Google Play Pre-Registration: Tracking Pre-Registered Installs and Rewards

A Play Console pre-registration count of zero surprises many teams preparing an Android launch, even when people have clearly signed up. The count is only part of the problem. On launch day, pre-registered users install at the same time as your first paid campaigns, and you need to know which installs each source produced.

Mechanics of Play Pre-Registration

Pre-registration lets you publish a store listing before the production binary is live in a target country. People who visit the listing tap the pre-register button to opt in for a launch notification—or automatic installation on eligible devices—once you move the release to production. Because no APK or app bundle is downloaded at the moment of sign-up, no app code runs on the user's device during the pre-registration phase.

Finding Pre-Registration Counts in Play Console

Seeing zero sign-ups in Play Console right after opening your campaign often comes down to where you look. To see the numbers, open Statistics and configure a report with the Pre-registered users and Conversions metrics, or check the summary on the Releases overview page or in the Track summary section of the Pre-registration page. Pre-registration is also limited to the countries and regions you select, based on where the user is registered on Google Play rather than their physical location.

Launch-Day Install Measurement

Even if an opted-in device auto-installs your app the moment you hit publish, an install sitting unopened on a home screen does not fire SDK events. Measurement starts on first launch. Once the user installs and opens the app for the first time, the app queries the Google Play Install Referrer API, and the app's SDK forwards any referrer string it finds to the MMP. Test how a pre-registered install is reported before you rely on it, because a click from before launch may fall outside your lookback window.

Separating Launch Ad Campaigns

Running paid launch ads while pre-registered users are downloading your app requires clear boundaries between touchpoints. An Airbridge tracking link serves both to redirect users and to track attribution. When evaluating how those touchpoints connect to installs, Airbridge attribution methods include deterministic methods attributed by Airbridge—such as install-referrer attribution, device ID matching, and deep-link attribution—alongside deterministic attribution for SANs, which is attributed by SANs.

Timing also determines which touchpoint gets credit. Your lookback window defines the period before a target event during which a prior touchpoint is considered related to that event. Within the Core Plan, you can measure ad network attribution across Google Ads, Meta, Apple Ads, and TikTok, and analyze performance through funnel, retention, and cohort reports as well as cost and ad spend aggregation.

Measuring Post-Launch Subscriptions

If you offer a pre-registration reward (Google Play allows only a one-time product here, not a subscription) or an introductory discount to turn early sign-ups into paying subscribers, you need to see whether those cohorts actually generate revenue after they open the app. The Core Plan includes revenue reports, Predictive LTV, and subscription revenue aggregation. If you manage paywalls and billing with RevenueCat, Adapty, or Superwall, their subscription revenue connects through subscription revenue aggregation.