7 things Android users should know about the new sideload rules

To be clear, sideloading isn’t going away from Android, but how it works will be significantly different than what we’re all used to. For longtime Android fans, this will be an especially difficult adjustment.

If you’re an Android user and confused about what’s changed, what’s staying the same, and when you should expect this new version of sideloading, here’s everything you need to know.

Let’s start with an easy note. To begin with Android’s new sideloading processyou still need to enable Developer Mode as usual. Additionally, the steps to enable Developer Mode remain unchanged. You’ll still open the Settings app, tap About Phone, and tap Build Number repeatedly until Developer Mode is enabled.

You’ve now set up your Android device to sideload, and you’ll do so even when Google’s new rules come into effect. However, where things change is in what comes next.

After enabling Developer Mode, Google will show a new pop-up asking you to confirm that no one is pressuring or forcing you to do this. The goal here is to add an extra security measure for people asking for app sideloads that shouldn’t be applied by scammers. It’s not something you or I might need, but for more casual users, it’s a good thing.

The second new step is to restart your phone. Again, according to Google, this forces you to separate yourself from a potentially scammy/dangerous phone call with someone forcing you to sideload dangerous software. If not, restart anyway.

After you reboot your Android device – and this is the biggest change – you have to wait 24 hours for sideloading. any apps on your Android phone or tablet. Yes, everyone should.

After 24 hours is up, you have to authenticate your device with your fingerprint or face unlock and finally you can download apps as you like.

This 24-hour rule is easily the most disturbing change with Google’s new sideloading system, and while it’s annoying, the good news is that it’s not as bad as it seems.

After the 24 hours are up, you have two options: allow sideloading for seven days, or allow sideloading on your device indefinitely. If you choose the latter, you’ll never have to restart your device or go through the 24-hour waiting period.

It’s worth noting that this isn’t specific to a particular developer or website you’re downloading the app from – it’s a system-wide setting. If you choose to allow sideloading indefinitely, from now on sideloading will work on your Android device as it has for years.

There’s another good news about Google’s new sideloading process. All the new security measures – restarting your phone, waiting 24 hours and verifying your identity – only apply to sideloading unverified apps. If you want to sideload approved applicationyou can do it without going through all these steps while still preventing the installation of unapproved apps. In other words, sideloading approved apps will work the same as sideloading in its current form.

Developers who distribute apps via sideloading will be able to verify their identity with Google to confirm that they are who they say they are. The verification process costs $25 and is intended to provide assurance that verified side-loaded apps have been “verified” by Google as safe to download.

Google’s verification process is now open. Google will implement the approved rules in four countries (Brazil, Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand) starting in September, and will roll it out to other parts of the world in 2027 and beyond.

In addition to approved apps, Google also relaxes the rules for small distribution apps. For an app created under Google’s limited distribution account, it can be sideloaded by up to 20 people without being affected by the new sideloading rules.

Although the 20-person limit is too small for any widespread public release, it’s perfect for hobbyists hanging around and wanting to test their apps without going through new sideload hoops.

Speaking of rollout time, the new sideloading rules for unverified apps won’t be activated until sometime in August. Google didn’t say when in August or how wide that rollout will be, but that’s the time frame we’re looking at currently.

Similarly, Google hasn’t said which Android versions the new sideload rules apply to. Will this only be for devices running Android 17? Is Android 16 supported? Is Google going back to Android 15 or Android 14 to protect as many people as possible?

We’ll probably learn more about Android version support by August, but for now we’re still not sure.