Google mandates 64-bit support for Wear OS apps as enforcement date looms

Starting September 2026, all new Wear OS apps and updates with native code must include 64-bit versions to remain on the Google Play Store.

Google has announced that it is extending its 64-bit app requirement, which already existed on mobile for several years, to Wear OS. The search giant said that all new apps and app updates that include native code will need to provide 64-bit versions, in addition to 32-bit versions, when publishing to Google Play. Apps that do not comply will be blocked from uploading new versions to the Play Console.

For the time being, Google says that it won’t be changing its policy on 32-bit apps, so it will continue supporting 32-bit devices, but this change does make one wonder how long that will be the case. Google notes that most Wear OS developers have already made the shift and have 64-bit-compliant apps available. If you’ve not complied yet, Google notes that the effort to comply is small.

Many of the apps developed for Wear OS are written in Kotlin and Java, which are non-native. In these cases, you don’t need to make any code changes to target 64-bit devices. However, a dependency or SDK could be introducing native code, so you need to check for this.

To assess your app, you should use the APK Analyzer in Android Studio to check whether your APK or app bundle contains native code. Developers can also look for .so files within the lib folder. For ARM devices, 32-bit libraries are located in the lib/armeabi-v7a, while the 64-bit equivalent is lib/arm64-v8a. For a complete overview of tips for developers, check out Google’s announcement.

Google says that it is announcing these changes now so that developers have a six-month window to bring their apps into compliance before enforcement begins in September 2026. For additional information, you can check out Google’s in-depth documentation on supporting 64-bit architectures.

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Posted Thursday 2 April 2026 at 5:15 pm AEST (my time).

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