APILevels

API Levels are integers that identify the version of the Android framework API available on a device. They are used by developers to determine whether a device supports a given API or feature and to implement compatibility logic across Android versions. In Android, each platform release is associated with a specific API level. For example, API level 1 corresponds to Android 1.0, API level 28 corresponds to Android 9 Pie, and API level 33 corresponds to Android 13. API levels provide a standardized way to express compatibility without relying on device strings or names.

In practice, developers declare compatibility in their build configurations through minSdkVersion, targetSdkVersion, and compileSdkVersion. The minSdkVersion specifies the lowest API level the application supports, while targetSdkVersion indicates the API level the app is designed to run on. compileSdkVersion determines the API level used to compile the app. At runtime, the code may check the device’s API level (for example, using Build.VERSION.SDK_INT) before executing code that requires newer APIs. The Build.VERSION_CODES enumeration supplies readable names for API levels in such checks.

API levels influence library and feature availability. Some features require newer API levels and are guarded with runtime checks. To support older devices, developers rely on compatibility libraries (such as AndroidX) or back‑port techniques that provide similar functionality on older API levels. Fragmentation across API levels remains a challenge, prompting testing across a range of devices and careful version gating.

As Android evolves, new API levels accompany newer releases, guiding developers to adapt their apps to the latest platform capabilities while maintaining support for older devices.