Android apps can send or receive broadcast messages from the Android system and other Android apps, similar to the publish-subscribe design pattern. These broadcasts are sent when an event of interest occurs. For example, the Android system sends broadcasts when various system events occur, such as when the system boots up or the device starts charging. Apps can also send custom broadcasts, for example, to notify other apps of something that they might be interested in (for example, some new data has been downloaded).
The system optimizes the delivery of broadcasts in order to maintain optimal system health. Therefore, delivery times of broadcasts are not guaranteed. Apps that need low-latency interprocess communication should consider bound services.
Apps can register to receive specific broadcasts. When a broadcast is sent, the system automatically routes broadcasts to apps that have subscribed to receive that particular type of broadcast.
Generally speaking, broadcasts can be used as a messaging system across apps and outside of the normal user flow. However, you must be careful not to abuse the opportunity to respond to broadcasts and run jobs in the background that can contribute to a slow system performance.
About system broadcasts
The system automatically sends broadcasts when various system events occur, such as when the system switches in and out of airplane mode. System broadcasts are sent to all apps that are subscribed to receive the event.
The broadcast message itself is wrapped in an Intent
object whose action string identifies the event that occurred (for example
android.intent.action.AIRPLANE_MODE
). The intent may also include
additional information bundled into its extra field. For example, the airplane
mode intent includes a boolean extra that indicates whether or not Airplane
Mode is on.
For more information about how to read intents and get the action string from an intent, see Intents and Intent Filters.
For a complete list of system broadcast actions, see the
BROADCAST_ACTIONS.TXT
file in the Android SDK. Each broadcast action has a
constant field associated with it. For example, the value of the constant
ACTION_AIRPLANE_MODE_CHANGED
is
android.intent.action.AIRPLANE_MODE
. Documentation for each broadcast action
is available in its associated constant field.
Changes to system broadcasts
As the Android platform evolves, it periodically changes how system broadcasts behave. Keep the following changes in mind to support all versions of Android.
Android 14
While apps are in a cached
state, broadcast delivery is
optimized for system health. For example, less important system broadcasts such
as ACTION_SCREEN_ON
are
deferred while the app is in a cached state. Once the app goes from the cached
state into an active process
lifecycle, the system delivers
any deferred broadcasts.
Important broadcasts that are declared in the manifest temporarily remove apps from the cached state for delivery.
Android 9
Beginning with Android 9 (API level 28), The
NETWORK_STATE_CHANGED_ACTION
broadcast doesn't receive information about the user's location or personally
identifiable data.
In addition, if your app is installed on a device running Android 9 or higher,
system broadcasts from Wi-Fi don't contain SSIDs, BSSIDs, connection
information, or scan results. To get this information, call
getConnectionInfo()
instead.
Android 8.0
Beginning with Android 8.0 (API level 26), the system imposes additional restrictions on manifest-declared receivers.
If your app targets Android 8.0 or higher, you cannot use the manifest to declare a receiver for most implicit broadcasts (broadcasts that don't target your app specifically). You can still use a context-registered receiver when the user is actively using your app.
Android 7.0
Android 7.0 (API level 24) and higher don't send the following system broadcasts:
Also, apps targeting Android 7.0 and higher must register the CONNECTIVITY_ACTION
broadcast
using registerReceiver(BroadcastReceiver, IntentFilter)
.
Declaring a receiver in the manifest doesn't work.
Receiving broadcasts
Apps can receive broadcasts in two ways: through manifest-declared receivers and context-registered receivers.
Manifest-declared receivers
If you declare a broadcast receiver in your manifest, the system launches your app (if the app is not already running) when the broadcast is sent.
To declare a broadcast receiver in the manifest, perform the following steps:
Specify the
<receiver>
element in your app's manifest.<!-- If this receiver listens for broadcasts sent from the system or from other apps, even other apps that you own, set android:exported to "true". --> <receiver android:name=".MyBroadcastReceiver" android:exported="false"> <intent-filter> <action android:name="APP_SPECIFIC_BROADCAST" /> </intent-filter> </receiver>
The intent filters specify the broadcast actions your receiver subscribes to.
