Bring your app to vehicles running either Android Auto or Android Automotive OS. Use one app architecture that works for both cases so every user can enjoy your app.
Android Auto
Android Auto provides a driver-optimized app experience for users who have an Android phone and the Android Auto app but don't have a vehicle that uses Android Automotive OS. If a user's car or aftermarket stereo system supports Android Auto, they can use your app directly on their car's display by connecting their phone.
You enable Android Auto to connect with your phone app by creating services that Android Auto uses to display a driver-optimized interface to the driver. You reuse these services for your Android Automotive OS app, but users do not install your phone app on their cars. Figure 1 shows an example of Android Auto running on a car.
Android Auto already has millions of users and hundreds of compatible cars and aftermarket stereo systems.
Figure 1. Android Auto—powered by a phone and running on a car.
Android Automotive OS
Android Automotive OS is an Android-based infotainment system that is built into vehicles. The car's system is a standalone Android device that is optimized for driving. With Android Automotive OS, users install your app directly onto the car instead of their phones.
For media apps, your app must include a media browser service. See Build media apps for cars for instructions. You can use the same media browser service with both Android Automotive OS and Android Auto. However, there are some activities, such as sign-in and settings, that you must design specifically for Android Automotive OS. For more information, see Adapt sign-in flow and Design settings in the Android Automotive OS app design guidelines. Figure 2 shows an example of an app running on Android Automotive OS.
Figure 2. Android Automotive OS running on a car.
Supported app categories
Android Auto and/or Android Automotive OS support the following types of apps:
- Media apps - audio
- Media apps let users browse and play music, radio, audiobooks, and other audio content in the car. You can build, test, and distribute media apps on Android Auto and Android Automotive OS. See Build media apps for cars for more information.
- Messaging apps
- Messaging apps let users receive incoming notifications, read messages aloud using text-to-speech, and send replies via voice input in the car. You can build, test, and distribute messaging apps on Android Auto. See Build messaging apps for Android Auto for more information.
- Navigation apps
- Navigation apps, including providers of driver and delivery services, help users get where they want to go by providing turn-by-turn directions. To develop these types of apps, you use the Android for Cars App Library. See Use the Android for Cars App Library and Build a navigation app for more information.
- Point of Interest (POI) apps
- POI apps let the user discover and navigate to points of interest and take relevant actions, such as parking, charging, and fuel apps. To develop these types of apps, use the Android for Cars App Library. See Use the Android for Cars App Library and Build a point of interest app for more information.
- Internet of Things (IOT) apps
- IOT apps let users take relevant actions on connected devices from within the car. Examples include controlling the state of certain devices, such as opening a garage door, flipping home light switches, or enabling home security. To develop these types of apps, you use the Android for Cars App Library. See Using the Android for Cars App Library and Build an internet of things app for more information.
- Video apps (for use while parked)
- Video apps let users view streaming videos while the car is parked. The core purpose of these apps is to display streaming videos. You can build, test, and distribute video apps on Android Automotive OS. See Build Video Apps for Android Automotive OS for more information.
- Games (for use while parked)
- Game apps let users play games while the car is parked. The core purpose of these apps is to play games. You can build, test, and distribute these apps on Android Automotive OS. See Build Games for Android Automotive OS for more information.
Additional resources
To learn more about Android for Cars, see the following additional resources.