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Installing your Android app

Install your Floot app on an Android device, and publish it to the Google Play Store.

Floot can convert your project into a native Android app. You can install it directly on your device — no developer tools required.

You turn mobile builds on yourself, in a browser

There is no MCP tool for this — asking your assistant will not work. Open your project on floot.com and use Publish → Mobile; the project link your assistant shares opens the project view at /mcp-preview/<id>, and the Publish button there is the same dialog. Once the Android app has been built once, your assistant can edit static/__dev/native/android-manifest.xml for you — ask it for the android-manifest guide. That is the usual fix for a Play rejection, or for a permission you need to add after publishing.

Getting your Android app

  1. 1

    Generate the mobile apps

    1. Open your project on floot.com and click the Publish button
    2. Switch to the Mobile tab
    3. Under Native App Store Apps, make sure Generate native mobile apps is on
    4. Click Generate App

    This takes several minutes.

  2. 2

    Get it onto a phone

    In the Mobile tab, scroll to the Android part of the Mobile apps ready card. There are three ways to get the app onto a device:

    • Download Android app (APK) — downloads the APK through the browser you are in. Use this when you have Floot open on the Android phone itself.
    • Copy download link for Android — copies a download link. Open or paste that link in the phone's browser.
    • Scan the QR code — a QR code appears under the buttons once you have clicked Copy download link for Android. Point your Android camera at it. It is not on screen before that click.

    Unknown sources

    Android may ask you to allow installation from unknown sources. This is expected for an APK installed outside the Play Store. Note this APK is the debug build — right for trying the app yourself or handing it to testers, but Google Play will not accept it. Publishing to Play needs the signed release build covered below.

  3. 3

    Install it

    1. Once downloaded, open the APK file
    2. If prompted, enable "Install from unknown sources" for your browser
    3. Tap Install
    4. Your app is ready to use

Troubleshooting

How do I install the APK after downloading?
Android usually offers to install it right away. If not, open your Files app and tap the APK you downloaded.
"Can't install from this source"
Go to Settings → Security → Install unknown apps and enable it for your browser or file manager.
QR code not working
The QR code only appears after you click Copy download link for Android — it is generated from that link. If scanning still fails, paste the copied link straight into the phone's browser.

Publishing to the Google Play Store

  1. 1

    Create a Google Play Developer account

    Sign up at the Google Play Console — a $25 one-time fee.

  2. 2

    Download the Android project

    1. Open your project on floot.com and click Publish
    2. Switch to the Mobile tab
    3. On the Mobile apps ready card, click Download
    4. Unzip it — the android/ project is inside

    This is the same Download button used for iOS: one archive holds both projects. If you already downloaded it for iOS, you have it.

  3. 3

    Install dependencies

    Install Node.js, then run this in the unzipped folder:

    npm install -g pnpm
pnpm install
  4. 4

    Generate a signed release build

    • Navigate to the android folder
    • Follow the Android signing guide to create a keystore and sign your app
    • Build a release AAB with ./gradlew bundleRelease
  5. 5

    Upload to the Play Console

    • Create a new app in the console
    • Complete the store listing — description, screenshots, icon
    • Upload your signed AAB from android/app/build/outputs/bundle/release/
    • Complete the content rating questionnaire
    • Set pricing and distribution
  6. 6

    Submit for review

    Google typically reviews apps within 1–3 days.

For more detail see Google's publishing guide and Capacitor's Android documentation — Floot uses Capacitor to build the native app.

Shipping an update

  1. Make your changes and publish them
  2. Download the updated Android project
  3. Open android/app/build.gradle — the app-level file, not android/build.gradle, which only holds buildscript classpath entries
  4. Update versionName (for example "1.0" → "1.1")
  5. Rebuild, sign, and submit as above

Leave versionCode alone

Floot already stamps versionCode for you — it tracks the count of your completed mobile builds, so it rises with every generate. Changing it by hand is thrown away by the next download, and Floot's number can come back lower than one you already uploaded, which Google Play rejects.

Floot does not handle store submissions

You need your own Google Play developer account to publish, and Google handles any review or publishing support.