I need to find out what Android API version is running on the device where my app is installed. I want to get this information programmatically from within my application code.
I have been searching for this but keep getting results about other topics. I know this should be straightforward but I cannot locate the right method or property to use.
Can someone show me the correct way to retrieve the current Android API level that the device is using? I need this to make some version-specific decisions in my app logic.
Wrap your Build.VERSION.SDK_INT calls in proper conditional checks if you’re targeting multiple API levels. I learned this the hard way - certain constants and methods don’t exist on older Android versions and will crash your app. Use Build.VERSION.SDK_INT >= Build.VERSION_CODES.YOUR_TARGET_VERSION before calling newer APIs. Some manufacturers customize their Android builds, so the reported API level doesn’t always match expected behavior. For robust version checking, I combine Build.VERSION.SDK_INT with feature detection using getSystemService or checking if specific classes exist with reflection for critical functionality.
Build.VERSION.SDK_INT works for basic checks, but you’ll likely need this API level data for way more than simple conditionals.
I’ve hit this exact situation building apps that had to adapt across different Android versions. The real challenge isn’t getting the API level - it’s what you do with that info at scale.
Take this app I built that needed different permission handling, UI tweaks, and feature toggles based on API levels. Rather than hardcoding version checks everywhere, I automated the whole thing.
I built workflows that automatically grab device API levels from users, store the data, and trigger different app configs based on which Android versions my users actually have. Now I can make data-driven decisions about which API levels to focus on for new features.
The automation also handles stuff like sending different push notifications to users on older Android versions, auto-updating app store listings based on minimum API requirements, and even triggering builds with different feature sets.
You can build similar workflows that take your API level data and actually do something useful with it beyond just code branching.
You can also check Build.VERSION.RELEASE for the actual version string like “11” or “12” instead of just the API number. I hit this when debugging user reports - customers would mention their Android version but I only stored the API integer. Build.VERSION.CODENAME saved me time during development too, especially for identifying preview versions when testing beta Android releases where the final API wasn’t set yet. For production apps, I wrap these checks in a utility class since you’ll need version detection in multiple spots. Just remember Build.VERSION.SDK_INT gives you your app’s compile-time API level, but the device might actually be running something higher.