional features, in which case each of them is assigned a special name feature1, feature2 and etc.

To create a signed file we use Build | Generate Signed Bundle/APK.... In the dialog box, select the option Android App Bundle and press Next.

Now, when you download an application to the Play Store, you do not select the apk file, but the created aab file. You can then see what benefit the user will receive when downloading their option.

If you are interested in seeing how individual apk files are generated based on the App Bundle, you can install the utility command line Bundletool.

Further Reading

Android-keystore-password-recover by MaxCamillo - if you have lost your password, try using this tool. I haven’t used it myself, so I won’t tell you.

If this is your first time creating your game for Android devices, and you want not only friends, but also other Google users to play it, you need to find out how to put the application on Google Play. Google Play Console Developer will help you with this, and in this article we will tell you how to register with the service and then use it to download the application.

Create a developer account

To gain access to the developer console, the first step is to create a separate developer account, under which you can log into the Play Market to download software. To do this, go to your existing account or register with Google, then follow Google instructions. You can also create a second account to work with software for Android OS.

If you don’t know how to create a developer account, simply follow these instructions:

1. Read the “Developer Agreement for Software Distribution through Google Play.” Check the “I accept the terms and conditions...” section.
2. Open the list of countries in which you are allowed to create a seller account and sell your software product.
3. Enter your details bank card. This is necessary to pay the registration fee (mandatory for all developers). Today it is $25.

The Play Console will become available to you after the above procedure. You can access the service both from a computer and from a phone.

Basics of working with Google Play Console

Let's move directly to the question of how to put the game on the Play Market? Open the Developer Console and then select the All Applications menu. Click on the “New applications” sub-item. Choose a language that is comfortable for your work. Also in the menu that appears you will need to enter the name of the product that you plan to place.

To enter a description, you need to go to the “All Applications” menu and select your game. Select the “Page Settings” submenu, and from there go to the “Software Description” menu. On this page you can also publish the website address or Email. Mailbox in this column may differ from the one you use to enter the Play Market.

You can enter other required data after software products added, namely:

1. The developer name by which you will be known to other users.
2. Contact information.
3. Address.
4. And other data.

Fill out the form to determine age restrictions

After this, you need to fill out a form that will help the service assign an age limit for the hosted software. This will avoid misunderstandings, since different countries have their own restrictions according to the law. Thanks to the questionnaire, the application will be distributed among the target audience for which the software was originally designed.

Software products that are not rated may be removed from Google Play or simply not be shown to audiences in some countries due to blocking. Usually the form is filled out immediately when the application is added to the Play Market, but sometimes when changes to the evaluation rules are published age restrictions, you can update your answers to the survey questions.

Instructions for filling out the form:

1. Select the desired application in the Console.
2. In the menu, select the “Page Settings” section, and then click on the “Age Restrictions” sub-item.
3. Read the information about the questionnaire, then enter your e-mail, where IARC can contact you. Then click on “Continue”.
4. Select the appropriate category. Start filling out the form.
5. If any answers in the questionnaire need to be changed, click on the appropriate button. Select “Save Project” after completing the form
6. Click on the “Define age limit” item.

Settings for application distribution features

In the Developer Console settings, you must select what type of software you are publishing. Indicate in which countries distribution is permitted. At the same time, you need to configure its distribution to different devices under Android OS.

In “Page Settings”, select the “Prices and Distribution” subsection. Here you can indicate whether it is paid or free application you plan to post. Please note that paid software can be made free, but in order for a product that could be used for free to be made paid, you will need to reload the packages and then assign a new name to the product.

Last updated: 10/30/2015

In order for our application to be seen and installed by as many users as possible, the most effective step would be to place the application in special online stores, of which the largest is Google Play Market. Let's take a closer look at the publication in this online store.

First of all, we need to register in the Play Market. Let's follow the link https://play.google.com/apps/publish/signup/. We will be prompted to link our Google account to the developer console:

Here we can link the current account with the developer account, but we can also create a new one.

When registering, we must take into account that we will have to pay a relatively small registration fee of 25 US dollars.

Let's accept the license agreement and click on the "Pay" button at the bottom of the page.

