Sign your APK via Google Play Developer Console

When uploading your Android application to Aptoide Connect, if your app is also available on Google Play or if it is going to be launched simultaneously on Google Play and Aptoide you must use the same signing certificate that Google Play applies to your published APKs. For more information on why this is important, click here.

Using the same signature as on Google Play is essential for both security and user trust. Recommended by Android/Google, this practice ensures your app is recognized as official across all platforms, preventing security warnings and reassuring users they’re downloading the legitimate version.

Why is this important?

• Google Play Protect: Android devices outside China come equipped with Google Play Protect, Google’s anti-malware system.
• User Confidence: An unrecognized signature triggers a Google Play Protect pop-up, potentially causing concern and lowering conversions.
• Best Practice: This approach is recommended by Google Play (details here), ensuring Play Protect recognizes the APK as coming from the verified owner of the app.

Understanding Google Play App Signing

When you publish an app on Google Play, two signing keys may be involved:

• Upload key: Used by you to upload your app to Google Play.
• App signing key (Google Play signature): Used by Google Play to re-sign your app before distribution.

If your app is enrolled in Google Play App Signing (which is the default for most developers), you usually do not have direct access to this key. Therefore, we have made the below guide on how to get your APK with Aptoide Android Billing SDK signed via Google Play Developer Console.

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This is recommended by Google Play when developers wish to distribute their app on other stores besides Google Play. You can see their Best Practices section here.

In summary, if your app is on Google Play, you may need to:

• Modify your APK (for example, integrate Aptoide Android Billing SDK);
• Upload the modified build as a Internal Test to Google Play;
• Download the Google-signed APK;
• Upload the Google-signed APK to Aptoide Connect.

Downloading the Google-Signed APK

Follow these steps to obtain an APK signed by Google Play App Signing:

1. Go to Google Play Developer Console;
2. Select your app;
3. From the left menu, select: Testing → Internal testing.
4. Click Create new release (top-right corner);
5. In the App bundles section, upload your .apk or .aab files;
6. Wait for the upload to complete;
7. In the files list, click the blue arrow icon to view the release details.

9. In the modal window that appears, open the Downloads tab;
10. Click Signed, universal APK to download your build signed by Google Play App Signing.

11. Wait for download to complete;
12. Close the modal window;
13. To clean up after downloading the APK:

    1. Click Discard draft release (top-right corner) to remove the internal testing draft;

       

    2. From the left-hand menu, go to Latest releases and bundles;

    3. Select the entry corresponding to the version code you uploaded;

       

    4. On the entry details page, click Delete app bundle.

       

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Please note that this needs to be done inside the "Testing" menu. Otherwise, issues may arise because of the vercode number. Always do this process in Testing > Internal testing.

After downloading the Google-signed APK from your Google Play Developer Console, go to your Aptoide Connect Developer Console and submit the files through the app submission form.

FAQ

What is this for?
It ensures that the APK you upload to Aptoide is signed with the same certificate used on Google Play.

I have my app on Google Play but I use my own signature, do I need to do this?
No. If Google does not re-sign your app, you can upload your APK directly to Aptoide.

Do I need to do anything with OBB files?
No. OBB files do not require additional processing.