How to Use Google Play Install Referrer API in Android using Jetpack Compose?

Google Play Install Referrer is the API that is used in most of the applications but it is not seen in the application. This functionality works under the hood and is used to check the sources from where the app is getting most of the downloads. Google Play Install Referrer API tells us that from where the application has to go and install the sources. This will help us in improving the presence of our apps on different platforms. In this article, we will take a look at How to Use Google Play Install Referrer API in Android using Jetpack Compose.

Note: If you are seeking Java code for Jetpack Compose, please note that Jetpack Compose is only available in Kotlin. It uses features such as coroutines, and the handling of @Composable annotations is handled by a Kotlin compiler. There is no method for Java to access these. Therefore, you cannot use Jetpack Compose if your project does not support Kotlin.

Step by Step Implementation

Step 1: Create a New Project in Android Studio

To create a new project in Android Studio please refer to How to Create/Start a New Project in Android Studio. While choosing the template, select Empty Compose Activity. If you do not find this template, try upgrading the Android Studio to the latest version. We demonstrated the application in Kotlin, so make sure you select Kotlin as the primary language while creating a New Project.

Step 2: Adding a new color in the Color.kt file

Navigate to app > java > your app’s package name > ui.theme > Color.kt file and add the below code to it. 

Kotlin

import androidx.compose.ui.graphics.Color

val Purple200 = Color(0xFF0F9D58)
val Purple500 = Color(0xFF0F9D58)
val Purple700 = Color(0xFF3700B3)
val Teal200 = Color(0xFF03DAC5)

// in the below line, we are adding different colors.
val greenColor = Color(0xFF0F9D58)

Step 3 : Adding Dependency for using Google Play Install Referrer API. 

Navigate to Gradle Scripts > build.gradle and add below dependency to it in dependencies section. 

    implementation "com.android.installreferrer:installreferrer:2.2"

After adding this dependency simply sync your project to install it. 

Step 4: Working with the MainActivity.kt file

Go to the MainActivity.kt file and refer to the following code. Below is the code for the MainActivity.kt file. Comments are added inside the code to understand the code in more detail.

Kotlin

import android.content.Context
import android.os.Bundle
import android.os.RemoteException
import android.widget.Toast
import androidx.activity.ComponentActivity
import androidx.activity.compose.setContent
import androidx.compose.foundation.layout.*
import androidx.compose.material.*
import androidx.compose.runtime.*
import androidx.compose.ui.Alignment
import androidx.compose.ui.Modifier
import androidx.compose.ui.graphics.*
import androidx.compose.ui.platform.LocalContext
import androidx.compose.ui.text.font.FontWeight
import androidx.compose.ui.text.style.TextAlign
import androidx.compose.ui.unit.*
import com.android.installreferrer.api.InstallReferrerClient
import com.android.installreferrer.api.InstallReferrerStateListener
import com.android.installreferrer.api.ReferrerDetails
import com.example.newcanaryproject.ui.theme.*


class MainActivity : ComponentActivity() {

    override fun onCreate(savedInstanceState: Bundle?) {
        super.onCreate(savedInstanceState)
        setContent {
            NewCanaryProjectTheme {
                // in the below line, we are specifying background color for our application
                Surface(
                    // in the below line, we are specifying modifier and color for our app
                    modifier = Modifier.fillMaxSize(), color = MaterialTheme.colors.background
                ) {

                    // in the below line, we are specifying theme as scaffold.
                    Scaffold(

                        // in scaffold we are specifying top bar.
                        topBar = {

                            // inside top bar we are specifying background color.
                            TopAppBar(backgroundColor = greenColor,

                                // along with that we are specifying title for our top bar.
                                title = {

                                    // in the top bar we are specifying tile as a text
                                    Text(

                                        // in the below line, we are specifying text to display in top app bar.
                                        text = "Google Play Install Referrer",

                                        // in the below line, we are specifying modifier to fill max width.
                                        modifier = Modifier.fillMaxWidth(),

