Genuine testing only

IndieDevTest exists so indie Android developers can give each other real testing feedback before launch. Every test on this site must be a genuine test: the tester actually installs the app, keeps it installed for the full 14-day closed-testing period, uses it as a real user would, and shares honest feedback with the developer.

The following are not allowed anywhere on IndieDevTest:

• Fake, scripted, or automated installs (bots, emulators farming installs, click farms).
• Install-and-forget: joining a testing track without using the app.
• Incentivized installs — paying, crediting, or otherwise rewarding someone for installing, rating, or reviewing an app.
• Rating or review exchanges of any kind.
• Sharing or reselling testing invitations outside the site's flows to manufacture engagement.

For developers

Closed testing is your chance to find real bugs before real users find them. When you list an app here:

• Respond to tester feedback where you can, and use it to improve the app.
• Never pressure, bribe, or reward testers for positive ratings, reviews, or feedback — this breaches Google's policies and ours.
• Follow Google's closed-testing requirements in Play Console, including keeping the test running continuously for the required period.
• Accept only as many testers as you can genuinely support.

For testers

• Opt in through the developer's Google Play testing link, exactly as the invitation describes.
• Actually use the app during the 14-day period — keep it installed and exercise the features.
• Send honest, private feedback through the site: what broke, what was confusing, what you would improve.
• Only request to test apps you genuinely intend to test.

What happens if these rules are broken

Abuse of the testing system puts every developer account here at risk, so we take it seriously. Depending on the severity, we may remove listings, decline or reverse tester acceptances, hide profiles, or suspend accounts. We may also remove content that offers rewards for installs, ratings, or reviews.

An honest note about risk

IndieDevTestcannot and does not guarantee Google Play production access for anyone. Whether your app is approved is always Google's decision. Google may look at engagement patterns and other signals when evaluating an app; no tester community, including this one, can promise or engineer a specific outcome. Using any tester-recruitment community carries some risk to your developer account — weigh that before you rely on one.

What we do to encourage genuine testing

The product is built so that genuine testing is the default: testers earn the points needed to host their own tests only by completing evidence of a real test (a written improvement suggestion plus screenshots); feedback goes privately to the developer; listings can be reported and are moderated; and unaccepted tester requests expire automatically.

Google’s own guidance

These rules follow Google's official documentation. Read it yourself before you rely on closed testing:

• App testing requirements for new personal developer accounts (the 12-tester, 14-day requirement)
• Set up an open, closed, or internal test (how closed testing works in Play Console)
• Google Play Developer Program Policies (includes rules on incentivized installs and ratings)

Related pages

These rules complement the site rules on the terms page. Questions or reports of abuse? Use the contact form.