---
title: "Can you explain the Android activity life cycle?"  
description: "Can you explain the Android activity life cycle?"  
author: "Anonymous User"  
published: 2019-12-03  
updated: 2023-06-27  
canonical: https://www.mindstick.com/forum/145517/can-you-explain-the-android-activity-life-cycle  
category: "android"  
tags: ["android", "android app development services"]  
reading_time: 3 minutes  

---

# Can you explain the Android activity life cycle?

Can you [explain](https://www.mindstick.com/forum/157854/what-is-system-debugging-explain-some-system-debugging-tools-used-in-modern-computer-systems) the [Android](https://www.mindstick.com/articles/13046/10-reasons-why-i-prefer-android-vs-iphone-ios) [activity lifecycle](https://www.mindstick.com/articles/1524/activity-lifecycle-stopping-and-restarting-an-activity-in-android)?

## Replies

### Reply by Aryan Kumar

Sure. The Android [activity](https://www.mindstick.com/forum/12894/how-to-force-recreation-of-activity-fragment-on-restore) [lifecycle](https://yourviews.mindstick.com/view/10392/how-is-the-vendor-lifecycle-impacting-the-energy-sector-in-north-america) is a series of states that an activity goes through during its lifetime. These states are:

- **Created:** This is the state in which the activity is first created. The `onCreate()` method is called when the activity enters this state.
- **Started:** This is the state in which the activity is visible to the user, but it is not currently interacting with the user. The `onStart()` method is called when the activity enters this state.
- **Resumed:** This is the state in which the activity is interacting with the user. The `onResume()` method is called when the activity enters this state.
- **Paused:** This is the state in which the activity is still visible to the user, but it is not currently interacting with the user. The `onPause()` method is called when the activity enters this state.
- **Stopped:** This is the state in which the activity is no longer visible to the user. The `onStop()` method is called when the activity enters this state.
- **Destroyed:** This is the state in which the activity is being destroyed. The `onDestroy()` method is called when the activity enters this state.

The activity lifecycle is important because it allows the activity to save its state and clean up resources when it is not being used. For example, when an activity is paused, it should save its state so that it can be resumed later without losing any data. When an activity is destroyed, it should clean up any resources that it is using, such as open files or network connections.

The activity lifecycle is also important for managing memory. When the system needs to free up memory, it may destroy activities that are not currently in use. By saving their state, these activities can be resumed later without losing any data.

Here are some of the reasons why we need the Android activity lifecycle:

- To save the state of the activity so that it can be restored when the activity is resumed.
- To release resources that are no longer needed by the activity.
- To manage the memory usage of the application.
- To allow the system to kill activities that are not currently in use.

Here is a diagram of the Android activity lifecycle:

Code snippet

```plaintext
[Created]
    --> [Started]
        --> [Resumed]
            --> [Paused]
                --> [Stopped]
                    --> [Destroyed]
```

As you can see, the activity lifecycle is a linear progression of states. However, there are some cases where the activity may skip some states or go back to a previous state. For example, if the user presses the Home button, the activity will go from the Resumed state to the Stopped state. If the user then opens the activity again, the activity will go from the Stopped state to the Resumed state, skipping the Started state.

The activity lifecycle is an important concept to understand when developing Android applications. By understanding the different states that an activity can go through, you can ensure that your application behaves properly in all situations.


---

Original Source: https://www.mindstick.com/forum/145517/can-you-explain-the-android-activity-life-cycle

Copyright © MindStick Software Pvt. Ltd. This Markdown version is provided for developers, AI systems, and offline reading.