JetBrains Rider 2025.3 Help

Debug Unreal Engine apps on Android

You can use the extensive set of Rider debugging features when working with an Unreal Engine app on an Android device. To get started, complete the following steps:

  1. Connect the target Android device to your machine and enable debugging on the device.

  2. Make sure that the Rider Android Support plugin is installed in Rider.

  3. Make sure that Android Studio and SDK are installed and configured on your machine.

  4. Open your Unreal Project in Rider to connect it with the Unreal Editor and perform the initial deployment.

  5. Start debugging from Rider.

Install the Rider Android Support plugin

This functionality relies on the Rider Android Support plugin, which you need to install and enable.

  1. Press Ctrl+Alt+S to open settings and then select Plugins.

  2. Open the Marketplace tab, find the Rider Android Support plugin, and click Install (restart the IDE if prompted).

Install Android Studio and SDK

The installation of Android Studio and the Android SDK Command-Line Tools is describeed in the Unreal Engine documentation.

If Android Studio is not installed on your machine, it is recommended to run Turnkey from the Unreal Editor to automatically install the required version of Android Studio and all necessary components, as described in the Unreal Engine documentation.

JetBrains Rider: Run Turnkey from the Unreal Editor to install Android Studio

If Android Studio is already installed on your machine, make sure that you finalize and verify your Android SDK setup.

Initial deployment of the Unreal Engine app

  1. Open your Unreal Engine app project in JetBrains Rider.

  2. Open the Solution Configuration selector and choose Editor under Target.

    JetBrains Rider: Executing the 'Editor' solution configuration

    Note that the Solution Configuration can be displayed on the toolbar or hidden. In case it is hidden, you can access it by clicking the selector next to the Build Build button on the toolbar.

  3. Click Run Run on Rider toolbar.

    JetBrains Rider will build your Unreal Engine app and open it in the Unreal Editor.

  4. Switch to the Unreal Editor and perform the initial app deployment — select Platforms | Quick Launch Current Level | Android | [device] from the menu:

    JetBrains Rider: Initial Unreal app deployment on Android device

If the build and initial deployment are successful, close the Unreal Editor.

Start debugging

  1. Return to JetBrains Rider, where your Unreal Engine solution is open.

  2. In the solution configuration selector, choose Game under Target, and Android under Platform:

    JetBrains Rider: Solution configuration with the 'Game' target

    Wait for the solution to reload after changing the configuration properties.

  3. Make sure that the device manager appears on the main toolbar and the target device is selected:

    JetBrains Rider: Device manager on the toolbar

  4. Open the Run/debug configurations dialog (Run | Edit Configurations) and check that the following properties are correct in the current run configuration. The run configuration is created automatically when you switch the solution configuration on the previous step to Android Game.

    • The Project is properly selected. It must correspond to the runnable project of your app.

    • The Launch Profile is Android Deploy. This is set automatically and should not be changed.

    • The Flavor corresponds to the flavor used during the initial deployment of the app via the Unreal Editor.

    JetBrains Rider: 'Uproject' run configuration for Anroid device

  5. Prepare for the debugging session by setting breakpoints in the project code.

  6. Click Debug` Debug on the toolbar or use any other method to start the debugging session.

    Your Unreal Engine app will be launched on the connected device with the debugger attached.

19 December 2025
Debug Unreal Engine ProjectPerformance tips