How to Implement In-App Purchases in Android?

Last Updated : 26 Nov, 2021

In this article, we'll look at how to use the billing library to make in-app purchases on Android smartphones. We'll create an app as part of the process to help us learn how In-App purchases work. So, without further ado, let's get started. We'll start by creating an app with an Empty Activity as the first activity, naming it MainActivity, and naming the XML file activity main.xml.

Step by Step Implementation

Step #1

In your app's build.gradle file, add the following line to the dependencies section:

dependencies {
    ...
    implementation 'com.android.billingclient:billing:2.0.1'
}

Step #2

You must also provide the billing permission in the Android manifest:

<uses-permission android:name="com.android.vending.BILLING" />

And now that we've finished setting up the permissions and dependencies, we must begin the implementation process by establishing a connection with Google Play.

Step #3

Two variables will be created in MainActivity.

Kotlin

class MainActivity : AppCompatActivity() {
    private lateinit var myBilled: BillingClient
    private val courseList = listOf("geeks_for_geeks_android_course", "geeks_for_geeks_dsa_course")

The first variable we've generated is of type BillingClient, which offers the main interface for communication between the library and user application code, and we've also established a list of courseList that defines the list of product IDs we need to buy.

Step #4

We'll now set up the billing client using the onCreate() method.

Kotlin

class MainActivity : AppCompatActivity(), PurchasesUpdatedListener {
    override fun onCreate(savedInstanceState: Bundle?) {
        ..........
        doMyBiller()
    }

    private fun doMyBiller() {
        myBiller = MyBiller.newBuilder(this)
            .enablePendingPurchases()
            .setListener(this)
            .build()
        myBiller.startConnection(object : MyBillerStateListener {
            override fun onBillingSetupFinished(billingResult: BillingResult) {
                if (billingResult.responseCode == MyBiller.BillingResponseCode.OK) {
                    // The MyBiller is setup successfully                 
                }
            }
            
            override fun onBillingServiceDisconnected() {
              // Do something, like restarting the billing service
               
            }
        })
    
}

Step #5

At this point, Let's get our purchase product set up in our game console. To begin, log in to your game console and select CREATE APPLICATION from the menu. Set up your app like you would any other app, including providing information such as the App name, App description, and so on.

Image #1: Creating a new app in the play developer console

Gather all necessary information, such as store listings and ratings, and proceed to the point where you only need to submit the APK or AAB file. After you've completed the aforementioned procedures, we'll need to develop PRODUCTS that we can buy. To accomplish this, when we've finished filling out the above information, we'll need to scroll down to activate it and enter the product's pricing.

Press Save!

Step #6

When you are done with the amount and payments, the next step is to load the products, do this by:

Kotlin

private fun loadBillers() = if (myBiller.isReady) {
    val params = Billers
        .newBuilder()
        .setSkusList(skuList)
        .setType(MyBiller.SkuType.INAPP)
        .build()
    myBiller.queryLoadBillersAsync(params) { billingResult, loadBillersList ->
        // Process the result.
        if (billingResult.responseCode == MyBiller.BillingResponseCode.OK && loadBillersList.isNotEmpty()) {
            for (loadBillers in loadBillersList) {
                // this will return both the billers
                  // from Google Play Console
            }
        }
    }

} else {
    println("Something Wrong")
}

Step #7

To complete the purchase, we'll use the click listener. We'll add a success callback for SKU fetching in step 06's success callback.

Kotlin

if (myBiller.responseCode == BillingClient.BillingResponseCode.OK && myBiller.isNotEmpty()) {
    for (myBillers in myBillers) {
        if (myBiller.sku == "gfg_product_one")
            buyCourseBtn.setOnClickListener {
                val billingFlowParams = BillingFlowParams
                    .newBuilder()
                    .setSkuDetails(skuDetails)
                    .build()
                myBiller.launchBillingFlow(this, billingFlowParams)
            }
    }
}

When the myBiller clicks, BillingFlowParams commences the buy flow with the precise SKU data, and the billingClient launches the billing flow to begin the purchase of the specified SKU.

Step #8

Now we create a mutable list, to get the list of all the purchasable items on the app, and then perform the in-app purchases

Kotlin

override fun onPurchasesUpdated(
    myBiller: MyBiller?,
    purchases: MutableList<Purchase>?
) {
    if (myBiller?.replyCode == BillingClient.BillingReplyCode.OK && purchases != null) {
        for (purchase in purchases) {
            acknowledgePurchase(purchase.purchaseToken)

        }
    } else if (myBiller?.replyCode == BillingClient.BillingReplyCode.USER_CANCELED) {
        // User cancelled purchase
    } else {
        // Some other error handling
    }
}
private fun acknowledgePurchase(purchaseToken: String) {
    val params = AcknowledgePurchaseParams.newBuilder()
        .setPurchaseToken(purchaseToken)
        .build()
    billingClient.acknowledgePurchase(params) { myBiller ->
        val replyCode = myBiller.replyCode
        val debugMessage = myBiller.debugMessage
    }
}

We've completed our task. Simply create a Signed APK and publish it to the Play Store, then wait for it to be accepted. After that, all we have to do is set up the card and buy it. That's it for this article, hope you get the exact idea on how to implement in-app purchases in your app and start earning!