Modernizing Android Build Scripts: Moving from "android { ... }" to "configure { ... }"

In the world of Android development, Kotlin DSL has become the standard for writing build scripts.

While the familiar android { ... } block works perfectly for simple projects, as your project grows and you start sharing build logic across multiple modules (e.g., using Convention Plugins), you might find it a bit limiting.

Today, we’ll look at why and how to switch to the more explicit and scalable configure<ApplicationExtension> syntax.

🧑🏻‍💻 1. Why Make the Switch?

The standard android { ... } block in build.gradle.kts is actually a "shorthand" provided by the Android Gradle Plugin (AGP). While convenient, using configure<T> offers several advantages:

Better Type Safety: By explicitly telling Gradle that "this block is an ApplicationExtension," the IDE (Android Studio) can provide more accurate code completion and error highlighting.
Scalable Build Logic: If you are moving common logic into buildSrc or external plugins to keep your Gradle files DRY (Don't Repeat Yourself), using the explicit extension type becomes essential for writing clean, reusable functions.

🧑🏻‍💻 2. The Transformation: Before vs. After

Let’s compare the standard approach with the explicit configuration style for an App module.

Before: The Standard android Block


// app/build.gradle.kts
android {
    compileSdk = 35
    defaultConfig {
        applicationId = "com.example.myapp"
        minSdk = 26
        targetSdk = 35
    }
}

After: Using configure<ApplicationExtension>
Note that you will need to import the ApplicationExtension class explicitly.


// app/build.gradle.kts
import com.android.build.api.dsl.ApplicationExtension

configure<ApplicationExtension> {
    compileSdk = 35
    defaultConfig {
        applicationId = "com.example.myapp"
        minSdk = 26
        targetSdk = 35
        // ...
    }
}

🧑🏻‍💻 3. Choosing the Right Extension Type

Not every module is an "Application."

You should choose the extension type that matches your module's purpose:

[!TIP]
Use CommonExtension when writing shared logic that applies to both your App and Library modules (like Java versioning or Compose options).

🧑🏻‍💻 4. Practical Implementation: Reusable Build Logic

The true power of this syntax shines when you extract common configurations into a function, such as in buildSrc.


// Example of a shared configuration function in buildSrc
import com.android.build.api.dsl.ApplicationExtension
import org.gradle.api.Project

fun Project.configureAndroidApplication() {
    extensions.configure<ApplicationExtension> {
        compileSdk = 35
        defaultConfig {
            minSdk = 26
            // ...other shared settings
        }
    }
}

By defining your build logic this way, your module-level Gradle files stay thin and highly maintainable.

🧑🏻‍💻 Conclusion

The traditional android { ... } block is great for its brevity. However, once your project reaches a certain scale and you start treating your build configuration as "real code," switching to configure is the way to go.

It brings better IDE support, type safety, and makes your build logic much easier to share across modules.