# Distribute to Wear OS

- Launch
- Wear OS


If you've got a great app, Wear OS and Google Play can help you
bring it to users. While Android apps can send basic notifications to
Wear OS devices, you can go much further. Extend your apps to
support custom Wear OS interactions and offer a refined, engaging user
experience across all Wear OS devices. If your apps meet the
core app quality guidelines on Android devices and provide a high-quality
experience for Wear OS devices, your apps are surfaced on
Google Play for easy discovery.


To get started, review this page to learn how to distribute your Wear OS
apps to users through Google Play. Be sure to read
[Wear OS app
quality](https://developer.android.com/docs/quality-guidelines/wear-app-quality) for information on the usability and quality standards that
your apps should meet. When your app is ready, you can opt-in for
designation as a Wear OS app from the Play Console.

## How to participate


Google Play lets you make your Wear OS apps discoverable for wearable
users. You can develop and publish using your existing Play Console
account and your current distribution and pricing settings. It's easy to
participate --- the sections below outline the process.

### 1. Understand the guidelines and requirements


To prepare for a successful launch on Wear OS, start by
reviewing the guidelines for creating great app experiences on Wear. See
the [Wear OS developer design
guidelines](https://developer.android.com/training/wearables/design) for ideas on extending your app for Wear OS and details on
design and usability.


As you get started
[designing your Wear OS experience](https://developer.android.com/training/wearables/principles),
make sure to read and understand the quality criteria for Wear OS apps. Only apps that are
usable on Wear OS will be designated as Wear OS apps on Google Play --- your
apps can participate if they meet a set of basic quality criteria. See [Wear OS app
quality](https://developer.android.com/docs/quality-guidelines/wear-app-quality) for details.


**Note:** If you're creating an app or watch face for kids, check that
it
[satisfies requirements
for kid-friendly experiences](https://developer.android.com/training/wearables/packaging#kids).

### 2. Develop a great app for Wear OS


Once you have read the guidelines, the next step is to develop your app.
The following sections describe how to start building a great app
experience for Wear.

#### Design first


Wear OS aims to provide users with just the right information at just the
right time. Great Wear OS experiences are glanceable and require zero or
minimal user interaction. All Android apps can send basic notifications
to Wear OS wearables without any modification. However, great apps built
for Wear OS are refined to offer a polished and high-quality experience,
work on different screen layouts, work for users with watches paired to
iPhones, and deliver a compelling feature set for users.


As you consider your Wear OS app, review the
[developer documentation](https://developer.android.com/training/building-wearables)
and [usability guidelines](https://developer.android.com/training/wearables/design) and plan
to use these to the greatest extent possible.

#### Package your app


If you have an existing app for phones and other devices, we recommend
that you deliver your watch app using the same package name and store
listing. This lets users upgrade to your Wear OS experience seamlessly
and lets you take advantage of the reviews and ratings you've earned
in your app for phones. Package your Wear OS app as a separate APK or
Android App Bundle so that it can be efficiently delivered to your users. This helps to bring
your app to Wear OS users with iPhones. To learn about packaging your apps, see
[Package and distribute Wear apps](https://developer.android.com/training/wearables/packaging).

#### Test on a variety of devices


Throughout design and development, it's important to have suitable
devices on which to prototype and test your user experience. It's highly
recommended that you acquire one or more Wear OS devices or develop with
different emulator configurations and set up your testing environment as
early as possible.

### 3. Test for Wear OS app quality


Your Wear OS apps should be designed to perform well and look great on
Wear OS devices, and they should offer the best user experience possible.
Google Play will showcase selected high-quality Wear OS apps for easy
discovery, with top app charts and curated featured collections. Here's
how you can participate and deliver a Wear OS app that users will enjoy:

- Meet the core app quality guidelines:
  - Follow the [Wearable Design guidelines](https://developer.android.com/training/wearables/design).
  - Test your apps against the [core app
    quality](https://developer.android.com/docs/quality-guidelines/core-app-quality) guidelines.
- Meet the Wear OS app quality guidelines:
  - Follow the best practices for [Wear OS app development](https://developer.android.com/training/building-wearables).
  - Make sure your app meets the [Wear OS
    app quality](https://developer.android.com/docs/quality-guidelines/wear-app-quality) guidelines.
- Meet eligibility for featured collections: To be eligible for selection for featured collections, make sure your Wear OS app functions as a standalone app, that is independent from a phone, tablet, or similar device. Your app will also need to work on watches that are paired with either iOS and Android devices.