                                        // in the below line, we are specifying text alignment.
                                        textAlign = TextAlign.Center,

                                        // in the below line, we are specifying color for our text.
                                        color = Color.White
                                    )
                                })
                        }) {
                        // in the below line, we are calling pop window dialog method to display ui.
                        GooglePlayInstallReferrer(LocalContext.current)
                    }
                }
            }
        }
    }
}

@Composable
fun GooglePlayInstallReferrer(ctx: Context) {
    // in the below line, we are creating a variable for referrer
    val referrer = remember {
        mutableStateOf("")
    }

    // in the below line, we are building our install referrer client and building it.
    var referrerClient: InstallReferrerClient = InstallReferrerClient.newBuilder(ctx).build();

    // in the below line, we are starting its connection.
    referrerClient.startConnection(object : InstallReferrerStateListener {
        override fun onInstallReferrerSetupFinished(responseCode: Int) {
            // this method is called when install referrer setup is finished.
            when (responseCode) {
                InstallReferrerClient.InstallReferrerResponse.OK -> {
                    // this case is called when the status is OK and
                    var response: ReferrerDetails? = null
                    try {
                        // in the below line, we are getting referrer details
                        // by calling get install referrer.
                        response = referrerClient.installReferrer

                        // in the below line, we are getting referrer url.
                        val referrerUrl = response.installReferrer

                        // in the below line, we are getting referrer click time.
                        val referrerClickTime = response.referrerClickTimestampSeconds

                        // in the below line, we are getting app install time
                        val appInstallTime = response.installBeginTimestampSeconds

                        // in the below line, we are getting our time when
                        // user has used our apps instant experience.
                        val instantExperienceLaunched = response.googlePlayInstantParam

                        // in the below line, we are getting our
                        // apps install referrer.
                        var refrer = response.installReferrer

                        // in the below line, we are setting all detail to our text view.
                        referrer.value =
                            "Referrer is : \n$referrerUrl\nReferrer Click Time is : $referrerClickTime\nApp Install Time : $appInstallTime"
                    } catch (e: RemoteException) {
                        // handling error case.
                        e.printStackTrace()
                    }
                }
                InstallReferrerClient.InstallReferrerResponse.FEATURE_NOT_SUPPORTED ->
                    // API not available on the current Play Store app.
                    Toast.makeText(
                        ctx,
                        "Feature not supported..",
                        Toast.LENGTH_SHORT
                    ).show()
                InstallReferrerClient.InstallReferrerResponse.SERVICE_UNAVAILABLE ->
                    // Connection couldn't be established.
                    Toast.makeText(
                        ctx,
                        "Fail to establish connection",
                        Toast.LENGTH_SHORT
                    ).show()
            }
        }

        override fun onInstallReferrerServiceDisconnected() {
            // Try to restart the connection on the next request to
            // Google Play by calling the startConnection() method.
            Toast.makeText(ctx, "Service disconnected..", Toast.LENGTH_SHORT)
                .show()
        }
    })


    // in the below line, we are creating a column.
    Column(
        // in this column we are specifying
        // modifier to add padding and fill
        // max size
        modifier = Modifier
            .fillMaxSize()
            .padding(horizontal = 20.dp),

        // in the below line, line we are adding horizontal alignment
        // and vertical arrangement
        horizontalAlignment = Alignment.CenterHorizontally,
        verticalArrangement = Arrangement.Center
    ) {

        // in the below line, line we are creating a text view.
        Text(
            text = "Google Play Install Referrer",
            color = greenColor,
            fontSize = 20.sp,
            fontWeight = FontWeight.Bold
        )

        // in the below line, we are adding a spacer.
        Spacer(modifier = Modifier.height(20.dp))

        // in the below line, we are creating a simple text
        Text(
            text = referrer.value,
            color = Color.Black,
            fontSize = 18.sp,
            textAlign = TextAlign.Center
        )
    }
}

Now run your application to see the output of it.