Android vs. Kotlin Multiplatform (KMP) Libraries - 2025 Edition
Overview
This comparison highlights key libraries and tools for Android and Kotlin Multiplatform (KMP) development in 2025. It covers architecture, networking, data, UI, and more, helping developers choose based on project needs.
Android vs. Kotlin Multiplatform
| Category | Android | Kotlin Multiplatform (KMP) |
|---|---|---|
| 🧱 Dependency Injection | Hilt / Dagger | Koin / Kodein (multiplatform) |
| 🧱 State Management | ViewModel, LiveData, StateFlow | Jetpack ViewModel (KMP), StateFlow, Decompose |
| 🧱 Multimodule Architecture | Gradle Modules | Multiplatform Modules (Shared + Targets) |
| 🧱 Concurrency | Kotlinx Coroutines | Kotlinx Coroutines (shared) |
| 🧱 Flow / Reactive Streams | Kotlin Flow, LiveData | Kotlin Flow (shared), SharedFlow |
| 🌐 Networking Client | Retrofit | Ktor Client |
| 🌐 HTTP Core | OkHttp | CIO (Ktor Coroutine I/O) |
| 🌐 WebSocket | OkHttp WebSocket | Ktor WebSocket |
| 🌐 JSON Serialization | Gson / Moshi | kotlinx.serialization |
| 🌐 API Error Handling | Retrofit Call Adapters | Ktor Feature Pipelines |
| 🗄️ Local Database | Room | SQLDelight / Room (stable KMP) |
| 🗄️ Key-Value Storage | SharedPreferences / DataStore | MultiplatformSettings |
| 🗄️ Encrypted Storage | Jetpack Security | Krypto / Encrypted-MP-Storage |
| 🗄️ Filesystem Access | Android File APIs | Okio Multiplatform |
| 📸 UI Framework | Jetpack Compose / XML | Compose Multiplatform (Android/iOS/Desktop/Web) |
| 📸 Navigation | Jetpack Navigation | Decompose / Voyager |
| 📸 Dialogs / Popups | AlertDialog / MaterialDialogs | Compose MPP Dialog Libraries |
| 📸 Gesture Handling | Compose Gesture APIs | Compose MPP - Supported |
| 📸 Image Loading | Coil / Glide | Kamel / Coil (MPP) |
| 🎛️ Permissions | Accompanist Permissions | KMP-Permissions / Wrappers |
| 🎛️ Sensors | Android SensorManager | Expect/Actual Wrappers |
| 🎛️ Bluetooth / BLE | Android Bluetooth API | Expect/Actual |
| 🎛️ Location / GPS | FusedLocationProvider | Expect/Actual, Moko-Geo |
| 🎛️ Camera / Media | CameraX | Expect/Actual Wrappers |
| 🎛️ Notifications | Android NotificationManager | Firebase / Local Wrappers |
| 🎛️ Push Notifications | Firebase Messaging | Firebase (Shared) |
| 🎛️ Battery / Device Info | Android APIs | Moko-System / Expect/Actual |
| 🎛️ Network State | ConnectivityManager | Moko-Network |
| 🔐 Security / Cipher | AndroidX Security | Krypto / SecureStore-KMP |
| 🔐 Analytics | Firebase Analytics | Firebase Wrappers / Segment-KMP |
| 🔐 Crash Reporting | Firebase Crashlytics | Firebase / Sentry-KMP |
| 🔐 Payments / Billing | Google Play Billing | Stripe SDK / Native Wrappers |
| 🧪 Unit Testing | JUnit, Mockito | Kotlin.Test, Kotest, MockMP |
| 🧪 UI Testing | Espresso / Compose Testing | Compose MPP Test Tools |
| 🧪 Integration Testing | Robolectric | Native + Expect/Actual |
| 🧪 Logging | Timber, Logcat | Napier / Expect/Actual |
| 🧪 Benchmarking | Jetpack Benchmark | Platform-Specific |
| 🧰 Build System | Gradle | Gradle Multiplatform Plugin |
| 🧰 Code Sharing | N/A (Single Target) | Expect/Actual, Source Sets |
| 🧰 Lint & Static Analysis | Android Lint, Detekt | Detekt (MP), Ktlint |
| 🧰 CI/CD | GitHub Actions / Bitrise | Same + KMM Targets |
| 🧰 Dependency Management | Gradle (KTS/Groovy) | Gradle + MP Plugin |
| 🧰 IDE Support | Android Studio | Android Studio / IntelliJ |
| 📦 Library Sources | MavenCentral, Google Maven | MavenCentral (MP Libs) |
| 📦 Shared Code | Platform-Specific Modules | Shared Code (commonMain) |
| 📦 SDK Coverage | Full Android SDK | Partial SDK Wrappers |
| 📦 Open Source Libraries | Very Rich Ecosystem | Growing, Focused Ecosystem |
| 🧑💻 Learning Curve | Medium | High (Expect/Actual Setup) |
| 🧑💻 Productivity | High for Android Apps | High for Shared Logic/UI |
