Google concealed Developer Options in Android 4.2. Because most “regular” users don’t need to use the feature, keeping it hidden reduces confusion. If you need to enable a developer setting, such as USB Debugging, a brief journey inside the About Phone section of the Settings menu will bring you to the Developer Options menu.
Developer options is a page in the Android Settings app that enables you to alter system behaviors to help you profile and troubleshoot your app’s performance. For example, you can use the GPU for 2D graphics rendering, enable USB debugging, capture a bug report, allow visual feedback for taps, flash window surfaces when they change, and more.
Enable Developer Options
The Developer options panel is present by default on Android 4.1 and below. This screen must be enabled on Android 4.2 and higher. Tap the Build Number option 7 times to enable developer options. Depending on your Android version, you’ll find this choice in one of the following locations:
- Android 9 (API level 28) and higher: Settings > About Phone > Build Number
- Android 8.0.0 (API level 26) and Android 8.1.0 (API level 26): Settings > System > About Phone > Build Number
- Android 7.1 (API level 25) and lower: Settings > About Phone > Build Number
Enable USB Debugging
You must enable USB debugging before you can use the debugger and other SDK tools. This allows Android Studio and other SDK tools to identify your device when connected through USB. Toggle the USB debugging option in the Developer Options menu to enable it. Depending on your Android version, you’ll find this choice in one of the following locations:
- Android 9 (API level 28) and higher: Settings > System > Advanced > Developer Options > USB debugging
- Android 8.0.0 (API level 26) and Android 8.1.0 (API level 26): Settings > System > Developer Options > USB debugging
- Android 7.1 (API level 25) and lower: Settings > Developer Options > USB debugging
Developer Options are powerful settings for developers, but that doesn’t mean they can’t be useful to non-developers as well. For stuff like adb, which is used for rooting devices, USB debugging is essential. The possibilities are unlimited once your device is rooted.