You’ve spent weeks or months building your application. The code is beautiful, the UI is polished but before you generate that .aab file and start celebrating, we need to make sure your app doesn’t hit the wall and get rejected.
Publishing isn’t a file upload. It’s a review process, a compliance check, and a stress test. So, review it with patience before clicking the Submit button.
1. The Identity Check (Configuration)
First, make sure your app knows who it is. If you ship a production app with the package name com.example.mytestapp, you’re going to have a bad time.
- App Name: Is it final? Does it match your branding?
- The Package Name: This is your app’s Unique Identifier. Once it’s on the Play Store, it’s permanent. If you leave it as com.example.mytestapp you will not be able to correct it later.
- App Logo: Check your Adaptive Icons. Nobody likes a squashed logo on a Samsung or a weirdly cropped one on a Pixel. You can use flutter_launcher_icons to generate your app launcher icon easily
2. Lock the Doors (Security & Signing)
Google is like a strict bouncer. If your ID (signing key) doesn’t check out, you aren’t getting in.
- The Sacred Keystore: If you lose your .jks file or forget the password, you literally lose the ability to update your app. Back it up in a safe place.
- The “Secret” Properties: Keep your key.properties out of GitHub. Use .gitignore like your life depends on it.
- Shrink the Bloat: Enable R8/Proguard. It makes your app smaller and harder to reverse-engineer. Just make sure to test the release build. Sometimes Proguard gets a little too “aggressive” and deletes code you actually need.
3. Permissions and Deletion
Google Play policy enforcement has tightened significantly in recent years. If you ask for a user’s location “just because you liked to” they’ll reject you faster than a bad date.
- Lean & Mean: Only ask for the permissions you actually use and give proper description.
- The Exit Strategy: If your app allows users to create an account, Google Play now requires in-app account deletion.
- The Guest Pass: Don’t force users to sign up just to see the “Home” screen. Provide guest access so users can experience the app’s core functionality.
4. Dress for Success (Store Listing)
The Play Store is a crowded Ason market. String visuals and a compelling presentation are essential if you want your app to stand out.
- High-Res Assets: 512×512 icons and those 1024×500 feature graphics. No blurry JPEGs allowed.
- The “Elevator Pitch”: Your short description (80 chars) to convince someone to download. Make it punchy.
- The Paperwork: Privacy policies, Data Safety forms, and Content Ratings. It’s boring, but it’s the price of admission.
5. The Endpoint
We’ve all done it. Shipped an app that tries to talk to localhost:8080.
- Point to Production: Ensure your Base URLs are hitting the live server, not your staging or dev environment.
- Kill the Logs: print(“Here 1”) and NSLog are great for debugging, but they shouldn’t be in your users’ system logs. Use a release-ready logging tool or turn on print only in debug build.
6. The “Finish Line” Pre-Flight Checklist
Before you click “Submit for Review,” run through this one last time:
- The Build: Is it release mode? (Not debug!)
- The Version: Did you increment versionCode?
- The Tester Account: If your app has a login, did you provide a test username/password for the Google reviewer? They won’t guess it.
You’ve followed the checklist, tested your app, polished your assets, and prepared your release build. Congratulations!. You’re ready to submit with confidence.
But hey wait! What if my key is gone?
Don’t delete your project yet. There’s a way back!. If your .jks file has been lost or the password is incorrect, check out my next post for the rescue plan that will cover Upload Key Rescue plan in detail.
