Developing a Python Mobile App with Kivy and Buildozer: Installation, Code, and Packaging Guide

Preparation

To develop a Python app you need the Kivy framework, an open‑source cross‑platform GUI library that supports Linux, macOS, Windows, Android, and iOS. Kivy programs must be packaged for each target platform, for which Buildozer (the official packaging tool) is recommended.

Setting up Kivy Development Environment

Install Kivy for macOS

Install required dependencies:

brew install pkg-config sdl2 sdl2_image sdl2_ttf sdl2_mixer gstreamer

Then install Cython and Kivy:

pip install cython==0.25

pip install kivy

If the direct install fails, clone and install from source:

git clone https://github.com/kivy/kivy

python setup.py install

Test the installation by running python and importing Kivy; no errors mean success.

Install Kivy for CentOS 7

Install a long list of 32‑bit libraries and development tools (e.g., yum install make mercurial automake gcc gcc-c++ SDL_ttf-devel ... ) and then install Cython and Kivy:

pip install Cython==0.20

pip install kivy

Refer to the official Kivy Linux installation page for more details.

Creating the First Kivy App

Create main.py :

#! -*- coding:utf-8 -*-
from kivy.app import App
class HelloApp(App):
    pass
if __name__ == '__main__':
    HelloApp().run()

Create hello.kv to define the UI:

Label:
    text: 'Hello, World! I am nMask'

Run the app with python main.py and verify the window appears.

Installing Buildozer

Install Buildozer via pip:

pip install buildozer

Packaging the App with Buildozer

In the project directory run:

buildozer init

Edit buildozer.spec to set app name, version, etc., then build and deploy:

buildozer android debug deploy run

The first run downloads Android SDK, NDK and other dependencies (requires internet access and may need a proxy).

Common Buildozer Pitfalls

Error: Missing 32‑bit libraries

On CentOS 7 install the required 32‑bit packages, for example:

yum -y install --skip-broken glibc.i686 ... python-matplotli

Error: Cython compilation failure

Ensure the correct Cython version is installed:

pip install cython==0.25

Error: IOError when copying APK

Patch /usr/local/lib/python2.7/dist-packages/buildozer/targets/android.py by importing LooseVersion and adjusting the build‑tools version selection logic as described in the original article.

Buildozer Virtual Machine

Kivy provides a pre‑configured Buildozer VM image (download link provided) for users who cannot resolve dependencies on their own machines.

Kivy Development Example

The article focuses on a minimal “Hello World” example; for more advanced Kivy features see the linked external tutorial.