DEV Community

Zenith605
Zenith605

Posted on Originally published at actparty.app

Closed testing: "This item isn't available in your country" — fix your track's countries

Your tester opted in to your Google Play closed test, but Play Store shows no Install button, just "This item isn't available in your country". That's the track's country setting. The opt-in page even looks fine:

The opt-in page says they're in

But Play shows this instead of Install:

The tester's Play Store screen (recreated in English)

Nothing is wrong with the tester's phone or account, and there's nothing they can fix on their side.

In Play Console, go to Test and release → Testing → Closed testing, open the track, then the Countries / regions tab.

1. Read the filter

Countries / regions tab

Open the filter and check that Not targeted is 0. This track is open in one country and blocked in the other 176, so almost anyone you swap tests with is locked out.

2. Select all

Edit countries / regions

Press Edit countries / regions and tick the box at the top. No need to click through the list. Right after you tick it, every row still says Not targeted. That's normal until you finish step 3.

3. Save, then send it for review

After Save

Save only stores the change. Testers get in once you go to Publishing overview and send it for review.

4. Check again once it's through

What it should look like

Targeted (177) and Not targeted (0) means you're done.

Why you never saw it yourself

By default, test tracks follow production's countries:

"By default, your testing releases match the country availability that you've set up for production."

Your own phone is inside that one country, so you never see the problem.

Internal testing hides it one more time:

"Country targeting won't apply to apps on the Internal testing track."

So it works every time you try it yourself, and breaks the moment a stranger tries your closed track.

Testers can't work around it either. To change their Play country they have to be in that country, have a payment method from there, and then wait 90 days before changing again.

Unless you have a licensing reason, select every country. A test track isn't a launch. Whoever picks your app off a tester board could be anyone, anywhere, who happened to be awake.


Sources:

The full version, including tracks synced with production: actparty.app/guides/country-availability.html


ACT Party

ACT Party is a free app where developers test each other's apps to reach the 12 closed-test testers. If a tester can't install because of their country, it tells you right away.

Get it on Google Play

Top comments (0)