Firebase Test Lab is shutting down: where to run your Android tests next.
Facts from Google's Test Lab migration page, Developer Device Platform migration guide, launch post, DDP pricing and Test Lab pricing, checked October 13, 2026.
What's changing
| Firebase Test Lab | Developer Device Platform | |
|---|---|---|
| Status | Deprecated; shuts down September 30, 2027 | Public preview since August 12, 2026 |
| Runs | Instrumentation, Robo, Game Loop and XCTest | Android instrumentation and iOS XCTest in the preview |
| CLI | gcloud firebase test | gcloud beta device-run |
| Pricing | $5 per physical device-hour, $1 per virtual, after daily free minutes | Preview: $0.083/min physical, $0.017/min emulator; from April 2027, $0.20 and $0.06 |
| Interactive use | Android Device Streaming | Device Streaming continues as part of the platform |
If you relied on Robo tests
Robo crawled your app without a script. Google's migration guide and command translation guide cover instrumentation and XCTest runs and don't mention Robo. An AI agent is the natural replacement for that job: it explores from a goal, reads every screen and reports what broke, with the screen text as evidence.
Explore the checkout flow of the app on my Phonebox phone for 15 minutes.
Try what a hurried user would: go back in the middle of a step, leave
fields empty or very long, use a declined test card. Read the screen
before every action. List what felt broken or confusing, most serious
first, each with the steps to get there. Park the phone when you finish.Connect Claude Code, Codex or Cursor to a Phonebox phone with one MCP server, install the APK, and paste a task like this. The phone keeps your test account signed in between runs.
Where each kind of test should go
- Espresso and UI Automator suites: Developer Device Platform is the direct path; Google publishes a flag translation guide and an agent skill for the migration.
- Many devices or iOS: a device cloud such as BrowserStack, Sauce Labs or AWS Device Farm. See BrowserStack alternatives.
- Exploratory checks, bug repros and agent-driven QA: an AI agent on a Phonebox phone. Phonebox phones don't expose ADB, so instrumentation suites stay on a device farm or emulator.
Questions
Is Firebase Test Lab being discontinued?
Yes. Google deprecated Firebase Test Lab and says it will be fully shut down on September 30, 2027. Google recommends migrating to Developer Device Platform on Google Cloud, which was in public preview as of October 2026.
What replaces Firebase Robo tests?
Google's migration guides for Developer Device Platform cover Android instrumentation and iOS XCTest and don't mention Robo tests, as of October 13, 2026. For script-free exploration of an Android app, an AI agent such as Claude Code on a Phonebox cloud phone can walk the app from a goal and report what broke.
Is Android Device Streaming going away too?
No. Google says Android Device Streaming is not being deprecated and continues as a core feature of Developer Device Platform.