A Visa/MasterCard/AMEX/Discover credit or debit card is required for payment. But if we do not have a suitable card or we do not want to use the cards at our disposal for a one-time payment, then we can use virtual ones by creating a temporary card through webmoney, Yandex-money, qiwi or other similar services. As a rule, such cards are created in a couple of minutes and have all the same functionality as real ones. Visa cards or MasterCard.

After entering your personal data and card information, click on the “Accept and Continue” button. After this we will be redirected to the profile filling page

Enter your details here and click on the button at the bottom of the page. And then we will actually get into Personal Area in the developer console.

It may take some time for your payment to be processed, so we will have limited rights during processing for now. At the same time, we can already upload an apk file, the full publication of which will occur after payment is verified.

To upload the application file, click on the "Publish" button Android app on Google Play"

Enter the name and click on the "Download APK" button. Next, the application page will open, where we directly download the program file and set the entire description for it.

Almost all Android device users use Google play to purchase and download products. How can you upload your own app to the store?

What you need

— Your PC with an Internet connection.

Instructions

So you have your own application. You don't want to hide it from the public and want to put it out there for everyone to see. Let's look at what you have to do step by step.

1. Using your Google account Play (also recommended), you need to go to the developer console. You can perform this operation by following the direct link play.google.com/apps/publish/v2/signup .


2.You will have to read and agree to a document such as the “Google Play Software Distribution Agreement”. Then you will be asked to review the list of countries in which you can distribute your applications. Finally, pay 25$ for registration.

3. After this, you can safely press the button. Specify your file (.apk) and upload it.


4. Google play will check the downloaded content, point out any errors found, and if everything turns out to be normal, your application will receive its own page in the developer console.

5. Now you should format your application properly. To do this, there is a “Product Details” tab, where you will be asked to describe a sufficient number of options and variations of how your product will look to the buyer.


6. Next, you will have to check the boxes that require you to promise that your application fully satisfies the requirements of Android devices, and that you fully agree to comply with US laws.

7. The last thing to do is to scroll up the page and click the button "Save", then - "Publish".

Your application has fallen into the hands of the administration, after a certain amount of time (from minutes to hours) it will appear for .

You don't have to fill out every item in the Product Details section, but don't miss items like screenshots, language, app name, promotional text, etc. This is a mandatory condition for fulfillment, as for the remaining points - they will only add useful bonuses to you when considering the product, which can be reflected in the speed of placement, etc.

Worth paying attention

The $25 they charge you to register is a one-time fee. Now your application, like other useful software, is available to users.

By registering for a developer account, you can upload apps to Google Play using the Play Console.

Advice. When creating an application, use the recommended format - .

How to create an application

How to prepare to release a testing or production version of your application

How to prepare and implement releases is written in.

A release refers to a collection of objects that you include in a new application or update.

How to manage APK files

Choose package names carefully as they cannot be changed, removed, or reused.

To find the APK files of an application, follow these steps:

1. Open Play Console.
2. Select an application.
3. Click Release management > Object Library. A list will open in which you will find all drafts, as well as active and archived ones APK files.
   • Draft: APK files not yet included in the update release.
   • Active: APK files currently available to users.

   Archived: Previously active APK files that are no longer available to users.

Apps on Google Play have a size limit for APK files at the time of download.

After downloading an APK file, Play Console estimates its download size using the gzip tool. Because Google Play uses advanced compression tools, the app download size may be smaller than what the Play Console predicts.

APK file size limits vary for different versions Android:

• 100 MB: for Android 2.3 and later (API levels 9–10, 14 and higher);
• 50 MB: for Android 2.2 and earlier (API level 8 and lower).

You can download multiple APK files for one app to make it support different types devices.

Advice. To install 100MB APK files, the user needs the app " Play Store" 5.2 or later.

• If you see a message that the APK file is using an insecure certificate and the key size must be at least 1024 bits, follow the instructions to manually add a signature.
• Important! Sign up for Google Play's App Signing Program or place your key vault in a secure location. If you lose access to the repository, you will have to republish the application with a different package name and a new key. You will also need to update the description of the original app and make it unshared.

The manifest of any APK file has a version code (versionCode parameter), which increases with each application update.

In order for the APK file to be uploaded to the Play Console, the versionCode parameter value must not exceed 2100000000.

When choosing a versionCode value for an APK file, remember that it should increase with each subsequent version (but remain below the maximum value).

