Firebase Android build errorAndroid: “Plugin with id 'com.google.gms.google-services' not found”

Where the declaration is missing, and the fix

1. 01

   Applied in the app, not declared at the project level

   “add the Google services Gradle plugin as a dependency” Firebase, Add Firebase to your Android project

   The plugin needs two lines: one at the project level that names the version without applying it, and one in the app module that applies it. A tutorial that shows only the app line leaves the first one out.

   // project level, ONE place only: android/build.gradle.kts, or android/settings.gradle.kts in Flutter
   plugins {
     // keep your existing plugins
     id("com.google.gms.google-services") version "4.4.2" apply false // example version
   }
   // Groovy (build.gradle / settings.gradle):
   // id "com.google.gms.google-services" version "4.4.2" apply false
   
   // android/app/build.gradle.kts
   plugins {
     id("com.android.application")
     id("com.google.gms.google-services")
   }
   // Groovy: id "com.google.gms.google-services"

2. 02

   A Flutter project that uses settings.gradle

   “As part of adding Firebase to your Android project, you need to add the google-services Gradle plugin and a google-services.json configuration file to your project.” Firebase, Google services Gradle plugin and JSON config file

   Flutter projects created with recent versions declare plugins in android/settings.gradle(.kts), not in a buildscript block. Add the google-services line there with apply false. The FlutterFire CLI (flutterfire configure) adds both lines for you.

   // android/settings.gradle.kts (add one line, keep the rest)
   plugins {
     id("dev.flutter.flutter-plugin-loader") version "1.0.0"
     // ...your existing com.android.application and kotlin lines
     id("com.google.gms.google-services") version "4.4.2" apply false
   }
   
   // android/settings.gradle (Groovy)
   // id "com.google.gms.google-services" version "4.4.2" apply false

3. 03

   An older project that uses buildscript

   Projects with a buildscript block in the root build.gradle declare the plugin as a classpath dependency and apply it with apply plugin at the bottom of app/build.gradle. Keep the version in one place (the classpath or a plugins block), not both.

   // android/build.gradle
   buildscript {
     repositories {
       google()
     }
     dependencies {
       classpath 'com.google.gms:google-services:4.4.2'
     }
   }
   
   // android/app/build.gradle (last line)
   apply plugin: 'com.google.gms.google-services'

4. 04

   The plugin repository isn’t available

   Gradle fetches the plugin from Google’s Maven repository. Check that google() is listed in pluginManagement repositories (settings.gradle) or buildscript repositories, and that the build isn’t running offline.

Checked against the vendor’s docs on November 8, 2026: Firebase: Add Firebase to your Android project; Firebase: Google services Gradle plugin and JSON config file.

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