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Beginner 15 min Java Full project

Animated Splash Screen in Android Studio with the SplashScreen API

Add a modern animated splash screen using the official SplashScreen API, the way Android 12 and later expect it. Your app icon animates in, then the app opens without a separate splash activity.

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What you'll learn

Set up the SplashScreen API and its theme
Animate the app icon on launch
Keep the splash visible while data loads
Avoid the old "splash activity" pattern

Before you start

Android Studio (any recent version)
Basic Java: variables, methods and if/else
An emulator or an Android phone

How it fits together

1Starting theme
2Animated icon plays
3Keep on screen while loading
4Exit animation
5MainActivity

Build it step by step

1. Create the project

In Android Studio choose New Project → Empty Views Activity, with Language Java and Minimum SDK API 24.

2. Add the SplashScreen library

In app/build.gradle.kts, add inside dependencies { }:

kotlin

implementation("androidx.core:core-splashscreen:1.2.0")

Then press Sync Now. It brings the Android 12 splash to older versions too.

3. Draw the icon

Add your logo as a vector drawable. Keep the artwork inside the middle 72dp of the 108dp canvas, because the splash crops it into a circle. Put the shapes you want to move inside a named <group>.

4. Animate it

Create a res/animator folder and an animator that changes the group's scaleX, scaleY and rotation. Then an animated-vector drawable connects the group's name to that animator.

5. Create the Starting theme

In themes.xml, add a theme whose parent is Theme.SplashScreen, and set:

windowSplashScreenBackground: the background colour
windowSplashScreenAnimatedIcon: your animated drawable
windowSplashScreenAnimationDuration: how long the animation runs
postSplashScreenTheme: your normal app theme, used after the splash

Give the application this theme in the manifest.

6. Install the splash

In MainActivity.onCreate, call SplashScreen.installSplashScreen(this) before super.onCreate().

7. Keep it up while loading

setKeepOnScreenCondition keeps the splash visible while it returns true. Set your ready flag when loading finishes. The sample waits 1.5 seconds to stand in for real work.

8. Animate it away

setOnExitAnimationListener gives you the splash view and its icon. Shrink and fade them, and call remove() when the animation ends.

9. Run it

Close the app completely and open it again from the launcher: the icon pops in, holds while "loading", then shrinks away. Android Studio's Run button sometimes skips the splash, so test from the launcher.

If something goes wrong

No animation: the animated icon plays on Android 12 and later. Older versions show the static icon.
Crash on launch: installSplashScreen must come before super.onCreate(), and the manifest must use the Starting theme.
The app looks wrong after the splash: check postSplashScreenTheme points to your normal theme.

Files affected

Check what to add and what to replace before copying code.

app/build.gradle.ktsAdd these lines
app/src/main/java/com/example/animatedsplashscreen/MainActivity.javaReplace file
app/src/main/res/layout/activity_main.xmlReplace file
app/src/main/AndroidManifest.xmlReplace file
app/src/main/res/animator/brackets_pop.xmlAdd these lines
app/src/main/res/values/colors.xmlReplace file
app/src/main/res/drawable/ic_splash_animated.xmlAdd these lines
app/src/main/res/drawable/ic_splash_logo.xmlAdd these lines
app/src/main/res/values/strings.xmlReplace file
app/src/main/res/values/themes.xmlReplace file

Required setup

These are additions to an existing project—not replacement project files.

Add the SplashScreen library

Add these lines

Where: app/build.gradle.kts

Add this line inside dependencies, then Sync Now.

app/build.gradle.kts

implementation("androidx.core:core-splashscreen:1.2.0")

Application code

Select a file to see its code and where it belongs.

This code uses package com.example.animatedsplashscreen. Change that first line to your own package, the one at the top of your MainActivity.

Replace fileapp/src/main/java/com/example/animatedsplashscreen/MainActivity.java

Installs the splash, keeps it up while loading, and animates it away.

MainActivity.java

package com.example.animatedsplashscreen;

import android.animation.Animator;
import android.animation.AnimatorListenerAdapter;
import android.animation.AnimatorSet;
import android.animation.ObjectAnimator;
import android.os.Bundle;
import android.os.Handler;
import android.os.Looper;
import android.view.View;
import android.view.animation.AnticipateInterpolator;

import androidx.activity.EdgeToEdge;
import androidx.appcompat.app.AppCompatActivity;
import androidx.core.graphics.Insets;
import androidx.core.splashscreen.SplashScreen;
import androidx.core.view.ViewCompat;
import androidx.core.view.WindowInsetsCompat;

/**
 * Uses the official SplashScreen API, so there is no separate splash activity.
 * 1. installSplashScreen() shows the animated icon set in the theme.
 * 2. setKeepOnScreenCondition() keeps it up until the app is ready.
 * 3. setOnExitAnimationListener() animates it away.
 */
public class MainActivity extends AppCompatActivity {
    private volatile boolean ready = false;

    @Override
    protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
        // Must be called before super.onCreate().
        SplashScreen splashScreen = SplashScreen.installSplashScreen(this);
        super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
        EdgeToEdge.enable(this);
        setContentView(R.layout.activity_main);
        ViewCompat.setOnApplyWindowInsetsListener(findViewById(R.id.main), (v, insets) -> {
            Insets bars = insets.getInsets(WindowInsetsCompat.Type.systemBars());
            v.setPadding(bars.left, bars.top, bars.right, bars.bottom);
            return insets;
        });

        // Keep the splash on screen while the app "loads". Replace the delay with your real loading work.
        splashScreen.setKeepOnScreenCondition(() -> !ready);
        new Handler(Looper.getMainLooper()).postDelayed(() -> ready = true, 1500);

        // When the splash leaves, shrink the icon and fade the splash, then remove it.
        splashScreen.setOnExitAnimationListener(provider -> {
            View icon = provider.getIconView();
            AnimatorSet exit = new AnimatorSet();
            exit.playTogether(
                    ObjectAnimator.ofFloat(icon, View.SCALE_X, 1f, 0.4f),
                    ObjectAnimator.ofFloat(icon, View.SCALE_Y, 1f, 0.4f),
                    ObjectAnimator.ofFloat(provider.getView(), View.ALPHA, 1f, 0f));
            exit.setInterpolator(new AnticipateInterpolator());
            exit.setDuration(400);
            exit.addListener(new AnimatorListenerAdapter() {
                @Override
                public void onAnimationEnd(Animator animation) {
                    provider.remove();
                }
            });
            exit.start();
        });
    }
}

Full source code

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