android emulator start

Launches the specified virtual device. This command returns when the emulator is fully started and ready to use.

Usage

android emulator start [-h] [--cold] [--headless] <device>

Options

  • --cold - Starts the emulator without loading from a snapshot.
  • --headless - Starts the emulator without a window.
  • -h,--help - Shows the help message for the specified command.

android options:

  • --sdk=PARAM - Path to the Android SDK.
  • -v,--verbose - Enable verbose output for troubleshooting.
  • -V,--version - Print version information and exit.

Positional arguments

  • <device> - The Android Virtual Device (AVD) to start. Use android emulator list to see available devices.

Description

android emulator start boots the specified Android Virtual Device (AVD) and blocks until the device has finished booting and is ready to accept adb and CLI commands.

Configure boot options

  • --cold: Performs a cold boot from scratch instead of loading from a saved quick-boot snapshot.
  • --headless: Runs the emulator in the background without opening a graphical window—ideal for automated agent workflows.

Examples

Start the medium_phone virtual device:

android emulator start medium_phone

Cold-boot the medium_phone virtual device in headless mode:

android emulator start --cold --headless medium_phone