You can no longer add a working Google Play Instant experience to an Android app: starting in December 2025, Google Play stopped accepting Instant Apps, Google Play services Instant APIs stopped working, and Play stopped serving Instant Apps. Google’s current direction is to send users to the regular app and use deep links to take them to relevant features. A deep link can route someone into an app journey; it does not recreate the no-install Instant experience. Google’s overview of Play Instant carries the shutdown notice and recommendation.
Can you add Google Play Instant to an Android app now?
No. Google’s notice says that starting December 2025, Instant Apps cannot be published through Google Play, Google Play services Instant APIs no longer work, and Play no longer serves Instant Apps by any mechanism. The former publishing and API path is therefore not a viable option for a new project or an update to a legacy one. Google’s current overview explains the change.
Google recommends directing users to the regular app, with deep links that open a relevant journey or feature when possible. This is a transition to the installed app experience, not an instant, no-download version of it.
What should you build instead?
Plan a route from the place where a user encounters your content to the appropriate destination in your regular app. Google recommends regular-app deep links but does not prescribe a complete implementation recipe in its shutdown notice, so verify the behavior of your own links and fallback destinations.
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- Installed app: confirm the link opens the intended screen or feature rather than only the app’s home screen.
- App not installed: provide a useful web or installation destination; a deep link alone does not supply an app experience on a device without the app.
- Measurement: decide how you will measure the transition from the referring web or Play surface into the app. Google’s notice does not specify an analytics provider.
Google’s guidance is to refer users to the regular app or game and use deep links to redirect them to specific journeys or features when relevant. See the Android Developers overview.
How did the former Instant App setup work?
The historical setup treated the Instant experience as part of an Android App Bundle, with a base application module and feature delivery configured for instant use. Google’s archived-in-context setup guide described using Android Studio and the Instant Development SDK, configuring modules and manifests, working within an Instant-specific sandbox, and testing locally or through the Play internal test track. The same page now warns that the service and APIs have ended, so its setup steps are reference material, not current publishing instructions. Read Google’s instant-enabled app bundle guide.
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Recognizing old module configuration
In its historical migration guidance, Google described replacing the deprecated com.android.feature plugin. The base module used com.android.application, while additional features used com.android.dynamic-feature; delivery declarations such as dist:instant and dist:onDemand appeared in that setup. These labels can help you understand an existing repository, but they do not restore a working Instant delivery path. Google’s migration guide provides the legacy context.
Google’s historical guide also described a project structure in which one base application supported both installed and instant experiences. Teams maintaining such a project should distinguish reusable app modules and ordinary app functionality from the discontinued Play Instant delivery mechanism.
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What were the historical size and speed limits?
Google’s historical technical checklist specified the following figures. Its surfaced documentation does not state a publication year for them, and they should not be treated as current Play acceptance criteria.
| Historical requirement or guidance | Figure | Qualification |
|---|---|---|
| Total download size | 15 MB maximum | Per device, according to Google’s historical checklist. |
| On-device storage | 150 MB maximum | Google’s historical checklist figure. |
| Time to engage | Under 15 seconds | Best-practice target when uncached over LTE or 4G, according to Google’s historical checklist. |
These numbers explain constraints developers encountered when Instant Apps were supported; they do not indicate that an app meeting them can now be published as an Instant App. The source is Google’s technical requirements checklist.
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- MEMORIES MADE PICTURE PERFECT: Capture every angle in stunning clarity, from wide family photos to close-ups of friends, with the triple-lens camera on Galaxy A17 5G.
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How should you handle a legacy Instant App project?
- Identify the old delivery setup. Review the app’s module build files and manifests for historical Instant-specific configuration, including feature delivery declarations.
- Separate app functionality from Instant delivery. Preserve useful modules or routing behavior where they still serve the regular app, but do not assume old Instant declarations can be published or invoked through Play.
- Route users to the regular app. Update entry points to link to an appropriate app feature, with a sensible fallback for users who do not have the app installed.
- Test both link outcomes. Check the installed-app route and the not-installed fallback on representative devices and verify analytics measure the transition you care about.
For historical module changes, consult Google’s migration guide; for historical bundle setup, consult the instant-enabled bundle guide. Their continued availability does not mean the Instant service remains available.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Does an old Instant App intent still provide a workaround?
No. Google’s Instant App Common Intents page also carries the December 2025 shutdown notice; historical intent documentation is not a supported substitute for the discontinued Play service. Use regular-app deep linking for current routing instead. Google’s Common Intents page provides the legacy context.
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