Android Testing Tools
Android UI testing toolkit and agent skill: screenshot capture, Page Object pattern, Espresso/UIAutomator/Compose extensions, Allure reporting.
Android UI Testing Tools
A comprehensive toolkit for Android UI testing with screenshot capture, Page Object pattern support, and AI-assisted test development.
Features
- Screenshot Capture: Structured screenshot naming with automatic organization
- Page Object Pattern: Reusable page and component abstractions
- Espresso Extensions: Enhanced ViewInteraction with wait helpers
- UIAutomator Extensions: Convenient device interaction methods
- Compose UI Test Support: Extensions for Jetpack Compose testing
- Allure Integration: Rich test reporting with steps and attachments
- AI Agent Skill: Claude Code / Codex CLI integration for assisted test development
Quick Start
1. Add Dependencies
Option A: Gradle sourceControl (Recommended)
No registry needed — Gradle clones and builds from git tag directly (like SPM).
// settings.gradle.kts
sourceControl {
gitRepository(uri("ssh://git@github.com/ivalx1s/android-ui-testing-tools.git")) {
producesModule("com.uitesttools:screenshot-kit")
producesModule("com.uitesttools:uitest-kit")
}
}
// build.gradle.kts (app module)
dependencies {
androidTestImplementation("com.uitesttools:screenshot-kit:0.0.1")
androidTestImplementation("com.uitesttools:uitest-kit:0.0.1")
// Standard test dependencies
androidTestImplementation("androidx.test:runner:1.5.2")
androidTestImplementation("androidx.test.espresso:espresso-core:3.5.1")
androidTestImplementation("androidx.test.uiautomator:uiautomator:2.3.0")
}
Option B: GitHub Packages
// settings.gradle.kts
dependencyResolutionManagement {
repositories {
google()
mavenCentral()
maven {
url = uri("https://maven.pkg.github.com/ivalx1s/android-ui-testing-tools")
credentials {
username = providers.gradleProperty("gpr.user").orNull ?: System.getenv("GITHUB_ACTOR")
password = providers.gradleProperty("gpr.key").orNull ?: System.getenv("GITHUB_TOKEN")
}
}
}
}
// build.gradle.kts (app module)
dependencies {
androidTestImplementation("com.uitesttools:screenshot-kit:0.0.1")
androidTestImplementation("com.uitesttools:uitest-kit:0.0.1")
}
Note: GitHub Packages requires authentication even for public packages. Add to
~/.gradle/gradle.properties:gpr.user=YOUR_GITHUB_USERNAME gpr.key=YOUR_GITHUB_TOKENToken needs
read:packagesscope. Create at https://github.com/settings/tokens
2. Create Test Tags
// app/src/main/kotlin/com/example/testenv/TestTags.kt
object TestTags {
object Auth {
object Login {
const val TITLE = "Auth_Login_Title_text"
const val USERNAME_INPUT = "Auth_Login_Username_input"
const val SUBMIT_BUTTON = "Auth_Login_Submit_button"
}
}
}
3. Add Test Tags to UI
// Compose - enable testTagsAsResourceId on root
Surface(
modifier = Modifier
.fillMaxSize()
.semantics { testTagsAsResourceId = true }
) {
// Your content
}
// Then use testTag on elements
TextField(
modifier = Modifier.testTag(TestTags.Auth.Login.USERNAME_INPUT),
// ...
)
// XML (contentDescription)
android:contentDescription="Auth_Login_Username_input"
4. Create Page Objects
class LoginPage(override val device: UiDevice) : PageElement {
override val readyMarker = TestTags.Auth.Login.TITLE
val usernameField get() = device.findObject(By.res(TestTags.Auth.Login.USERNAME_INPUT))
val loginButton get() = device.findObject(By.res(TestTags.Auth.Login.SUBMIT_BUTTON))
fun login(username: String, password: String): HomePage {
usernameField?.text = username
passwordField?.text = password
loginButton?.click()
return HomePage(device).waitForReady()
}
}
5. Write Tests
class LoginTest : BaseUiTestSuite() {
override val packageName = "com.example.app"
@Test
fun testSuccessfulLogin() {
launchApp()
screenshot(1, "app_launched")
val loginPage = LoginPage(device).waitForReady()
screenshot(2, "login_page")
val homePage = loginPage.login("user@test.com", "password123")
screenshot(3, "logged_in")
assertPageDisplayed(homePage)
}
}
6. Run Tests and Extract Screenshots
# Run tests
cd toolkit
./gradlew :app:connectedAndroidTest
# Extract screenshots from device
./Scripts/extract-screenshots.sh ./screenshots
# Or use combined script
./Scripts/run-tests-and-extract.sh -module app -output ./screenshots
Real Device Execution
For physical Android devices, especially MIUI/Xiaomi, the most reliable lane is:
- build the app APK and the androidTest APK
- install both with
adb install -r -t - run instrumentation directly with
adb shell am instrument - pull screenshots after the run
Why:
connectedDebugAndroidTest/connectedAndroidTestoften re-enters Gradle-managed install flow- on MIUI this can fail intermittently with
INSTALL_FAILED_USER_RESTRICTED - once APKs are already installed, direct
am instrumentis much more stable
Example:
./gradlew :app:assembleDebug :app:assembleAndroidTest