### 4. Add support for Wear OS and release to a test track


To inform Google Play that your app supports Wear OS devices,
complete the following steps:

1. In the **All Applications** page, select your app.
2. Under **Setup** , enter the **Advanced Settings** page.
3. In the **form factors** tab, click **Add Form factor**.
4. Select **Wear OS**.


You're now ready to release a test version of your app. Learn more
about this process in the guide on how to
[set
up an open, closed, or internal test](https://support.google.com/googleplay/android-developer/answer/9845334).


After you release your app to a open or closed test track, the
Play Console prepares a
[pre-launch
report](https://play.google.com/console/about/pre-launchreports/) for your app. This report shows the results of stability,
accessibility, and security tests performed on emulated and physical
devices that run Wear OS. The report also contains information from
performance tests that are run on physical devices. Use the results of this
pre-launch report to further improve the quality of your app.

### 5. Opt-in to Wear OS and publish


When you've built your release-ready app and tested to ensure that it
meets all of the
[Wear OS app
quality](https://developer.android.com/docs/quality-guidelines/wear-app-quality) criteria, upload it to the Play Console. Update your store
listing with Wear OS screenshots and set distribution options as needed.
If you aren't familiar with how to prepare for launch on Google Play, see
the [Launch Checklist](https://developer.android.com/distribute/best-practices/launch/launch-checklist).


Before you publish to users, you must opt-in to Wear OS from the
**Advanced Settings** section of the Play Console. Opt-in means
that you want your app to be made discoverable to Wear OS users through
Google Play, and that your app meets the
[Wear OS app
quality](https://developer.android.com/docs/quality-guidelines/wear-app-quality) guidelines. Note that you must upload at least one Wear OS
screenshot before opting in for Wear OS app quality review. You will also
need to mention Wear OS in your app's store listing for your app to pass
the review process. If your app includes
[tiles](https://developer.android.com/training/wearables/tiles) or
[complications](https://developer.android.com/training/wearables/complications), you also
need to mention your app's support of them in your listing.


Opt-in to Wear OS in the Play Console by doing the following:

1. Follow the instructions for opting into Wear OS.
   - Mention Wear OS in the description of your app's store listing.
   - [Add Wear OS screenshots](https://developer.android.com/training/wearables/get-started/screenshots) to the app's store listing.
   | **Caution:** Starting October 13th, 2021, Wear OS apps will need to meet [new screenshot requirements](https://support.google.com/googleplay/android-developer/answer/9866151#zippy=%2Cscreenshots) to be published on Google Play.
   - Upload Android app bundle or APK files.
   | **Caution:** If your Wear OS app is a dependent app, you must include binaries for Wear OS and for mobile.
   - Opt-in to Wear OS and agree to the review policy
2. Click **Start rollout**.
| **Caution:** Double check that you haven't missed any of the requirements above. Otherwise your app may be rejected during app review.


Google Play submits your app for review against the [Wear OS app
quality](https://developer.android.com/docs/quality-guidelines/wear-app-quality) guidelines and notifies you of the result.


If your app meets the
[technical and
quality criteria for Wear OS](https://developer.android.com/docs/quality-guidelines/wear-app-quality), your app is made discoverable
for users on Wear OS wearables. Your app is also eligible for
higher-visibility featuring in app collections and promotions.


If your app doesn't meet the criteria, you'll receive a **notification
email sent to your developer account address**, with a summary of the
areas that you need to address. When you've made the necessary adjustments,
you can upload a new version of your app for review.

#### Check review and approval status


At any time, you can check the review and approval status of your app in
the Play Console, under **Wear OS** in the app's **Pricing and
Distribution** page.


There are three approval states:

- **Pending** --- Your app was sent for review and the review is not yet complete.
- **Approved** --- Your app was reviewed and approved. The app will be made discoverable to Wear OS users.
- **Not approved** --- Your app was reviewed and not approved. Check the notification email for information about why the app was not approved. You can address any issues and opt-in and publish again to initiate another review.


To understand how your apps are evaluated, please see the
[Wear OS app
quality](https://developer.android.com/docs/quality-guidelines/wear-app-quality) guidelines.

## Examples

## Related