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This guide is for publishers who want to monetize an Android app with AdMob and aren't using Firebase. If you plan to include Firebase in your app (or you're considering it), see the AdMob with Firebase version of this guide instead.

Integrating the Google Mobile Ads SDK into an app is the first step toward displaying ads and earning revenue. Once you've integrated the SDK, you can choose an ad format (such as native or rewarded video) and follow the steps to implement it.

Prerequisites

• Use Android Studio 3.2 or higher
• minSdkVersion 16 or higher
• compileSdkVersion 28 or higher

• Recommended: Create a Google AdMob account and register an app.

Import the Mobile Ads SDK

Note: You should begin with a new project in Android Studio and check the box to Use AndroidX Artifacts or refer to Migrating to AndroidX to migrate your project.

Apps can import the Google Mobile Ads SDK with a Gradle dependency that points to Google's Maven repository. First, make sure that google() is referenced in the allprojects section of your project-level build.gradle file.

Example project-level build.gradle (excerpt)

allprojects {
    repositories {
        google()
    }
}

Next, open the app-level build.gradle file for your app, and look for a "dependencies" section.

Example app-level build.gradle (excerpt)

dependencies {
    implementation fileTree(dir: 'libs', include: ['*.jar'])
    implementation 'androidx.appcompat:appcompat:1.0.2'
    implementation 'com.google.android.gms:play-services-ads:19.7.0'
}

Add the line in bold above, which instruct Gradle to pull in the latest version of the Mobile Ads SDK and additional related dependencies. Once that's done, save the file and perform a Gradle sync.

Update your AndroidManifest.xml

Add your AdMob app ID (identified in the AdMob UI) to your app's AndroidManifest.xml file by adding a <meta-data> tag with android:name="com.google.android.gms.ads.APPLICATION_ID", as shown below.

You can find your app ID in the AdMob UI. For android:value, insert your own AdMob app ID in quotes, as shown below.

<manifest>
    <application>
        <!-- Sample AdMob app ID: ca-app-pub-3940256099942544~3347511713 -->
        <meta-data
            android:name="com.google.android.gms.ads.APPLICATION_ID"
            android:value="ca-app-pub-xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx~yyyyyyyyyy"/>
    </application>
</manifest>

Key Point: In a real app, it is important that you use your actual AdMob app ID, not the one listed above. If you're just looking to experiment with the SDK in a Hello World app, though, you can use the sample app ID shown above.

Important: This step is required as of Google Mobile Ads SDK version 17.0.0. Failure to add this <meta-data> tag results in a crash with the message: The Google Mobile Ads SDK was initialized incorrectly.

Initialize the Mobile Ads SDK

Before loading ads, have your app initialize the Mobile Ads SDK by calling MobileAds.initialize() which initializes the SDK and calls back a completion listener once initialization is complete (or after a 30-second timeout). This needs to be done only once, ideally at app launch.

Warning: Ads may be preloaded by the Mobile Ads SDK or mediation partner SDKs upon calling MobileAds.initialize(). If you need to obtain consent from users in the European Economic Area (EEA), set any request-specific flags (such as tagForChildDirectedTreatment or tag_for_under_age_of_consent), or otherwise take action before loading ads, ensure you do so before initializing the Mobile Ads SDK.

Here's an example of how to call the initialize() method in an Activity:

Example MainActivity (excerpt)

Java

package ...
import ...
import com.google.android.gms.ads.MobileAds;
import com.google.android.gms.ads.initialization.InitializationStatus;
import com.google.android.gms.ads.initialization.OnInitializationCompleteListener;

public class MainActivity extends AppCompatActivity {

    protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
        super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
        setContentView(R.layout.activity_main);

        MobileAds.initialize(this, new OnInitializationCompleteListener() {
            @Override
            public void onInitializationComplete(InitializationStatus initializationStatus) {
            }
        });
    }
}

Kotlin

package ...
import ...
import com.google.android.gms.ads.MobileAds;

class MainActivity : AppCompatActivity() {
    ...
    override fun onCreate(savedInstanceState: Bundle?) {
        super.onCreate(savedInstanceState)
        setContentView(R.layout.activity_main)

        MobileAds.initialize(this) {}
    }
    ...
}

If you're using mediation, wait until the completion handler is called before loading ads, as this will ensure that all mediation adapters are initialized.

Select an ad format

The Mobile Ads SDK is now imported and you're ready to implement an ad. AdMob offers a number of different ad formats, so you can choose the one that best fits your app's user experience.

Banner

Rectangular ads that appear at the top or bottom of the device screen. Banner ads stay on screen while users are interacting with the app, and can refresh automatically after a certain period of time. If you're new to mobile advertising, they're a great place to start.

Implement a banner

Interstitial

Full-screen ads that cover the interface of an app until closed by the user. They're best used at natural pauses in the flow of an app's execution, such as between levels of a game or just after a task is completed.

Implement an interstitial

Native

Customizable ads that match the look and feel of your app. You decide how and where they're placed, so the layout is more consistent with your app's design.

Implement Native Ads

Rewarded

Ads that reward users for watching short videos and interacting with playable ads and surveys. Good for monetizing free-to-play users.

Implement Rewarded Ads

Implement Rewarded Ads (New APIs)