Android 15 may block the installation of some apps

With the upcoming release of Android 15, Google will make it virtually impossible to install some Android apps as a new minimum requirement is coming.

For quite a while now, Android apps have been required to target at least Android 6.0 (Marshmallow), but Android 15 is moving up that minimum.

As Android Police notes through Android 15 Developer Preview 2’s code, the new minimum that Google is working on (but hasn’t yet locked in place) is that apps will be required to target at least Android 7.1 That’s SDK version 24, where Android 15 would be version 35.

This block already appears to be in effect, with an older, Android 6.0-targeting app installing perfectly fine on Android 14, but not installing at all on the current Android 15 builds. This was tested by installing the app through ADB. On the device itself, a Google Play Protect prompt blocks the install but offers an option to install the app anyway, which ultimately does not work. The installation is blocked by the OS itself.

In all reality, this likely won’t affect the vast majority of apps on your device. While Android 6.0 is often the oldest version of the OS that apps will support, most apps target much newer, if not the latest versions of Android. For apps that are affected, though, it will require that the developer raise the target version to allow the app to still be installed.

More on Android:

• Android 15 DP2 brings back persistent taskbar on Pixel Fold, Tablet
• Samsung has finally adopted Android’s Seamless Updates after nearly 8 years
• Android 15 DP2: App archiving integrated into Settings

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