Subclass
BroadcastReceiver
and implementonReceive(Context, Intent)
. The broadcast receiver in the following example logs and displays the contents of the broadcast:Kotlin
private const val TAG = "MyBroadcastReceiver" class MyBroadcastReceiver : BroadcastReceiver() { override fun onReceive(context: Context, intent: Intent) { StringBuilder().apply { append("Action: ${intent.action}\n") append("URI: ${intent.toUri(Intent.URI_INTENT_SCHEME)}\n") toString().also { log -> Log.d(TAG, log) val binding = ActivityNameBinding.inflate(layoutInflater) val view = binding.root setContentView(view) Snackbar.make(view, log, Snackbar.LENGTH_LONG).show() } } } }
Java
public class MyBroadcastReceiver extends BroadcastReceiver { private static final String TAG = "MyBroadcastReceiver"; @Override public void onReceive(Context context, Intent intent) { StringBuilder sb = new StringBuilder(); sb.append("Action: " + intent.getAction() + "\n"); sb.append("URI: " + intent.toUri(Intent.URI_INTENT_SCHEME).toString() + "\n"); String log = sb.toString(); Log.d(TAG, log); ActivityNameBinding binding = ActivityNameBinding.inflate(layoutInflater); val view = binding.root; setContentView(view); Snackbar.make(view, log, Snackbar.LENGTH_LONG).show(); } }
To enable view binding, configure viewBinding in your module-level build.gradle file.
The system package manager registers the receiver when the app is installed. The receiver then becomes a separate entry point into your app which means that the system can start the app and deliver the broadcast if the app is not currently running.
The system creates a new BroadcastReceiver
component
object to handle each broadcast that it receives. This object is valid only
for the duration of the call to onReceive(Context, Intent)
. Once your code
returns from this method, the system considers the component no longer
active.
Context-registered receivers
Context-registered receivers receive broadcasts as long as their registering
context is valid. For an example, if you register within an
Activity
context, you receive broadcasts as long as the activity is not destroyed. If you
register with the Application context, you receive broadcasts as long as the app
is running.
To register a receiver with a context, perform the following steps:
In your app's module-level build file, include version 1.9.0 or higher of the AndroidX Core library:
Groovy
dependencies { def core_version = "1.13.1" // Java language implementation implementation "androidx.core:core:$core_version" // Kotlin implementation "androidx.core:core-ktx:$core_version" // To use RoleManagerCompat implementation "androidx.core:core-role:1.0.0" // To use the Animator APIs implementation "androidx.core:core-animation:1.0.0" // To test the Animator APIs androidTestImplementation "androidx.core:core-animation-testing:1.0.0" // Optional - To enable APIs that query the performance characteristics of GMS devices. implementation "androidx.core:core-performance:1.0.0" // Optional - to use ShortcutManagerCompat to donate shortcuts to be used by Google implementation "androidx.core:core-google-shortcuts:1.1.0" // Optional - to support backwards compatibility of RemoteViews implementation "androidx.core:core-remoteviews:1.1.0" // Optional - APIs for SplashScreen, including compatibility helpers on devices prior Android 12 implementation "androidx.core:core-splashscreen:1.2.0-alpha02" }
Kotlin
dependencies { val core_version = "1.13.1" // Java language implementation implementation("androidx.core:core:$core_version") // Kotlin implementation("androidx.core:core-ktx:$core_version") // To use RoleManagerCompat implementation("androidx.core:core-role:1.0.0") // To use the Animator APIs implementation("androidx.core:core-animation:1.0.0") // To test the Animator APIs androidTestImplementation("androidx.core:core-animation-testing:1.0.0") // Optional - To enable APIs that query the performance characteristics of GMS devices. implementation("androidx.core:core-performance:1.0.0") // Optional - to use ShortcutManagerCompat to donate shortcuts to be used by Google implementation("androidx.core:core-google-shortcuts:1.1.0") // Optional - to support backwards compatibility of RemoteViews implementation("androidx.core:core-remoteviews:1.1.0") // Optional - APIs for SplashScreen, including compatibility helpers on devices prior Android 12 implementation("androidx.core:core-splashscreen:1.2.0-alpha02") }
Create an instance of
BroadcastReceiver
:Kotlin
val br: BroadcastReceiver = MyBroadcastReceiver()
Java
BroadcastReceiver br = new MyBroadcastReceiver();
Create an instance of
