How to set up a closed test in Google Play Console

A closed test is the track Google requires new personal accounts to use before production: at least 12 testers, opted in for 14 days in a row (Play Console Help). Setting it up takes about an hour of clicks, then a wait of several hours to a few days for Google. Here is every step, using Play Console's current menu names.

Before you start

• A verified developer account. New personal accounts also verify a real Android device with the Play Console mobile app. See new developer account requirements.
• A signed Android App Bundle that targets API level 36 or higher, the requirement since August 31, 2026. See target API 36.
• Your final package name. Google says package names are "unique and permanent" and "can't be deleted or re-used" (Play Console Help).
• A privacy policy URL, public, over HTTPS, not a PDF (Play Console Help).
• Test login details, if your app needs an account.

Step 1: Create the app

In Play Console, click Create app. Google asks for (Play Console Help):

• the app name as it should appear on Google Play (you can change it later);
• the package name;
• a default language;
• app or game, free or paid;
• a contact email address;
• the declarations: Developer Program Policies, US export laws, and the Play App Signing terms.

Then click Create app.

Step 2: Finish the app setup tasks

Open your app's Dashboard. It lists the mandatory setup tasks, each crossed out with a green tick once done (Play Console Help). Closed testing needs app setup to be complete.

Most tasks live under Monitor and improve > Policy and programs > App content (Play Console Help):

• privacy policy;
• ads declaration;
• app access: instructions and credentials for any part behind a login;
• target audience and content;
• content rating questionnaire;
• data safety form.

Then fill in the store listing under Grow users > Store presence > Store listings: app name (30 characters), short description (80), full description (4,000), graphics and screenshots. Your store listing is shared across tracks, testing tracks included.

Step 3: Open the closed testing track

Go to Test and release > Testing > Closed testing. A closed track already exists. Click Manage track to use it.

You can also click Create track to add a named closed track. Google lists limits for these extra tracks: no country targeting, among others (Play Console Help). For the 12-tester requirement, the default track is the simplest choice.

Check the countries and regions where the track is available, and include every country your testers live in.

Step 4: Add your testers

Open the Testers tab. You have two options.

Email lists. Click Create email list, name it, and add addresses separated by commas or upload a CSV file. Uploading a CSV overwrites the addresses already in the list, and Play Console rejects CSV files saved as UTF-8 with BOM. Limits: 200 lists per developer account, 50 per track, 2,000 testers per list.

Google Groups. Select Google Groups and enter the group's address. Google accepts a group created at groups.google.com ([email protected]) or a Google Workspace group on your developer account's domain. Groups have no size limit. Testers must join the group before they can opt in.

Then add a feedback URL or email address. It appears on the tester opt-in page. Click Save changes. All of this is from Google's setup page (Play Console Help).

Step 5: Create and prepare the release

On the track, click Create new release (top right). If the button is disabled, Google says to complete the outstanding setup tasks on your Dashboard (Play Console Help).

1. If it's your first release, configure Play App Signing.
2. Upload your app bundle, or add one from the library.
3. Name the release. Only you see the name in Play Console.
4. Write release notes, up to 500 characters per language.
5. Click Save as draft, then Next.
6. Read the preview. Errors block publishing. Warnings don't, but fix them if you can.
7. Click Start rollout.

Step 6: Send the changes for review

Changes that need Google's review are not sent automatically. Open Publishing overview and click Send for review (Play Console Help).

Google says processing can take "a few hours or up to seven days (or longer in exceptional cases)". The clock counts from your last submitted change, so avoid sending more changes while you wait.

Step 7: Wait for "Published", then copy the opt-in link

Google only shows the opt-in link when the app status is "Published". Draft and Pending publication apps don't have one. After the first publish, the link can take several hours to work for testers (Play Console Help).

Find it on the Testers tab of the closed track. It looks like this (Play Console Help):

https://play.google.com/apps/testing/your.package.name

Step 8: Send testers the link and the rules

Your testers can't find a closed test by searching Google Play. Send them:

• the Google Group to join first, if you use one;
• the opt-in link;
• a reminder to use the same Google account on the phone;
• the rule: stay opted in for 14 days in a row;
• one or two things you want them to try, and where to send feedback.

The tester side, step by step, is in how testers join a closed test.

Step 9: Check the link yourself

Before you send the link to everyone, open it with a second Google account that's in your list or group. That account must not be in your internal test. You should see the tester terms, then a way to install the app. If something fails, start with closed testing link not working.

Mistakes that break a closed test

• Testers in the internal test. "A user who opts into your app's internal test is no longer eligible to receive an open or closed test." They must opt out of internal first. More in closed vs internal vs open testing.
• Sharing the wrong link. Each track has its own. Use the closed track's opt-in link.
• A Workspace group on another domain. Google only mentions Workspace groups on your developer account's domain.
• Testers who never joined the group, or joined with a different account from the one on their phone.
• A paid app. In closed tests, testers must buy paid apps. Only internal testers get them free (Play Console Help).
• In-app purchases. Add license testers so test purchases aren't charged (Play Console Help).

Once the link works, the 14 days are up to your testers. The rest of the process is in the complete guide to Google Play closed testing.