Metadata Sync for Google Play

Use this skill when you need to update or sync Play Store metadata and localizations.

Fastlane Directory Structure

fastlane/metadata/android/
├── en-US/
│   ├── title.txt
│   ├── short_description.txt
│   ├── full_description.txt
│   ├── video.txt
│   └── images/
│       ├── phoneScreenshots/
│       │   ├── 1.png
│       │   └── 2.png
│       ├── sevenInchScreenshots/
│       ├── tenInchScreenshots/
│       ├── tvScreenshots/
│       ├── wearScreenshots/
│       ├── icon.png
│       └── featureGraphic.png
├── es-ES/
│   ├── title.txt
│   └── ...
└── fr-FR/
    └── ...

Export Metadata from Play Store

# Export all listings to Fastlane format
gplay sync export-listings \
  --package com.example.app \
  --dir ./fastlane/metadata/android

# Export images
gplay sync export-images \
  --package com.example.app \
  --dir ./fastlane/metadata/android

Import Metadata to Play Store

# Validate before importing (offline check)
gplay validate listing \
  --dir ./fastlane/metadata/android \
  --locale en-US

# Import all listings
gplay sync import-listings \
  --package com.example.app \
  --dir ./fastlane/metadata/android

# Import images
gplay sync import-images \
  --package com.example.app \
  --dir ./fastlane/metadata/android

Compare Local vs Remote

# See what would change
gplay sync diff-listings \
  --package com.example.app \
  --dir ./fastlane/metadata/android

Manual Metadata Management

List all listings

gplay listings list \
  --package com.example.app \
  --edit $EDIT_ID

Get specific locale

gplay listings get \
  --package com.example.app \
  --edit $EDIT_ID \
  --locale en-US

Update listing

gplay listings update \
  --package com.example.app \
  --edit $EDIT_ID \
  --locale en-US \
  --json @listing.json

listing.json format

{
  "title": "My Awesome App",
  "shortDescription": "A short description under 80 characters",
  "fullDescription": "A full description under 4000 characters...",
  "video": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID"
}

Image Management

Upload screenshots

gplay images upload \
  --package com.example.app \
  --edit $EDIT_ID \
  --locale en-US \
  --type phoneScreenshots \
  --file screenshot1.png

gplay images upload \
  --package com.example.app \
  --edit $EDIT_ID \
  --locale en-US \
  --type phoneScreenshots \
  --file screenshot2.png

Image types

• phoneScreenshots – Phone screenshots (required)
• sevenInchScreenshots – 7″ tablet screenshots
• tenInchScreenshots – 10″ tablet screenshots
• tvScreenshots – TV screenshots
• wearScreenshots – Wear OS screenshots
• icon – App icon
• featureGraphic – Feature graphic (1024×500)

List images

gplay images list \
  --package com.example.app \
  --edit $EDIT_ID \
  --locale en-US \
  --type phoneScreenshots

Delete image

gplay images delete \
  --package com.example.app \
  --edit $EDIT_ID \
  --locale en-US \
  --type phoneScreenshots \
  --image-id IMAGE_ID \
  --confirm

App Details

Get app details

gplay details get \
  --package com.example.app \
  --edit $EDIT_ID

Update contact info

gplay details update \
  --package com.example.app \
  --edit $EDIT_ID \
  --contact-email support@example.com \
  --contact-phone "+1234567890" \
  --contact-website "https://example.com"

Character Limits

Validate against Google Play limits:

# Validate before upload
gplay validate listing \
  --dir ./fastlane/metadata/android \
  --locale en-US

Workflow Example

Complete metadata update workflow:

# 1. Export current metadata
gplay sync export-listings \
  --package com.example.app \
  --dir ./metadata

# 2. Edit files locally
vi ./metadata/en-US/full_description.txt

# 3. Validate changes
gplay validate listing \
  --dir ./metadata \
  --locale en-US

# 4. See what will change
gplay sync diff-listings \
  --package com.example.app \
  --dir ./metadata

# 5. Import changes
gplay sync import-listings \
  --package com.example.app \
  --dir ./metadata

Multi-Locale Management

Create new locale

1. Copy existing locale directory:

   cp -r fastlane/metadata/android/en-US fastlane/metadata/android/es-ES
   

2. Translate all text files

3. Import:

   gplay sync import-listings \
     --package com.example.app \
     --dir ./fastlane/metadata/android
   

Supported Locales

Use Play Console locale codes:

• en-US – English (United States)
• es-ES – Spanish (Spain)
• fr-FR – French (France)
• de-DE – German (Germany)
• ja-JP – Japanese (Japan)
• etc.

Best Practices

1. Keep metadata in version control – Track changes over time
2. Validate before importing – Catch character limit errors
3. Use consistent formatting – Follow style guide
4. Test on different devices – Screenshots should represent actual app
5. Update regularly – Keep descriptions current with features
6. Localize properly – Don’t use machine translation without review