How to Reduce Flutter App Size from 95 MB to 36 MB (Complete Guide)

James Karanja

— 2 min read
How to Reduce Flutter App Size from 95 MB to 36 MB (Complete Guide)

Large Flutter app sizes can negatively affect install rates, user retention, and Play Store performance. In this guide, you’ll learn how to reduce Flutter app size from 95 MB to 36 MB using practical optimization techniques — without removing features.

This approach was recently highlighted by Vinith Shanmugam, who demonstrated that significant Flutter APK size reduction is not only possible, but common when best practices are applied.

Reference:
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/vinith-shanmugam-b2058b203_flutter-app-size-can-be-reduced-from-95mb-activity-7403747071146795012-dvMU

Why Flutter App Size Optimization Matters

Optimizing Flutter app size helps:

  • Improve app download conversion rates
  • Reduce data consumption
  • Support low-storage devices
  • Improve Play Store ranking signals

In many regions, users avoid installing large apps — even if the app is valuable.

How to Reduce Flutter App Size (Step-by-Step)

1. Build Flutter Apps in Release Mode

Debug builds include development tools and symbols that increase size. Always measure Flutter APK or AAB size using release mode builds.

2. Use Android App Bundles (AAB) or Split-per-ABI

Universal APKs include binaries for all CPU architectures. Using Android App Bundles allows Google Play to deliver optimized builds per device.

Typical Flutter APK size reduction: 30–40%

3. Remove Unused Flutter Dependencies

Unused packages increase:

  • Dart binary size
  • Native library size
  • Asset footprint

Audit pubspec.yaml and remove dependencies that are no longer used.

4. Optimize Flutter Assets (Images & Fonts)

Assets are one of the biggest contributors to Flutter app size.

Best practices:

  • Use SVG icons instead of PNG
  • Convert images to WebP
  • Compress images
  • Subset custom fonts
  • Remove unused assets

5. Enable Tree-Shaking and Resource Shrinking

Flutter supports:

  • Icon tree-shaking
  • Font tree-shaking
  • Code shrinking
  • Android resource shrinking (R8 / ProGuard)

This removes unused code and resources from the final build.

6. Use --split-debug-info

Debug symbols significantly increase Flutter app size. Splitting debug info keeps release builds small while preserving crash debugging.

7. Analyze Flutter App Size

Use Flutter’s app size analysis tools to identify:

  • Large assets
  • Heavy native libraries
  • Dart AOT code size

Optimization should always be data-driven.

Real-World Flutter App Size Reduction Results

Developers frequently report 50–60% Flutter app size reduction by applying these techniques — without compromising features or performance.

Reducing an app from 95 MB to 36 MB is realistic and repeatable.

Flutter App Size Optimization Checklist

  • Release mode build
  • Android App Bundle (AAB)
  • Remove unused dependencies
  • Optimize images and fonts
  • Enable shrinking & tree-shaking
  • Analyze app size

Final Thoughts

Flutter app size optimization is not optional — it’s a competitive advantage.

By applying these techniques and learning from real-world examples like the one shared by Vinith Shanmugam, you can ship Flutter apps that are faster to download, lighter on storage, and more accessible to users worldwide.

Reference

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