| 🧑💻 Community Support | Huge (SO, Reddit) | Growing (Kotlin Slack, GitHub) |
| 🧑💻 Documentation | Extensive Official Docs | Official + Community Blogs |
| 🧑💻 Debugging | Well-Supported | Needs Multi-Platform Experience |
| 🔑 Authentication | Firebase Auth | Firebase Wrappers / Supabase-KMP |
| 🔑 Offline Support | WorkManager | KMP Workers / Expect/Actual |
| 🔑 Animations | Lottie / Compose Animations | Compose MPP Animations / Lottie-KMP |
| 🔑 Internationalization | Android Resources | Moko-Resources |
Category Explanations
🧱 Dependency Injection
Hilt / Dagger is the go-to for type-safe DI on Android, with compile-time validation. Koin / Kodein brings multiplatform DI with lightweight runtime resolution-perfect for shared codebases.
🧱 State Management
ViewModel with LiveData/StateFlow manages lifecycle-aware state on Android. Jetpack ViewModel (KMP) and Decompose enable shared state logic across platforms.
🧱 Multimodule Architecture
Gradle Modules organize Android projects for scalability. Multiplatform Modules allow shared code with platform-specific targets in KMP.
🧱 Concurrency
Kotlinx Coroutines handles async operations on Android. Kotlinx Coroutines (shared) provides the same coroutine support across all KMP targets.
🧱 Flow / Reactive Streams
Kotlin Flow and LiveData offer reactive data streams on Android. Kotlin Flow (shared) and SharedFlow enable reactive programming in KMP codebases.
🌐 Networking Client
Retrofit is the go-to for type-safe HTTP on Android, letting you define APIs as interfaces. Ktor Client brings multiplatform HTTP with coroutine support-perfect for shared codebases.
🌐 HTTP Core
OkHttp powers most Android HTTP under the hood. For KMP, CIO is Ktor's default engine, offering a pure Kotlin solution for HTTP on any platform.
🌐 WebSocket
OkHttp WebSocket enables real-time connections on Android. Ktor WebSocket provides multiplatform WebSocket support with coroutine integration.
🌐 JSON Serialization
Gson / Moshi is a classic for converting Java/Kotlin objects to JSON and back. For KMP, kotlinx.serialization is the native choice: multiplatform, fast, and integrates tightly with Ktor.
🌐 API Error Handling
Retrofit Call Adapters manage error flows on Android. Ktor Feature Pipelines allow custom error handling in multiplatform networking.
🗄️ Local Database
Room provides an abstraction layer over SQLite with type-safe queries for Android, and from v2.7.0-alpha01, also supports Kotlin Multiplatform. SQLDelight generates Kotlin APIs from your SQL, running on Android, iOS, JVM, and JS.
🗄️ Key-Value Storage
SharedPreferences / DataStore is the default for key-value storage on Android. MultiplatformSettings brings similar functionality to KMP, supporting all major targets.
🗄️ Encrypted Storage
Jetpack Security offers encrypted preferences on Android. Krypto / Encrypted-MP-Storage provides secure, multiplatform encrypted storage.
🗄️ Filesystem Access
Android File APIs handle local file operations. Okio Multiplatform offers a unified API for filesystem access across platforms.
📸 UI Framework
Jetpack Compose / XML builds declarative UIs on Android. Compose Multiplatform enables shared UI code for Android, iOS, Desktop, and Web.
📸 Navigation
Jetpack Navigation handles screen routing on Android. Decompose / Voyager provides multiplatform navigation with shared logic.
📸 Dialogs / Popups
AlertDialog / MaterialDialogs create popups on Android. Compose MPP Dialog Libraries offer cross-platform dialog support.
📸 Gesture Handling
Compose Gesture APIs detect touches on Android. Compose MPP supports the same gestures across platforms.
📸 Image Loading
Coil / Glide are top choices for image loading on Android. Kamel / Coil (MPP) enable multiplatform image loading with caching.
