Firebase Performance Monitoring

Build a useful baseline

Start by adding the Android app to a Firebase project and integrating the Performance Monitoring SDK. The SDK can collect app lifecycle and screen-rendering data; add the Gradle plugin as well to collect HTTP/S request traces automatically and enable custom trace annotations. A team can then interact with the app to generate events and compare measurements in the Firebase console. For example, when startup time increases after a release, filter the data by app version, device, country, or network type to see whether the slowdown is concentrated in a particular slice. Custom traces can measure a task such as loading images or querying a database, with duration and developer-defined metrics.

Telemetry is not an instant diagnosis

Performance Monitoring surfaces measurements that help detect regressions and narrow investigation; it does not identify every root cause or repair the app. On Android, events are batched locally and sent periodically, about every 30 seconds, so dashboard updates lag behind an interaction. HTTP/S request monitoring requires the Gradle plugin in addition to the SDK, and the documented Android support covers only the main process in a multi-process app. The service is listed as no-cost within Firebase. The reviewed setup here is Android-specific; the product also describes mobile and web support, but this guide does not establish the exact setup for every platform.