What is RuStore and Google Play

Where it helps a business

• An app for a wide audience should be findable in a store by search.
• Users are not willing to install an app from a file and allow installs from unknown sources.
• An internal app for staff has to be distributed quickly and without review.

Paths

• RuStore: the Russian app store.
• Google Play: the global store with developer verification.
• An APK by link: no store; the file is shared as a link or from a bot, and the app then updates itself.

How we use it

We handle publishing to RuStore and Google Play end to end: signing, builds, the store page, screenshots and descriptions, review responses, and one-button CI builds. Our own apps, OshaVPN and OshaPlay, are currently distributed outside the stores: the first install from an APK link, then self-updates with a signed release list. More under Android and Windows apps.

Common problems

• Review. A store can delay or reject a release, and answering review is a job of its own.
• Installing from a file scares people. Without a store the user has to allow the install and grant permissions; an "Almost ready" screen with step-by-step permissions, as in OshaVPN, helps.

When you do not need it

Internal and corporate apps usually need no store: an APK link from a bot with self-updates is simpler and faster.