1) What changed on Google Play?

From August 31, 2025, apps must target an API level within 1 year of the latest Android release. Practically, this means you need to target Android 15 (API 35) or higher to keep publishing updates.

2) Symptoms & error messages

When you try to build or run, you may see:

• Your app currently has compileSdk = 34 and targetSdk = 34.
• Gradle failure: Cannot resolve external dependency com.google.gms:google-services:4.4.2 because no repositories are defined.

3) Quick fix checklist

• Bump compileSdk and targetSdk to 35.
• Ensure Gradle Wrapper ≥ 8.10 and AGP (Android Gradle Plugin) ≥ 8.6.0.
• Add google() and mavenCentral() inside both buildscript.repositories and top-level allprojects.repositories.
• Update desugaring libs to the latest stable (com.android.tools:desugar_jdk_libs).
• Clean, rebuild, and test on an Android 15 emulator/device.
• Upload AAB to internal testing, then promote to production.

4) App-level build.gradle (module: app)

Before (non-compliant)

android {
    namespace = "com.pradeepthedeveloper.in"
    compileSdk = 34
    ...
    defaultConfig {
        targetSdk = 34
        ...
    }
}
dependencies {
    implementation 'androidx.multidex:multidex:2.0.1'
    implementation 'com.google.android.gms:play-services-auth:20.5.0'
    coreLibraryDesugaring 'com.android.tools:desugar_jdk_libs:1.2.2'
}

After (compliant with API 35)

plugins {
    id "com.android.application"
    id "com.google.gms.google-services"
    id "kotlin-android"
    id "dev.flutter.flutter-gradle-plugin"
}

android {
    namespace = "com.pradeepthedeveloper.in"
    compileSdk = 35
    ndkVersion = "25.1.8937393"

    compileOptions {
        coreLibraryDesugaringEnabled true
        sourceCompatibility = JavaVersion.VERSION_1_8
        targetCompatibility = JavaVersion.VERSION_1_8
    }

    kotlinOptions { jvmTarget = "1.8" }

    defaultConfig {
        applicationId = "com.pradeepthedeveloper.in"
        minSdk = 26
        targetSdk = 35
        versionCode = flutter.versionCode
        versionName = flutter.versionName
        multiDexEnabled true
    }

    signingConfigs {
        release {
            keyAlias keystoreProperties['keyAlias']
            keyPassword keystoreProperties['keyPassword']
            storeFile file(keystoreProperties['storeFile'])
            storePassword keystoreProperties['storePassword']
        }
        debug {
            keyAlias keystoreProperties['keyAlias']
            keyPassword keystoreProperties['keyPassword']
            storeFile file(keystoreProperties['storeFile'])
            storePassword keystoreProperties['storePassword']
        }
    }

    buildTypes {
        release {
            signingConfig signingConfigs.release
            minifyEnabled true
            shrinkResources true
        }
    }
}

dependencies {
    implementation 'androidx.multidex:multidex:2.0.1'
    implementation 'com.google.android.gms:play-services-auth:20.5.0'
    coreLibraryDesugaring 'com.android.tools:desugar_jdk_libs:2.0.4'
}

flutter { source = "../.." }

5) Project-level build.gradle & repositories (fixes “no repositories are defined”)

That error happens when classpath plugins (e.g., com.google.gms:google-services) can’t be fetched because the buildscript.repositories block is missing.

Correct project-level build.gradle

buildscript {
    repositories {
        google()
        mavenCentral()
    }
    dependencies {
        classpath "com.android.tools.build:gradle:8.6.0"
        classpath "com.google.gms:google-services:4.4.2"
        // Add Crashlytics/Perf if used:
        // classpath "com.google.firebase:firebase-crashlytics-gradle:3.0.2"
        // classpath "com.google.firebase:perf-plugin:1.4.2"
    }
}

allprojects {
    repositories {
        google()
        mavenCentral()
    }
}

rootProject.buildDir = "../build"

subprojects {
    project.buildDir = "${rootProject.buildDir}/${project.name}"
}

subprojects {
    project.evaluationDependsOn(":app")
}

tasks.register("clean", Delete) {
    delete rootProject.buildDir
}

6) Gradle Wrapper & Android Gradle Plugin versions

distributionUrl=https\://services.gradle.org/distributions/gradle-8.10-all.zip

classpath "com.android.tools.build:gradle:8.6.0"

AGP and Gradle must be compatible. The above combo works well for compile/targetSdk 35 in 2025.

7) Flutter commands & local verification

1. Sync dependencies:

   flutter clean
   flutter pub get

2. Build locally:

   flutter build appbundle   # AAB for Play Store
   # or
   flutter build apk         # For quick device testing

3. Run on Android 15 device/emulator:

   flutter run -d emulator-5554  # example device id

8) Play Console release checklist

• Target/compile SDK set to 35; project builds an .aab.
• Upload to Internal testing first; install and verify on Android 15.
• Resolve policy warnings (privacy, data safety, sensitive permissions).
• Promote to Production when stable.
• Confirm the Play Console inbox message that your app is now compliant.

Open Releases overview

9) FAQ & Troubleshooting

Q1) I see “Cannot resolve external dependency ... because no repositories are defined.”

Add google() and mavenCentral() inside both buildscript.repositories and allprojects.repositories in the project-level build.gradle (see section 5).

Q2) Build fails after bumping to API 35.

• Update Gradle to 8.10 and AGP to 8.6.0.
• Update desugaring libs to 2.0.4.
• Clean and rebuild. Check library release notes for Android 15 compatibility.

Q3) Do I have to change minSdk?

No. The Play requirement is about targetSdk. You can keep your current minSdk (26 in this example).

Q4) Does this affect existing installs?

Your current store listing remains live. You just won’t be able to publish updates after the deadline if you don’t target API 35 or higher.

Q5) Flutter-specific gotchas?

• Some plugins may need newer versions to support API 35.
• If you use background services/alarms, verify behavior on Android 15.

Copy-paste recap

1. App-level build.gradle: set compileSdk = 35, targetSdk = 35, update desugaring lib.
2. Project-level build.gradle: add buildscript.repositories { google(); mavenCentral() } and classpath deps; keep allprojects.repositories too.
3. Gradle/AGP: Wrapper 8.10, AGP 8.6.0.
4. Build & test: flutter clean → flutter pub get → flutter build appbundle → test on Android 15.
5. Publish: Internal testing → Production in Play Console.