IntentFilter
:Kotlin
val filter = IntentFilter(APP_SPECIFIC_BROADCAST)
Java
IntentFilter filter = new IntentFilter(APP_SPECIFIC_BROADCAST);
Choose whether the broadcast receiver should be exported and visible to other apps on the device. If this receiver is listening for broadcasts sent from the system or from other apps—even other apps that you own—use the
RECEIVER_EXPORTED
flag. If instead this receiver is listening only for broadcasts sent by your app, use theRECEIVER_NOT_EXPORTED
flag.Kotlin
val listenToBroadcastsFromOtherApps = false val receiverFlags = if (listenToBroadcastsFromOtherApps) { ContextCompat.RECEIVER_EXPORTED } else { ContextCompat.RECEIVER_NOT_EXPORTED }
Java
boolean listenToBroadcastsFromOtherApps = false; if (listenToBroadcastsFromOtherApps) { receiverFlags = ContextCompat.RECEIVER_EXPORTED; } else { receiverFlags = ContextCompat.RECEIVER_NOT_EXPORTED; }
Register the receiver by calling
registerReceiver()
:Kotlin
ContextCompat.registerReceiver(context, br, filter, receiverFlags)
Java
ContextCompat.registerReceiver(context, br, filter, receiverFlags);
To stop receiving broadcasts, call
unregisterReceiver(android.content.BroadcastReceiver)
. Be sure to unregister the receiver when you no longer need it or the context is no longer valid.Be mindful of where you register and unregister the receiver, for example, if you register a receiver in
onCreate(Bundle)
using the activity's context, you should unregister it inonDestroy()
to prevent leaking the receiver out of the activity context. If you register a receiver inonResume()
, you should unregister it inonPause()
to prevent registering it multiple times (If you don't want to receive broadcasts when paused, and this can cut down on unnecessary system overhead). Do not unregister inonSaveInstanceState(Bundle)
, because this isn't called if the user moves back in the history stack.
Effects on process state
Whether your BroadcastReceiver
is operating or not affects its contained process, which can alter its
system-killing likelihood. A foreground process executes a receiver's onReceive()
method. The
system runs the process except under extreme memory pressure.
The BroadcastReceiver is deactivated after onReceive()
. The receiver's host
process is only as significant as its app components. If that process hosts only
a manifest-declared receiver (a frequent occurrence for apps the user has never
or not recently interacted with), the system may kill it after onReceive()
to make
resources available for other more critical processes.
Thus, broadcast receivers should not initiate long-running background threads.
The system can stop the process at any moment after onReceive()
to reclaim
memory, terminating the created thread. To keep the process alive, schedule a
JobService
from the receiver using the JobScheduler
so the system knows the process is still working.
Background Work Overview provides more details.
Sending broadcasts
Android provides three ways for apps to send broadcast:
- The
sendOrderedBroadcast(Intent, String)
method sends broadcasts to one receiver at a time. As each receiver executes in turn, it can propagate a result to the next receiver, or it can completely abort the broadcast so that it won't be passed to other receivers. The order receivers run in can be controlled with the android:priority attribute of the matching intent-filter; receivers with the same priority will be run in an arbitrary order. - The
sendBroadcast(Intent)
method sends broadcasts to all receivers in an undefined order. This is called a Normal Broadcast. This is more efficient, but means that receivers cannot read results from other receivers, propagate data received from the broadcast, or abort the broadcast.
The following code snippet demonstrates how to send a broadcast by creating an
Intent and calling sendBroadcast(Intent)
.
Kotlin
Intent().also { intent -> intent.setAction("com.example.broadcast.MY_NOTIFICATION") intent.putExtra("data", "Nothing to see here, move along.") sendBroadcast(intent) }
Java
Intent intent = new Intent(); intent.setAction("com.example.broadcast.MY_NOTIFICATION"); intent.putExtra("data", "Nothing to see here, move along."); sendBroadcast(intent);
The broadcast message is wrapped in an Intent
object.
The intent's action string must provide the app's Java package name syntax and
uniquely identify the broadcast event. You can attach additional information
to the intent with putExtra(String, Bundle)
.
You can also limit a broadcast to a set of apps in the same organization by
calling setPackage(String)
on the intent.
