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Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://mintlify.com/termux/termux-app/llms.txt

Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

Building Termux from source gives you full control over the app binary, lets you test pull requests before they land in a release, and is required if you want to change the package name for a fork. The project uses a standard Android Gradle build; if you have used Android Studio before, most of the setup will be familiar.

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Prerequisites

Before cloning the repository, make sure the following tools are installed and available on your PATH.
RequirementVersion / notes
Android StudioLatest stable channel
Android NDK29.0.14206865 — set via ndkVersion in gradle.properties
JDKJava 8 compatible (sourceCompatibility JavaVersion.VERSION_1_8 in app/build.gradle)
GitAny recent version
Android Studio bundles its own JDK. If you rely on that bundled JDK, you do not need a separate Java installation. The NDK can be installed from SDK Manager → SDK Tools → NDK (Side by side).

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Project structure

The repository is a multi-module Gradle project. The modules are declared in settings.gradle: 
include ':app', ':termux-shared', ':terminal-emulator', ':terminal-view'
ModuleDescription
:appMain Termux application
:terminal-emulatorTerminal emulation library (VT/xterm state machine)
:terminal-viewAndroid View that renders the terminal on screen
:termux-sharedShared constants and utilities used by the app and all plugins

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Building

1

Clone the repository

git clone https://github.com/termux/termux-app
cd termux-app
2

Open in Android Studio

Use File → Open and select the cloned directory. Android Studio detects the Gradle project and syncs dependencies automatically. Wait for the initial sync to finish before proceeding.
3

Build the APK

You can trigger builds from Android Studio or from the command line.
# Debug build — uses the default apt-android-7 package variant
./gradlew assembleDebug

# Release build
./gradlew assembleRelease

# Debug build with an explicit package variant
TERMUX_PACKAGE_VARIANT=apt-android-7 ./gradlew assembleDebug

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Package variants

The TERMUX_PACKAGE_VARIANT environment variable (or the packageVariant property in app/build.gradle) controls which bootstrap is embedded in the APK. The supported values are:
VariantTarget Android versionNotes
apt-android-7 (default)Android 7+Recommended for all modern devices; full package update support
apt-android-5Android 5 and 6No package update support; legacy use only
A bootstrap of a different variant must not be manually installed by replacing $PREFIX after the APK is installed. The app code is compiled against a specific variant and will crash at startup if the bootstrap does not match.

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Bootstrap packages

During the Gradle build the downloadBootstraps task automatically fetches bootstrap zip archives from the termux/termux-packages release page. The exact version and SHA-256 checksums are hardcoded in app/build.gradle. Current bootstrap versions embedded in app/build.gradle:
  • apt-android-7: 2026.02.12-r1+apt.android-7
  • apt-android-5: 2022.04.28-r6+apt-android-5
The bootstrap zip archives are downloaded to app/src/main/cpp/bootstrap-<arch>.zip. Running ./gradlew clean deletes the cached zips. The bootstrap contains the minimal shell environment — bash, apt, and core utilities — needed to start a working Termux session.

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APK outputs

After a successful build, APKs are written to app/build/outputs/apk/. Debug builds go into the debug/ subdirectory; release builds into release/. The output file names follow the pattern: 
termux-app_apt-android-7-debug_universal.apk
termux-app_apt-android-7-debug_arm64-v8a.apk
termux-app_apt-android-7-debug_armeabi-v7a.apk
termux-app_apt-android-7-debug_x86.apk
termux-app_apt-android-7-debug_x86_64.apk
By default, debug builds produce architecture-specific APKs in addition to the universal APK. Release builds produce only the universal APK (F-Droid does not support split APKs).

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Using JitPack for library development

If you only need the termux-shared library or the terminal libraries as dependencies of another app, they are published to JitPack from the main repository. Add the JitPack repository to your project and declare the dependency:
settings.gradle
dependencyResolutionManagement {
    repositories {
        maven { url 'https://jitpack.io' }
    }
}
build.gradle
dependencies {
    implementation 'com.github.termux.termux-app:termux-shared:<version>'
}
Replace <version> with a release tag such as v0.118.0, a commit hash, or -SNAPSHOT for the latest master build.
For local development against a checked-out copy of termux-app, use Gradle composite builds or local Maven publishing (./gradlew publishToMavenLocal) instead of the JitPack coordinate.

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