Android (Kotlin) SDK Quickstart

Install and use the RudderStack Android (Kotlin) SDK on your Android apps.

  •   3 minute read  

This guide will walk you through setting up the Android (Kotlin) SDK and sending your first events to RudderStack.

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Prerequisites

Step 1: Install Android (Kotlin) SDK

The steps covered in the below sections will help you integrate the RudderStack Android (Kotlin) SDK into your Android project:

Add dependencies

dependencies {
    implementation("com.rudderstack.sdk.kotlin:android:<latest-version>")
}

dependencies {
    implementation 'com.rudderstack.sdk.kotlin:android:<latest-version>'
}

Add the dependency to your libs.versions.toml file:

[versions]
rudderstack = "<latest-version>"

[libraries]
rudderstack-kotlin = { module = "com.rudderstack.sdk.kotlin:android", version.ref = "rudderstack" }

Then, include it in your build.gradle.kts:

dependencies {
    implementation(libs.rudderstack.kotlin)
}

Configure Maven Central

Make sure that Maven Central is included in your settings.gradle.kts file:

pluginManagement {
    repositories {
        google()
        mavenCentral()
        gradlePluginPortal()
    }
}
dependencyResolutionManagement {
    repositories {
        google()
        mavenCentral()
    }
}

For Groovy (settings.gradle), add:

pluginManagement {
    repositories {
        google()
        mavenCentral()
        gradlePluginPortal()
    }
}
dependencyResolutionManagement {
    repositories {
        google()
        mavenCentral()
    }
}
warning
Make sure that your app has the necessary permissions to send network requests.

Step 2: Initialize the SDK

Before tracking any events, initialize the Android (Kotlin) SDK in your Application class, as shown:

import android.app.Application
import com.rudderstack.sdk.kotlin.android.Analytics
import com.rudderstack.sdk.kotlin.android.Configuration

class MyApplication : Application() {
    lateinit var analytics: Analytics

    override fun onCreate() {
        super.onCreate()
        analytics = Analytics(
            configuration = Configuration(
                writeKey = "WRITE_KEY",
                application = this,
                dataPlaneUrl = "DATA_PLANE_URL",
            )
        )
    }
}

import com.rudderstack.sdk.kotlin.android.Configuration;
import com.rudderstack.sdk.kotlin.android.javacompat.ConfigurationBuilder;
import com.rudderstack.sdk.kotlin.android.javacompat.JavaAnalytics;

public class MyApplication extends Application {

    public JavaAnalytics analytics;

    @Override
    public void onCreate() {
        super.onCreate();

        Configuration configuration = new ConfigurationBuilder(this, "WRITE_KEY", "DATA_PLANE_URL")
                .setTrackApplicationLifecycleEvents(true)
                .setGzipEnabled(true)
                .build();

        analytics = new JavaAnalytics(configuration);
    }
}

Replace the WRITE_KEY and DATA_PLANE_URL parameters with the Android (Kotlin) source write key and the data plane URL obtained in Prerequisites.

Step 3: Identify users

You can use the identify event to identify a user and associate them with their actions. It also enables you to record any traits about them like their name, email, etc.

You can use the identify method as follows:

import kotlinx.serialization.json.buildJsonObject
import kotlinx.serialization.json.put

analytics.identify(
    userId = "1hKOmRA4el9Zt1WSfVJIVo4GRlm",
    traits = buildJsonObject {
        put("name", "Alex Keener")
        put("email", "alex@example.com")
    }
)

import java.util.HashMap;

HashMap<String, Object> traits = new HashMap<>();
traits.put("name", "Alex Keener");
traits.put("email", "alex@example.com");

analytics.identify("1hKOmRA4el9Zt1WSfVJIVo4GRlm", traits);

Step 4: Track user actions

Once the Android (Kotlin) SDK is initialized, you can send track user actions and send them as events.

A sample track event triggered once the order is completed successfully is shown:

import kotlinx.serialization.json.buildJsonObject
import kotlinx.serialization.json.put
analytics.track(
    name = "Order Completed",
    properties = buildJsonObject {
        put("revenue", 30)
        put("currency", "USD")
    }
)

import java.util.HashMap;

HashMap<String, Object> properties = new HashMap<>();
properties.put("revenue", 30);
properties.put("currency", "USD");

analytics.track("Order Completed", properties);

In the above snippet, the track method logs an event called Order Completed along with two event properties revenue and currency that provide additional context to the event.


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