How to programmatically check Android SDK version on device

Other Questions API
1

I’m developing an Android application and I need to find out the SDK version that’s installed on the user’s device. I want to accomplish this programmatically so that my app can behave differently based on the Android version.

I’ve been looking for a method to identify the current Android API level during runtime, but I’m unsure about the best approach to take. Should I consider using system properties or is there a built-in solution available in the Android framework?

Here’s an example of what I’ve attempted so far:

public class DeviceInfoHelper {
    public static int fetchCurrentSdkVersion() {
        // Implementation needed here
        return 0;
    }
    
    public static void verifyCompatibility() {
        int version = fetchCurrentSdkVersion();
        if (version >= 23) {
            // Address newer Android versions
        }
    }
}

What is the appropriate way to obtain the Android API level on the device programmatically?

2

hey, you can just call Build.VERSION.SDK_INT. it’s super easy! if you wanna get the version name, use Build.VERSION.RELEASE. been using these for ages, they work great!

3

Build.VERSION.SDK_INT is the standard way to do this, but there are a few things to watch out for. This returns the API level as an integer - you can compare it against Build.VERSION_CODES constants to make your code more readable. For your fetchCurrentSdkVersion method, just return Build.VERSION.SDK_INT. Remember this gives you the API level, not the actual Android version number. I also check Build.VERSION.CODENAME when working with preview releases. It returns ‘REL’ for stable versions and the actual codename for beta ones. Really handy when you’re testing on devices running beta Android versions.

4

The Build.VERSION.SDK_INT approach is correct, but I’ve hit some edge cases that might save you debugging time. Very old devices (below API 16) sometimes behave inconsistently, so I always add a fallback using Integer.parseInt(Build.VERSION.SDK) wrapped in try-catch. Make sure your minSdkVersion in the manifest matches your runtime checks - I’ve seen apps rejected because of mismatches that cause install failures on devices the code actually supports. For your implementation, just replace that return 0 with return Build.VERSION.SDK_INT and you’re done.