Restricting broadcasts with permissions
Permissions allow you to restrict broadcasts to the set of apps that hold certain permissions. You can enforce restrictions on either the sender or receiver of a broadcast.
Sending with permissions
When you call sendBroadcast(Intent, String)
or
sendOrderedBroadcast(Intent, String, BroadcastReceiver, Handler, int, String, Bundle)
, you can specify a
permission parameter. Only receivers who have requested that permission with
the
Kotlin
sendBroadcast(Intent(BluetoothDevice.ACTION_FOUND), Manifest.permission.BLUETOOTH_CONNECT)
Java
sendBroadcast(new Intent(BluetoothDevice.ACTION_FOUND), Manifest.permission.BLUETOOTH_CONNECT)
To receive the broadcast, the receiving app must request the permission as shown below:
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.BLUETOOTH_CONNECT"/>
You can specify either an existing system permission like
BLUETOOTH_CONNECT
or define a custom permission with the
<permission>
element. For
information on permissions and security in general, see the System
Permissions.
Receiving with permissions
If you specify a permission parameter when registering a broadcast receiver
(either with registerReceiver(BroadcastReceiver, IntentFilter, String, Handler)
or in
<receiver>
tag in your
manifest), then only broadcasters who have requested the permission with the
<uses-permission>
tag
in their manifest (and subsequently been granted the permission if it is
dangerous) can send an Intent to the receiver.
For example, assume your receiving app has a manifest-declared receiver as shown below:
<receiver android:name=".MyBroadcastReceiver"
android:permission="android.permission.BLUETOOTH_CONNECT">
<intent-filter>
<action android:name="android.intent.action.ACTION_FOUND"/>
</intent-filter>
</receiver>
Or your receiving app has a context-registered receiver as shown below:
Kotlin
var filter = IntentFilter(Intent.ACTION_FOUND) registerReceiver(receiver, filter, Manifest.permission.BLUETOOTH_CONNECT, null )
Java
IntentFilter filter = new IntentFilter(Intent.ACTION_FOUND); registerReceiver(receiver, filter, Manifest.permission.BLUETOOTH_CONNECT, null );
Then, to be able to send broadcasts to those receivers, the sending app must request the permission as shown below:
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.BLUETOOTH_CONNECT"/>
Security considerations and best practices
Here are some security considerations and best practices for sending and receiving broadcasts:
If many apps have registered to receive the same broadcast in their manifest, it can cause the system to launch a lot of apps, causing a substantial impact on both device performance and user experience. To avoid this, prefer using context registration over manifest declaration. Sometimes, the Android system itself enforces the use of context-registered receivers. For example, the
CONNECTIVITY_ACTION
broadcast is delivered only to context-registered receivers.Do not broadcast sensitive information using an implicit intent. The information can be read by any app that registers to receive the broadcast. There are three ways to control who can receive your broadcasts:
- You can specify a permission when sending a broadcast.
- In Android 4.0 and higher, you can specify a
package with
setPackage(String)
when sending a broadcast. The system restricts the broadcast to the set of apps that match the package.
When you register a receiver, any app can send potentially malicious broadcasts to your app's receiver. There are several ways to limit the broadcasts that your app receives:
- You can specify a permission when registering a broadcast receiver.
- For manifest-declared receivers, you can set the android:exported attribute to "false" in the manifest. The receiver does not receive broadcasts from sources outside of the app.
The namespace for broadcast actions is global. Make sure that action names and other strings are written in a namespace you own, or else you may inadvertently conflict with other apps.
Because a receiver's
onReceive(Context, Intent)
method runs on the main thread, it should execute and return quickly. If you need to perform long running work, be careful about spawning threads or starting background services because the system can kill the entire process afteronReceive()
returns. For more information, see Effect on process state To perform long running work, we recommend:- Calling
goAsync()
in your receiver'sonReceive()
method and passing theBroadcastReceiver.PendingResult
to a background thread. This keeps the broadcast active after returning fromonReceive()
. However, even with this approach the system expects you to finish with the broadcast very quickly (under 10 seconds). It does allow you to move work to another thread to avoid glitching the main thread. - Scheduling a job with the
JobScheduler
. For more information, see Intelligent Job Scheduling.
- Calling
Do not start activities from broadcast receivers because the user experience is jarring; especially if there is more than one receiver. Instead, consider displaying a notification.