🎛️ Permissions
Accompanist Permissions manage runtime permissions on Android. KMP-Permissions / Wrappers provide unified permission handling.
🎛️ Sensors
Android SensorManager accesses device sensors. Expect/Actual Wrappers enable shared sensor code in KMP.
🎛️ Bluetooth / BLE
Android Bluetooth API handles wireless connections. Expect/Actual allows platform-specific Bluetooth in shared KMP code.
🎛️ Location / GPS
FusedLocationProvider fetches accurate location on Android. Expect/Actual and Moko-Geo support multiplatform location services.
🎛️ Camera / Media
CameraX simplifies camera access on Android. Expect/Actual Wrappers enable cross-platform media capture.
🎛️ Notifications
Android NotificationManager displays alerts. Firebase / Local Wrappers provide multiplatform notification support.
🎛️ Push Notifications
Firebase Messaging handles pushes on Android. Firebase (Shared) enables cross-platform push notifications in KMP.
🎛️ Battery / Device Info
Android APIs retrieve device info. Moko-System / Expect/Actual offer shared access to battery and info.
🎛️ Network State
ConnectivityManager monitors network on Android. Moko-Network provides multiplatform connectivity checks.
🔐 Security / Cipher
AndroidX Security handles encryption. Krypto / SecureStore-KMP offer multiplatform secure storage.
🔐 Analytics
Firebase Analytics tracks users on Android. Firebase Wrappers / Segment-KMP enable shared analytics.
🔐 Crash Reporting
Firebase Crashlytics logs crashes on Android. Firebase / Sentry-KMP support multiplatform reporting.
🔐 Payments / Billing
Google Play Billing processes in-app purchases on Android. Stripe SDK / Native Wrappers handle multiplatform billing.
🧪 Unit Testing
JUnit and Mockito test code on Android. Kotlin.Test, Kotest, MockMP enable shared unit tests in KMP.
🧪 UI Testing
Espresso / Compose Testing validate UIs on Android. Compose MPP Test Tools support cross-platform UI tests.
🧪 Integration Testing
Robolectric runs integration tests on Android. Native + Expect/Actual enable multiplatform integration.
🧪 Logging
Timber simplifies logging on Android. Napier brings similar API to KMP projects.
🧪 Benchmarking
Jetpack Benchmark measures performance on Android. Platform-Specific tools handle KMP benchmarking.
🧰 Build System
Gradle builds Android apps. Gradle Multiplatform Plugin supports KMP builds.
🧰 Code Sharing
N/A for single-target Android. Expect/Actual and Source Sets enable code sharing in KMP.
🧰 Lint & Static Analysis
Android Lint and Detekt check code quality. Detekt (MP) and Ktlint work for KMP.
🧰 CI/CD
GitHub Actions / Bitrise automate Android workflows. Same tools plus KMM Targets for KMP.
🧰 Dependency Management
Gradle (KTS/Groovy) manages deps on Android. Gradle + MP Plugin handles KMP dependencies.
🧰 IDE Support
Android Studio supports Android development. Android Studio / IntelliJ for KMP.
📦 Library Sources
MavenCentral, Google Maven for Android libs. MavenCentral (MP Libs) for KMP.
📦 Shared Code
Platform-Specific Modules for Android. Shared Code (commonMain) in KMP.
📦 SDK Coverage
Full Android SDK access. Partial SDK Wrappers in KMP.
📦 Open Source Libraries
Very Rich Ecosystem for Android. Growing, Focused Ecosystem for KMP.
🧑💻 Learning Curve
Medium for Android. High (Expect/Actual Setup) for KMP.
🧑💻 Productivity
High for Android Apps. High for Shared Logic/UI in KMP.
🧑💻 Community Support
Huge (SO, Reddit) for Android. Growing (Kotlin Slack, GitHub) for KMP.
🧑💻 Documentation
Extensive Official Docs for Android. Official + Community Blogs for KMP.
🧑💻 Debugging
Well-Supported for Android. Needs Multi-Platform Experience for KMP.
🔑 Authentication
Firebase Auth for Android. Firebase Wrappers / Supabase-KMP for KMP.
🔑 Offline Support
WorkManager for Android. KMP Workers / Expect/Actual for KMP.
🔑 Animations
Lottie / Compose Animations for Android. Compose MPP Animations / Lottie-KMP for KMP.
🔑 Internationalization
Android Resources for Android. Moko-Resources for KMP.
If you think anything is missing or have better suggestions, feel free to comment.
