What you get
Free: 0 EUR, no card needed
Everything you need to reach 12 testers for 14 days.
- A seat in the next wave of 16 Android developers
- 15 testers for your app in a full wave
- The daily queue and the 14-day Play counter
- Written feedback from your testers, at day 3 and day 10
- The production access report: testers, days, minutes of use measured by the SDK, ratings and reviews
What you really pay with: your time
The free plan is free in money, not in effort. Every developer in a wave tests the other apps: 15 apps, at least 2 minutes each, every day for 14 days. That is about 30 minutes a day, 7 hours over the two weeks, plus installing each app once. Miss a day and your own recruiting pauses until you complete the next one.
That effort is what makes the testers real. Your 15 testers put in the same 30 minutes a day, and the SDK shows it.
Ways to get 12 testers, compared
Every option below can work. They differ in what they cost you and in what you can tell Google afterwards, since the production access form asks how you recruited testers, how engaged they were and what feedback you received (Google's page).
| Option | Money | Your effort | Proof of engagement | Feedback | Main risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Friends and family | Free | Finding 12 or more people with Android phones, then reminding them for 14 days | None, unless your app has its own analytics | Informal, if any | People install and forget; a tester who opts out before 14 days stops counting |
| Reddit and community threads | Free | Posting, trading tests one by one, tracking who opted in | Based on trust | Occasional comments | Testers leave silently and reciprocity is not checked |
| Free exchange apps | Usually free | Testing other developers' apps in return | Depends on the app: ask how use is checked | Depends on the app | Engagement may rest on declarations |
| Paid tester services | A fee per app, set by each service | Low: you share your opt-in link | Depends on the service: ask what is measured in your app | Often part of the offer: check it | You rely on testers someone else recruited and on their reporting |
| TestBuddy | Free | About 30 minutes a day for 14 days, plus one SDK line | Minutes of foreground use per tester per day, measured by the SDK in your app | Two written reviews per tester, at day 3 and day 10 | A wave needs 13 developers to start; missing days pauses your recruiting |
Whatever you choose, Google decides on production access. The guide to finding testers goes through each option in more detail.
Pricing questions
Is the free plan really free?
Yes. No card, no trial period. You pay in testing: your validated tester days earn the credits that pay for your own testers.
Can I buy credits?
No. Credits count the testing you give and receive. They have no monetary value, cannot be bought, sold or transferred, and disappear with your account. Your first wave is lent to you as a start advance, which your own tester days repay.