16KB Page Size Support (Google Play)

1. Official Blog Statement

• It states: “Starting November 1, 2025, new apps and existing app updates targeting Android 15 (API level 35) or higher must support 16 KB page size.”

• It explains that “apps not using native code (C/C++/NDK) – purely Java/Kotlin apps – may already be compliant and require no changes.”

• What constitutes “support” / What are the technical requirements? → Examples include: performing ELF segment alignment at 16 KB, adding -Wl,-z,max-page-size=16384 to linker options, and verifying that code does not depend on a fixed 4 KB PAGE_SIZE.

• Testing methods and what to do if existing libraries or SDKs are not compatible → You can verify using an emulator image with a 16 KB page size.

• What happens if you don’t comply (will publishing/updating be blocked, or will functionality be affected?
  → Reports on multiple developer forums indicate that “failure to comply may result in updates being blocked.”

In my case, since my app uses only Kotlin and no native code (NDK/C/C++), I implemented the following:

2. Verifying the Build Environment

2-1. AGP (Android Gradle Plugin) Version

Where to check the AGP version

① Module (e.g., app/) build.gradle(.kts) → plugins { … } format

plugins {
  id(“com.android.application”) version “8.5.2”   
  id(“org.jetbrains.kotlin.android”) version “1.9.25”
}

② Root settings.gradle(.kts) → pluginManagement { plugins { … } } method

pluginManagement {
  plugins {
    id(“com.android.application”) version “8.5.2”  
  }
}

③ Version catalog (gradle/libs.versions.toml) method

[plugins]
android-application = { id = “com.android.application”, version = “8.5.2” }  

Then, in each build.gradle(.kts) file:

plugins {
  alias(libs.plugins.android.application)   
}

(Last resort if it’s not found)
Open Android Studio → Tools > AGP Upgrade Assistant to see the detected current AGP version and recommended upgrade path.

What AGP version should you aim for?

• Upgrading to 8.6 or higher is generally safe
• Reason: While 8.5.1+ supports automatic 16KB alignment, 8.6+ officially supports API 35 (Android 15).

Example fix (settings.gradle)
Before:

plugins {
    id “dev.flutter.flutter-plugin-loader” version “1.0.0”
    id “com.android.application” version “8.1.0” apply false
    id “org.jetbrains.kotlin.android” version “1.8.22” apply false
}

After:

plugins {
    id “dev.flutter.flutter-plugin-loader” version “1.0.0”
    id “com.android.application” version “8.6.1” apply false   // ← Update here
    id “org.jetbrains.kotlin.android” version “1.8.22” apply false
}

2-2. Gradle Wrapper

Upgrade to a stable version compatible with AGP (e.g., 8.7 or later, meeting AGP requirements)
https://developer.android.com/build/releases/past-releases/agp-8-6-0-release-notes?

3. Final Check for Native Mixing

Check for .so Files in Transitive Dependencies

• Even if you intend to use only Kotlin/Java, external AARs may internally contain .so files.
• Open the AAB/APK in APK Analyzer (Android Studio’s “Build > Analyze APK…”) and verify no .so files exist under lib/arm64-v8a or lib/x86_64.
• If .so files are found, update the SDK to a 16KB alignment-compliant version (rebuilt with NDK r28+ or AGP 8.5.1+).

4. Device/Emulator Verification

4-1. Successfully launching and running with Google APIs Experimental 16KB (arm64/x86_64) image is sufficient

adb shell getconf PAGE_SIZE is a command to verify that the page size is actually 16 KB on the currently running emulator (or device).

Execution Steps (Common for Mac / Windows)
① First, launch the emulator
② Launch Terminal
③ Verify the device is recognized

adb devices

If you see output like this, it’s OK:

List of devices attached
emulator-5554   device

④ Check the page size

adb shell getconf PAGE_SIZE

If multiple devices exist, explicitly specify:

adb -s emulator-5554 shell getconf PAGE_SIZE

Result. If it shows as follows, it’s a 16 KB (= 16384 bytes) environment.

16384

4-2. If adb is not found

If running adb devices returns command not found: adb,
it means adb is not found = the SDK’s platform-tools are not in your PATH.
Resolve this using one of the following methods.

Method A: Temporarily execute using the SDK’s full path

1. Verify SDK location
   Android Studio → Settings/Preferences > Appearance & Behavior > System Settings > Android SDK
   Note the Android SDK Location at the top (default example: /Users/your_username/Library/Android/sdk).
2. Execute using full path (example uses default path)

/Users/$USER/Library/Android/sdk/platform-tools/adb devices
/Users/$USER/Library/Android/sdk/platform-tools/adb shell getconf PAGE_SIZE

If multiple emulators exist, add -s

/Users/$USER/Library/Android/sdk/platform-tools/adb -s emulator-5554 shell getconf PAGE_SIZE

If it returns something like 16384, it’s a 16KB environment.

Method B: Make it permanently usable via PATH (recommended)

1. Confirm the SDK location (same as step 1 in Method A)
2. Append to ~/.zshrc

# Android SDK
export ANDROID_SDK_ROOT="$HOME/Library/Android/sdk"   // Adjust to your actual path
export PATH="$PATH:$ANDROID_SDK_ROOT/platform-tools"
export PATH="$PATH:$ANDROID_SDK_ROOT/emulator"

3. Apply changes

source ~/.zshrc

4. Verify

which adb
adb version
adb devices
adb shell getconf PAGE_SIZE

5. Verify in Play Console

• Upload the AAB to Internal Testing and check if “Supports 16 KB page sizes” appears in the “Bundle details”.
• Check the Pre-launch report for any issues in the 16KB device validation results.
  Reference: My app bundle in Android Studio 2025.1.2 supports a 16 KB page size, but Google Play still reports that it doesn’t
• If no issues are found, increase the version and submit following the standard flow: internal testing → public testing → production.