1. Dependencies
1.1 The AKS SDK
Add the SDK itself in your app-level build.gradle.kts:
dependencies {
implementation("com.github.Pentabit-Labs-LLC:appskitsdk-android:${LATEST_VERSION}")
}Replace ${LATEST_VERSION} with the latest tag from the appskitsdk-android releases (or the JitPack badge in that repo's README), e.g. v6.4.0.0.
AKS is published as a set of raw .aar files (not a dependency-aware Maven module), so none of its third-party dependencies come along transitively. Everything below has to be declared explicitly in your app module. The one exception is SupportAKS (com.pentabit.aks_android_support_lib) — those classes are bundled directly inside the appskitsdk-android artifact itself, so you don't add com.pentabit:aks-android-helpers separately.
1.2 Required libraries (always needed)
These are referenced directly by AKS's compiled code, so they're required no matter which ad networks you actually enable:
dependencies {
// Firebase (Remote Config drives almost all AKS behavior; Analytics is used for AKS events)
implementation(platform("com.google.firebase:firebase-bom:34.3.0"))
implementation("com.google.firebase:firebase-analytics")
implementation("com.google.firebase:firebase-config")
implementation("com.google.android.gms:play-services-measurement-api:23.0.0")
// Coroutines / serialization / datetime — used throughout AdsManager and AppsKitSDK
implementation("org.jetbrains.kotlinx:kotlinx-coroutines-android:1.7.3")
implementation("org.jetbrains.kotlinx:kotlinx-serialization-json:1.9.0")
implementation("org.jetbrains.kotlinx:kotlinx-datetime:0.7.1")
// Ktor — AKS's internal network client for fetching ad/config data
implementation("io.ktor:ktor-client-core:3.3.3")
implementation("io.ktor:ktor-client-okhttp:3.3.3")
implementation("io.ktor:ktor-client-content-negotiation:3.3.3")
implementation("io.ktor:ktor-serialization-kotlinx-json:3.3.3")
implementation("io.ktor:ktor-client-logging:3.3.3")
// Local storage AKS uses for its own preferences/session/ad-state tracking
implementation("com.russhwolf:multiplatform-settings:1.1.1")
implementation("com.russhwolf:multiplatform-settings-serialization:1.1.1")
// Jetpack Compose — AKS's Feature/Cross-Promotion ad screens, the Configuration
// Dashboard, and the Test Suite (§10) are all built with Compose. Pull these in via
// the Compose BOM so versions stay aligned with whatever else in your app uses Compose.
implementation(platform("androidx.compose:compose-bom:2025.08.01"))
implementation("androidx.compose.runtime:runtime")
implementation("androidx.compose.foundation:foundation")
implementation("androidx.compose.material3:material3")
implementation("androidx.compose.ui:ui")
implementation("androidx.compose.ui:ui-tooling-preview")
// Image loading used by AKS's built-in cross-promotion / feature-promotion ad screens
implementation("io.coil-kt.coil3:coil:3.3.0")
implementation("io.coil-kt.coil3:coil-compose:3.3.0")
implementation("io.coil-kt.coil3:coil-compose-core:3.3.0")
implementation("io.coil-kt.coil3:coil-network-ktor3:3.3.0")
implementation("media.kamel:kamel-image:0.9.5")
// Used by enableAppAutoUpdate() in the AKS base Activities
implementation("com.google.android.play:app-update:2.1.0")
// Powers AppsKitSDKUtils.askForRating() — AKS's built-in in-app review flow
implementation("com.google.android.play:review:2.0.1")
implementation("androidx.recyclerview:recyclerview:1.4.0")
// IronSource core — AKS's base Activity classes call IronSource.onResume()/onPause()
// unconditionally on every screen, so this is required even if you never select
// IronSource as an ad network in the AKS portal.
implementation("com.ironsource.sdk:mediationsdk:8.5.0")
}Keep the Ktor version consistent across every
ktor-*artifact — mixing Ktor 2.x and 3.x artifacts on the same classpath causes binary-incompatibility crashes at runtime.Match AKS's coroutines (
1.7.3), serialization (1.9.0), and Firebase BOM (34.3.0) versions across the rest of your app too, rather than letting an older version linger elsewhere in your dependency graph. Firebase's BOM has had breaking changes between major versions (33.x→34.x), and Gradle silently resolving to whichever version "wins" doesn't guarantee the AKS code paths that call into these libraries stay binary-compatible — these are required, not best-effort suggestions.