Note. Detailed information about APK versions can be found on the Android Developers site. Android version numbering (MAXINT) requirements are different from Play Console.

In the manifest of any APK file there is a code targetSdkVersion (target API level), which specifies the maximum Android version for the application.

Configuring your application to a new target API level improves security and performance while still allowing it to work on older ones. Android versions(up to minSdkVersion).

Before you download an APK, make sure it meets Google Play's target API level requirements. Current and future requirements are listed below.

Once these requirements go into effect, new APKs with earlier target API levels will not be able to be uploaded to the Play Console.

Advice. Technical guidance on how to change the target API level to suit your requirements can be found in this guide.

How to provide data for Google Play

Your app's page appears on Google Play and contains information that allows users to learn more about your app. This data is common to all version types, including .

How to add and manage translations

The default language for the downloaded application is set to English (en-US). To enable users in other countries to experience your app, localize the app and the information on its Google Play page (including graphics).

You can add your own translation into the languages ​​listed below.

• Afrikaans (af)
• Amharic (am)
• Arabic (ar)
• Armenian (hy-AM)
• Azerbaijani (az-AZ)
• Basque (eu-ES)
• Belarusian (be)
• Bengali (bn-BD)
• Bulgarian (bg)
• Burmese (my-MM)
• Catalan (ca)
• Chinese (Hong Kong) (zh-HK)
• Chinese (simplified) (zh-CN)
• Chinese (traditional) (zh-TW)
• Croatian (hr)
• Czech (cs-CZ)
• Danish (da-DK)
• Dutch (nl-NL)
• English (en-AU)
• English (en-CA)
• English (en-IN)
• English (en-SG)
• English (UK) (en-GB)
• English (USA) (en-US)
• Estonian (et)
• Filipino (fil)
• Finnish (fi-FI)
• French (fr-FR)
• French (Canada) (fr-CA)
• Galician (gl-ES)
• Georgian (ka-GE)
• German (de-DE)
• Greek (el-GR)
• Hebrew (iw-IL)
• Hindi (hi-IN)
• Hungarian (hu-HU)
• Icelandic (is-IS)
• Indonesian (id)
• Italian (it-IT)
• Japanese (ja-JP)
• Kannada (kn-IN)
• Khmer (km-KH)
• Korean (South Korea) (ko-KR)
• Kyrgyz (ky-KG)
• Laotian (lo-LA)
• Latvian (lv)
• Lithuanian (lt)
• Macedonian (mk-MK)
• Malay (ms)
• Malayalam (ml-IN)
• Marathi (mr-IN)
• Mongolian (mn-MN)
• Nepali (ne-NP)
• Norwegian (no-NO)
• Persian (fa)
• Polish (pl-PL)
• Portuguese (Brazil) (pt-BR)
• Portuguese (Portugal) (pt-PT)
• Romanian (ro)
• Romansh (rm)
• Russian (ru-RU)
• Serbian (sr)
• Sinhala (si-LK)
• Slovak (sk)
• Slovenian (sl)
• Spanish (Latin America) (es-419)
• Spanish (Spain) (es-ES)
• Spanish (US) (es-US)
• Swahili (sw)
• Swedish (sv-SE)
• Tamil (ta-IN)
• Telugu (te-IN)
• Thai (th)
• Turkish (tr-TR)
• Ukrainian (uk)
• Vietnamese (vi)
• Zulu (zu)

Advice. You can use the application localization service for Google Play.

Localized images and videos

To promote your app more effectively in different countries, add Google Play page localized graphic objects.

Users will see them on Google Play in their language, if it is in the list of added ones.

Automatic translation

If the description is not localized, the Google Play visitor will be able to read the text in the application's default language or use Google Translate.

In the second case, he will see a message stating that the translation was completed automatically, as well as a link to the source text. Please note that this translation is not supported for Armenian, Romansh, Tagalog and Zulu.

• If the application needs access to sensitive information (see user data rules), you must post a link to the privacy policy within the app itself and on its Google Play page. Make sure that the document is available at the provided link, applies to the desired application and contains information about how user privacy is maintained.
• If the app is part of the Family Apps program, you must post a link to the privacy policy in the app itself and on its Google Play page (regardless of whether the app has access to personal data). Make sure the document is available at the specified link, is relevant to the application you want, and contains information about how user privacy is maintained.