Metadata Sync for Google Play

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

Fastlane Directory Structure

code

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

bash

# 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

bash

# 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

bash

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

Manual Metadata Management

List all listings

bash

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

Get specific locale

bash

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

Update listing

bash

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

listing.json format

json

{
  "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

bash

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 (1024x500)

List images

bash

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

Delete image

bash

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

bash

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

Update contact info

bash

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:

Field	Limit
Title	50 characters
Short Description	80 characters
Full Description	4000 characters

bash

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

Workflow Example

Complete metadata update workflow:

bash

# 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

•

Copy existing locale directory:

bash

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

•
Translate all text files

•

Import:

bash

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

•Keep metadata in version control - Track changes over time
•Validate before importing - Catch character limit errors
•Use consistent formatting - Follow style guide
•Test on different devices - Screenshots should represent actual app
•Update regularly - Keep descriptions current with features
•Localize properly - Don't use machine translation without review