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This guide covers connecting an Android device to the app over ADB using either a USB cable or wireless debugging.

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Prerequisites

  • Android SDK Platform Tools installed and adb available in your shell
  • Developer options enabled on the Android device
  • USB debugging enabled on the Android device
  • For wireless setup, the computer and phone must be on the same network
Verify ADB is installed: 
adb version

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Wired connection

  1. Connect the Android device to your computer with a USB cable.
  2. On the phone, accept the Allow USB debugging prompt if it appears.
  3. Check that the device is visible:
adb devices
Expected output: 
List of devices attached
<device-serial>    device
If the device shows as unauthorized, unlock the phone and accept the debugging prompt. Once connected, run the Flutter app: 
flutter devices
flutter run

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Wireless connection

Wireless debugging is the preferred option on modern Android versions.

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Android 11 and newer

  1. Open Settings > Developer options > Wireless debugging.
  2. Enable Wireless debugging.
  3. Tap Pair device with pairing code.
  4. On your computer, run:
adb pair <phone-ip>:<pairing-port>
  1. Enter the pairing code shown on the phone.
  2. Connect the device:
adb connect <phone-ip>:<adb-port>
adb devices
Example: 
adb pair 192.168.1.50:37135
adb connect 192.168.1.50:38543

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Legacy wireless flow

Some devices support switching ADB to TCP mode over USB first.
  1. Connect the phone over USB.
  2. Confirm the device is visible:
adb devices
  1. Restart ADB on TCP port 5555:
adb tcpip 5555
  1. Find the device IP address from Wi-Fi settings.
  2. Disconnect the USB cable.
  3. Connect over the network:
adb connect <phone-ip>:5555
adb devices
Example: 
adb connect 192.168.1.50:5555

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Running the app

After ADB sees the device, use the normal Flutter commands: 
flutter devices
flutter run
If more than one device is connected: 
flutter run -d <device-id>

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Troubleshooting

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Device does not appear in adb devices

  • Reconnect the cable
  • Try a data-capable USB cable
  • Accept the USB debugging prompt on the phone
  • Run adb kill-server then adb start-server

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Device shows as unauthorized

  • Unlock the device
  • Revoke USB debugging authorizations in Developer options
  • Reconnect and accept the prompt again

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Wireless device will not connect

  • Make sure the phone and computer are on the same network
  • Re-run pairing if the pairing session expired
  • Disable VPNs or firewall rules that block local network traffic

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Flutter does not target the expected device

List devices: 
flutter devices
Run against a specific device: 
flutter run -d <device-id>