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Android 16 release window: It’s coming sooner that you think
Android 15 is barely out of the gate, but already there are plenty of details surrounding Android 16. But given Google’s slightly tweaked launch schedule for the Pixel 9 series and Android 15, when will the next next major OS release debut? Here’s what we know about the Android 16 release window.
When is the stable version of Android 16 expected?
With Android 15 fresh out of the oven, it’s going to take time for Google to cook up Android 16, but not as long as many expected. Going by previous timelines, Android 16 would’ve arrived in Q3 2025. However, the company has now confirmed that it’s coming earlier than usual.
Put more simply, Android 16 is now set to arrive in Q2 2025, not Q3, as has been the case for the past three major version launches. This would put the Android 16 release date between April and June 2025.
Android 15 is barely out, but its successor is arriving much earlier than expected.
Notably, we first identified this possibility in October 2024 by spotting a line within AOSP‘s Compatibility Definition Document, which referred to the next version of Android as “25Q2.” This document outlines the minimum requirements for Android smartphones to be eligible for the latest version of the OS.
Interestingly, the last version of Android that arrived earlier than August was Android 4.1 Jelly Bean in 2012. So yes, Android has previously arrived before August, but not within the last 12 years.
Are you excited for an early Android 16 release?
Why is Android 16 launching early?
There are several practical reasons for Google suddenly accelerating Android 16’s launch.
For one, it allows the company to better sync the OS’s launch with its own smartphone hardware launch. Thanks to its earlier debut, the Pixel 9 launched with Android 14 and only received Android 15 a few months after its release. This made it a less attractive prospect than previous releases. However, there’s now a good chance the Pixel 10 series will land with Android 16.
It allows the company to better sync Android 16's launch with the Pixel 10 series launch.
This isn’t just a pro for Google, either. A Q2 2025 arrival brings the new version of Android closer to OEMs that launch their devices earlier in the year.
As outlined by Google’s 2025 development timeline above, the company has a more defined quarterly release cycle in the pipeline, with a major release (Android 16 release window) in Q2, bookended by feature releases in Q1 and Q3. A minor SDK release, with APIs and features that’ll inform the following version of Android, arrives in Q4. This should quicken the OS’s development cycle while providing the same predictability for OEMs.
When will developer previews become available?
Android developer previews usually debut seven to eight months before the stable, public version arrives. Given that Android 16 is coming much earlier than initially expected, it would make sense that the developer preview arrives earlier, too. The first Android 16 developer preview could arrive as early as November or December 2024.
The first developer preview could arrive before the end of the year.
Android 15’s first developer preview landed in February 2024, with the source code drop arriving in September and the stable OS version coming a month later in October. Android 14 largely followed suit, while Android 13 was dished out in August following its first developer preview’s arrival in February 2022. Notably, both these versions of AOSP arrived in the same month as the commercial versions’ launch.
The company usually issues a clear development timeline before it rolls out any OS versions. We’re still pretty early in Android 16’s development cycle, so stay tuned for that a little later.
Which phones will receive Android 16 first?
With Google separating its Pixel smartphone launch from its Android version launch this year, it’s no longer a sure thing that its phones will receive the latest version of Android first. While Google did announce Android 15’s availability for the Pixel series, some vivo devices received the update a full month prior. This is thanks to AOSP dropping a month earlier, allowing companies to craft their iterations early.
However, considering that Android 16 is now arriving a quarter earlier, we expect the Pixel 10 to debut with the new OS. This allows more manufacturers to launch with or offer the Android 16 update sooner than ever before.
Nevertheless, once the developer preview is released, Google Pixel devices will be among the first to support it. It’s unclear which Android OEMs will offer beta programs.