1.3 Mobile measurement partner (MMP) SDKs (always needed)
AKS auto-initializes these three from keys set in the AKS portal / Firebase Remote Config — you don't call into them directly, but their SDK classes are referenced unconditionally inside AKS's compiled code, so they must be on your classpath:
dependencies {
// AppsFlyer
implementation("com.appsflyer:af-android-sdk:6.13.0")
implementation("com.appsflyer:adrevenue:6.9.0")
implementation("com.miui.referrer:homereferrer:1.0.0.6")
implementation("com.android.installreferrer:installreferrer:2.2")
// Adjust
implementation("com.adjust.sdk:adjust-android:4.38.3")
// Solar Engine (Reyun)
implementation("com.reyun.solar.engine.oversea:solar-engine-core:1.3.1.4")
}If you don't have keys for one of these in your AKS portal config, that's fine — AKS simply skips initializing it at runtime. The dependency still needs to be present for the app to build.
1.4 Ad network / mediation SDKs
AKS bundles handler code for AdMob, AppLovin MAX, and Chartboost Mediation (Helium) inside the same AAR, in addition to IronSource (already listed above). Which network actually serves an ad is decided remotely (per ad format, with failover), so the safest approach — and the one Pentabit's own reference app uses — is to include all of them:
dependencies {
// ---- AdMob / Google Mobile Ads + mediation adapters ----
implementation("com.google.android.gms:play-services-ads:24.4.0")
implementation("com.google.ads.mediation:applovin:13.0.1.0")
implementation("com.google.ads.mediation:ironsource:8.5.0.1")
implementation("com.google.ads.mediation:chartboost:9.8.2.0")
implementation("com.google.ads.mediation:vungle:7.4.2.0")
implementation("com.google.ads.mediation:facebook:6.18.0.0")
implementation("com.google.ads.mediation:mintegral:16.9.71.0")
implementation("com.google.ads.mediation:pangle:6.4.0.4.0")
implementation("com.google.ads.mediation:unity:4.12.5.0") {
exclude(group = "com.google.android.gms", module = "play-services-cronet")
}
// ---- AppLovin MAX + adapters ----
implementation("com.applovin:applovin-sdk:13.3.0")
implementation("com.applovin.mediation:google-adapter:+")
implementation("com.applovin.mediation:google-ad-manager-adapter:+")
implementation("com.applovin.mediation:ironsource-adapter:8.7.0.0.0")
implementation("com.applovin.mediation:facebook-adapter:+")
implementation("com.applovin.mediation:vungle-adapter:+")
implementation("com.applovin.mediation:mintegral-adapter:+")
implementation("com.applovin.mediation:bytedance-adapter:6.5.0.8.1")
implementation("com.applovin.mediation:unityads-adapter:+") {
exclude(group = "com.google.android.gms", module = "play-services-cronet")
}
// ---- Chartboost Mediation (Helium) + adapters ----
implementation("com.chartboost:chartboost-mediation-sdk:4.7.1")
implementation("com.chartboost:chartboost-mediation-adapter-admob:4.22.3.0.4")
implementation("com.chartboost:chartboost-mediation-adapter-applovin:4.12.0.0.0")
implementation("com.chartboost:chartboost-mediation-adapter-ironsource:4.7.5.2.0.0")
implementation("com.chartboost:chartboost-mediation-adapter-vungle:4.7.1.0.0")
implementation("com.chartboost:chartboost-mediation-adapter-meta-audience-network:4.6.16.0.0")
implementation("com.chartboost:chartboost-mediation-adapter-pangle:4.5.5.0.3.0")
}If you're certain a given network (e.g. Helium) will never be enabled in your AKS portal config, you can drop its block — just know that AKS's own internal AdNetwork failover logic can route to any of ADMOB, GAM, MAX, IRON_SOURCE, or HELIUM per ad format, so trimming this list reduces flexibility on the remote-config side.