Internal test track set as inactive on Google Play Console

Question

I uploaded and published an app for internal testing, yet the play store console shows it as inactive. It also is not showing up on the App Store even though my email is included as a tester, and I've clicked the opt-in link, which tells me to download it on the store, but it is not on the store.

Is there a step I am missing or a way to activate the track?

Edit: Been over a couple weeks now, the track is still inactive - so clearly its not just about waiting... Is there something else I can do?

Pros

I am also having the same issue, I have also had no email as a tester , I also clicked the opt in link and that redirected me to the store and the app is not there. I uploaded my app last night too. Very confused. – Mourning

your app is in "waiting for review" stage. You have to wait. they should write informative text like waiting for review as app store does. – Babyblueeyes

I am also facing the same issue. It has been more than 3 days now. Uploaded on 10th morning IST. This is my first time using play console. Can anyone guide where I can find any status or what is happening? – Roussel

Did you ever resolve this? I'm in a similar situation, been almost a week now. The play store console sucks. – Slipon

@Slipon yes, see the selected answer – Pros

@Pros - ah i see, i tried that but the issue still remains. I'm find the play console to be very unhelpful when trying to diagnose these problems. – Slipon

In my case the solution was as described here – Enoch

In my case I had no target country selected, please check your track and select Countries/regions – Selfcontrol

Answer 1

For me the solution was to add at least one country for the live release / production track (however, in my case there's no live release published yet). It seems that this setting is used for the inner testing release as well, no matter you have any live releases or not. It may be true for other settings that you can only set for the live release (like category, etc.).

Check your list of countries your app is available in. If you can find only dashes in each country's row, try selecting at lease one country.

Vesta

Yes, i have added a country, thanks for the suggestion though – Pros

Did it solve the problem for you? If your test still appears as inactive, try to set all the parameters for the live app that are still missing. – Vesta

i think actually you were onto something with the countries, it seems to say available to 0 countries on my internal test track. But I cant see anywhere to set which countries should be available. I've set it for my closed and production tracks and those work fine, but for internal track i see nowhere to set the countries... – Pros

Okay got it to work... So I had set the country for my open testing and for my closed testing, and there was nowhere to set my country for internal testing... but setting the available countries for production solved the issue. – Pros

My internal testing was showing as Inactive but available to internal testers but 0 countries. Then I added a country and it became Active. But my tester account is not able to download apk from the test link. why? Is this take some more time after becoming Active. – Stambul

After the test app gets Active, the approval process starts. It may take some days. If you use the old Console UI, that shows the state (the new one unfortunately does not). – Vesta

This did it. The tester opt-in links take a couple of hours before they start working. I did not need to wait for a full review to start testing. – Glossolalia

did adding the country to the live / production track make the app available in the play store or only via the opt in link? every time you upload a new version does the play store prompt you for a update? – Mourning

In my case, the application is in production and available in certain number of countries and doing good. Even still I face the same issue - Internal Testing Inactive. Am I missing anything? – Filberte

Answer 2

I had my testers added but not checked. Make sure you have testers added and selected!

Check testers:

Liston

Please don't use link only answer. Please provide some example with context. In the future the link may not work, and your answer would be useless – Irredeemable

I had the same problem. It is not enough to add email lists of testers. But all the testers list need to be checked and after checking you need to save he changes. – Bookmark

Perfect, this was it, I selected the email list, and then save changes – But

Wow that's not so clear. I've missed this for months! Thanks – Dilantin

Answer 3

I had managed to select "Unpublished" instead of "Published" when i was setting up the app settings for the first time. And therefore the "app status" was always going to be "unpublished" and the tracks "inactive"

Marathi

Answer 4

From what I have read here:

https://medium.com/@pawardeepakv/google-play-console-internal-test-c6e4ea369ed8

Publishing an app for the first time, it may take up to 48 hours for your app’s internal test to be available.

After that any submissions after should be available for testing within minutes.

Mourning

I hope you're right, kinda dumb you have to wait when its just for internal testing but it is what it is I guess... Ill give you the checkmark when I can confirm and it shows up on the store – Pros

Still says 'inactive' and is not on the store for me, though maybe it needs to be 2 workdays and weekends don't count? Hopefully it will be there by Wednesday - did your upload ever show up for you? – Pros

same for me too. I am thinking must be 2 workdays too, keep me updated please as I will you if anything happens , or if you found the issue :-) – Mourning

So the app is on the store now for me, however I had also uploaded a closed beta build which needed to be reviewed - My closed beta build finished its review and that is the one that's on the store - The internal trap STILL says inactive – Pros

mine still says inactive too, so looks like I will have to do the same. Thanks for the update mate. – Mourning

For the record - My internal test track is still inactive, so I assume waiting wasn't the issue in my case, looks like ill just have to use the closed beta track for now... – Pros

My experience with the first app was that it wasn't testable until the approval process was finished - which took 15 days! But a new app I created and uploaded today (on the same account) became internally testable a couple of hours after I added the country to make the internal track active. – Glossolalia

It takes longer than 48 hours. – Palladian

Answer 5

You need to check the settings for internal testing and tick the email list, then click save. Then you need to check the email list in the internal testing section and click on checkbox, then click save. That's it, you'll see that internal testing is now active.

Luminiferous

Answer 6

If your app is Unpublished, your Internal Testing, Closed Testing, Open Testing will be inactive.

You must set your app to Published in the Google Play Console.

You can track your Production and Testing status in the Release overview menu.

Mawkin

But If I do that, as I have one in production will be available for the people, and I just want to try now the internal test before letting anyone play the production one, there is a way to archive that? – Expunction

Answer 7

I had the same issue with my app.

My app is a Wear OS app and I had to go to "Setup" -> "Form Factor" -> Add a Wear OS Form Factor and complete all the steps.

Neanderthal