Select the banner format
The Android legacy test-ad guide checked on 29 September 2026 lists:
| Banner format | Public demo ad-unit ID |
|---|---|
| Anchored adaptive | ca-app-pub-3940256099942544/9214589741 |
| Inline adaptive | ca-app-pub-3940256099942544/9214589741 |
| Fixed size | ca-app-pub-3940256099942544/6300978111 |
These are ad-unit IDs, not the sample app ID used during SDK setup. Follow the test guide for the SDK family and platform you actually use; do not assume an Android legacy example is the iOS identifier.
Test layout and lifecycle, not only loading
Verify that the banner container has the intended width, respects safe areas and does not cover controls. Exercise rotation, navigation away and back, backgrounding and destruction. Confirm that stale views and listeners are cleaned up.
For adaptive banners, compute the usable width from the actual container. A full-display width can be wrong inside a split screen or inset layout.
Read failures in context
Record the error code, message, response information and SDK version. Separate initialization failures, invalid configuration, network problems and availability. Repeated immediate retries can obscure the original issue and create unnecessary requests.
A demo ad loading successfully confirms part of the integration. It does not prove production eligibility, account readiness or mediation performance.
Check the release boundary
Before publication, replace demo placement IDs with the intended production IDs and verify the app-ID pairing. Keep test-device configuration available for safe maintenance testing according to the SDK guidance.
APKLint can inspect selected advertising declarations in an APK, but it cannot mark a physical device as a test device or inspect your account's serving state.
Use the official test-ad reference as the source of the identifiers. Keep the format, platform, SDK family and environment visible in your configuration names so a future developer does not replace a test banner with a live unit by accident.
Match the demo unit to the banner being implemented
A fixed-size banner and an adaptive banner are different test cases. At this guide's 29 September 2026 review, Google's Android demo list gives ca-app-pub-3940256099942544/6300978111 for a fixed-size banner and ca-app-pub-3940256099942544/9214589741 for anchored or inline adaptive banners. Use the format appropriate to the API and layout under test, and recheck the official demo-unit list when updating the integration.
Distinguish a loaded ad from a visible container
Build a test screen containing the ad container and a separate status label. Report loading, loaded and failed states in that label. If the callback says loaded but the banner is invisible, inspect the container's measured size, visibility, clipping and placement. Changing the unit ID cannot fix a parent view whose height is zero or whose contents are behind another view.
For an adaptive layout, test a narrow portrait screen and a wider landscape screen. Recalculate the available width according to the supported API when layout changes. Do not assume the width measured before the first layout remains correct after rotation, a split-screen resize or a change to system insets.
Navigate away while a request is pending, then return to the screen. The callback associated with the old screen must not attach its view to the new screen or update a destroyed activity. Give the ad object and container an explicit lifecycle, and release resources using the relevant SDK's documented methods when the screen no longer owns them.
Repeat the test with connectivity unavailable. The status should show a recoverable failure without leaving an empty container presented as a successful ad. Restore connectivity and use the intended retry path; verify that one retry creates one request rather than adding another callback subscription on every tap.
Demo units establish a controlled integration baseline. Testing a mediated partner requires that partner's supported test configuration as well. Keep the device, SDK version, banner format, request result and observed dimensions in the test record, so the result explains both ad loading and the actual screen layout.
Sources and further reading
Reference review: 29 September 2026. Examples illustrate the workflow; check your installed versions, release artifact and account-specific Console requirements before applying them. This guide is not a claim that APKLint executed your project or verified your private account.
Android inspection tools and practical release guides. About APKLint · Report a correction