adb -s 535a1632 install -r -t app/build/outputs/apk/debug/app-debug.apk
adb -s 535a1632 install -r -t app/build/outputs/apk/androidTest/debug/app-debug-androidTest.apk
adb -s 535a1632 shell am instrument -w \
-e class com.example.app.LoginTest \
com.example.app.test/androidx.test.runner.AndroidJUnitRunner
If you also want screenshots copied locally after the run:
./Scripts/extract-screenshots.sh ./screenshots --serial 535a1632
Recommended split:
- emulator / CI lane:
connectedAndroidTest - physical-device lane: preinstall +
am instrument
Practical advice for UI tests on physical devices:
- prefer explicit launch and ready-state waits over assuming the app is foregrounded
- for
UiAutomator, use text / content-description / resource-id fallbacks instead of relying on a single locator type - if you use Compose test tags with
UiAutomator, expose them throughsemantics { testTagsAsResourceId = true }on the root container - keep screenshot extraction decoupled from test execution so a failed run still leaves artifacts behind
CLI Tools
extract-screenshots
Extract screenshots from Android device/emulator:
# Basic usage
java -jar toolkit/extract-screenshots/build/libs/extract-screenshots.jar ./screenshots
# With options
java -jar toolkit/extract-screenshots/build/libs/extract-screenshots.jar ./screenshots \
--serial emulator-5554 \
--clean \
--device-path /sdcard/Pictures/Screenshots/UITests
snapshotsdiff (macOS only)
Create visual diffs between snapshot images:
# Build
swift build -c release --package-path toolkit/snapshotsdiff
# Compare two images
./toolkit/snapshotsdiff/.build/release/snapshotsdiff reference.png actual.png diff.png
# Batch compare
./toolkit/snapshotsdiff/.build/release/snapshotsdiff \
--artifacts ./SnapshotArtifacts \
--output ./SnapshotDiffs \
--tests ./AppSnapshotTests
Project Structure
android-ui-testing-tools/
├── agents/skills/ # AI agent skill
│ └── android-ui-validation/
├── Scripts/ # Shell scripts
├── toolkit/ # Gradle multi-module project (libraries)
│ ├── screenshot-kit/ # Screenshot capture library
│ ├── uitest-kit/ # Page Objects, extensions, Allure
│ ├── extract-screenshots/ # JVM CLI for screenshot extraction
│ ├── snapshotsdiff/ # Swift CLI for visual diffs (macOS)
│ └── gradle/libs.versions.toml
├── demo-app/ # Demo app (separate Gradle project)
│ └── settings.gradle.kts # Toggle: useLocalLibs = true/false
├── buildSrc/ # Convention plugins
├── build.gradle.kts # Root config (for sourceControl)
├── settings.gradle.kts # Root config (for sourceControl)
├── .claude/skills -> ../agents/skills
├── .codex/skills -> ../agents/skills
├── CLAUDE.md
└── README.md
AI Agent Skill
Install the skill for AI-assisted test development:
# Project-local installation
./Scripts/setup-project-skills.sh /path/to/your/project
# Global installation
./Scripts/setup-global-skills.sh
The skill provides:
- Test tag naming conventions
- Page Object pattern templates
- Screenshot workflow guidance
- Allure integration setup
- Common testing patterns
Known Issues
buildSrc duplication
buildSrc/ exists in both root and toolkit/ directories. This is intentional — Android Studio fails to sync projects when toolkit/buildSrc is a symlink to ../buildSrc.
buildSrc/ # For sourceControl consumers (root build)
toolkit/buildSrc/ # For includeBuild consumers (copy, not symlink!)
TODO: Find a way to eliminate duplication without breaking Android Studio sync.
Requirements
- Java 17+
- Android SDK (API 24+)
- Gradle 8.x
- ADB (for screenshot extraction)
- Swift 5.9+ (for snapshotsdiff, macOS only)
Verification
# Check prerequisites
./Scripts/check-tools.sh
# Build all modules
cd toolkit
./gradlew build
# Build extract CLI
./gradlew :extract-screenshots:jar
# Build snapshotsdiff (macOS)
swift build -c release --package-path toolkit/snapshotsdiff
Documentation
- CLAUDE.md - AI assistant guidance
- agents/skills/android-ui-validation/SKILL.md - Full skill documentation
- agents/skills/android-ui-validation/references/ - Detailed guides
Related Projects
- swift-ui-testing-tools - iOS equivalent
About Relux Works
This project is part of the open-source ecosystem of Relux Works, an AI-native software development studio. We build fixed-price MVPs, rescue vibe-coded apps, run local AI inference, and train teams to work with coding agents. Much of the infrastructure behind that work is open source.
- Full catalog: relux.works/en/open-source
- Agentic enablement: agent harnesses & team training
- Hire us the agent-native way: point your assistant at
https://api.relux.works/mcp - Contact: ivan@relux.works
License
MIT
Apache License
Version 2.0, January 2004
http://www.apache.org/licenses/
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Copyright 2026 Alexey Grigorev
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