Basic Usage and Parameter Configuration of Android Monkey for Automated Testing

Monkey is an automated testing tool that generates pseudo‑random user event streams (such as clicks, touches, gestures) to stress‑test Android applications.

Basic command format: adb shell monkey [options] [event-count] . For example, to send 1,000 random events to the app with package com.example.myapp , run adb shell monkey -p com.example.myapp 1000 , which will execute the events and return the result.

To customize testing, you can add various options:

Ignore crashes and timeouts: adb shell monkey --ignore-crashes --ignore-timeouts -p com.example.myapp 5000

Set event interval (throttle) in milliseconds: adb shell monkey --throttle 300 -p com.example.myapp 5000

Adjust event type ratios, e.g., increase touch events to 50%: adb shell monkey --pct-touch 50 -p com.example.myapp 5000

Common event‑type options include:

--pct-touch : touch events

--pct-motion : motion (swipe) events

--pct-trackball : trackball events

--pct-nav : navigation (directional) events

--pct-majornav : major navigation events (menu, back)

After a Monkey run, logs are displayed in the terminal. To save them for later analysis, redirect output to a file: adb shell monkey -p com.example.myapp 5000 > monkey_log.txt . The log contains all generated events and their outcomes; pay special attention to ANR warnings, crash reports, and the event sequence that caused issues.

If a specific event sequence triggers a crash, you can reproduce it by using the same seed value, e.g., adb shell monkey -s 12345 -p com.example.myapp 5000 , which helps in debugging.

By mastering these commands, options, and log‑analysis techniques, you can improve app stability and user experience.