Requires Android x.x": minimum and target versions explained

Two numbers in the manifest

Minimum SDK is the oldest Android version the app installs on. The installer enforces it: a package whose minimum is above your version fails with INSTALL_FAILED_OLDER_SDK, or on some phones with a parse error. Version pages show it as Requires Android 6.0+ style text.

Target SDK is the version the developer tested against. It does not block installation but changes how Android treats the app: permissions, background limits, storage access. Google Play requires new uploads to target a recent version, which is why old builds sometimes behave differently on a new phone.

Android versions and API levels

Some sources show the API level instead of the version name; the table converts between them.

Finding your Android version

Settings › About phone › Android version. Manufacturer skins (One UI, MIUI, HyperOS, ColorOS) have their own numbering; the Android version underneath is what matters.

Picking a build for an old device

When the current version requires a newer Android than you have, open the app's version history and go back until the Requires Android field fits. The newest build that fits is usually the best choice: older still means more missing features and, for online apps, a higher chance the developer's servers no longer accept it. See how to downgrade an app for the installation order.

32-bit and 64-bit

Separately from the Android version, a build must include native code for your CPU. Phones sold since 2019 are 64-bit (arm64-v8a) and run 32-bit apps too, except on Android 15 devices that ship 64-bit only, such as recent Pixels, which refuse 32-bit-only packages. Very old 32-bit phones need a build that still includes armeabi-v7a code; universal APKs do, bundles generated for a 64-bit device do not.