Exporting Graphic Assets for Android: All Densities (mdpi–xxxhdpi)
We offer a service to prepare graphic assets for Android applications covering all density buckets. Our experience — over 5 years and more than 20 projects — guarantees that icons and illustrations will appear crisp on any device: from old budget models to the latest flagships. Blurry edges, incorrect proportions, and wrong file names are common issues we eliminate during export.
Why Density-Specific Asset Preparation Matters
Android screens have different pixels per inch (dpi). Without proper assets for each density, the system scales an unsuitable resource, leading to blurring or pixelation. We use the correct coefficients: mdpi (1×), hdpi (1.5×), xhdpi (2×), xxhdpi (3×), xxxhdpi (4×). For example, a 24dp icon on xxhdpi must be 72px, while on mdpi it is 24px. If only one size is provided, it will be distorted on other densities.
Density Table and Coefficient
| Density | Coefficient |
|---|---|
| mdpi | 1× (160 dpi) |
| hdpi | 1.5× (240 dpi) |
| xhdpi | 2× (320 dpi) |
| xxhdpi | 3× (480 dpi) |
| xxxhdpi | 4× (640 dpi) |
How to Avoid Export Mistakes
Blurry boundaries on xhdpi/xxhdpi. A designer draws a 24×24px icon and exports directly without density consideration. On xxhdpi the system scales 24px to 72px using bilinear interpolation — result: blurry. Solution: design at the largest density size.
Wrong mipmap vs drawable folder. Launcher icons go in mipmap-*. All other assets go in drawable-*. The system handles mipmap differently during scaling. Placing the App Icon in drawable will display correctly but loses launcher optimization.
File names. Android resource names must be lowercase letters, numbers, and underscores. ic_Arrow_Right.png causes a compilation error. ic_arrow_right.png is correct.
Unnecessary folders: ldpi (0.75×) is already obsolete, and mdpi can be omitted for projects that don't support legacy devices. We recommend keeping only the densities that are actually needed.
Vector vs Raster Assets
Simple icons, pictograms, and UI elements without photographic details should always be VectorDrawable (Android's SVG-like XML format). One file replaces all densities, with no scaling blur. Vector assets take up to 10× less space than a set of raster PNGs. Limitation: does not support complex effects (blur, some gradient types); animated illustrations require AnimatedVectorDrawable or Lottie.
For PNG assets (photos, complex illustrations, ad banners) we prepare each density separately. Rule: design at xxxhdpi (4×), scale down. Scaling up always results in quality loss.
Example File Size Comparison for a 24dp Icon
| Type | mdpi | hdpi | xhdpi | xxhdpi | xxxhdpi | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Raster PNG | 0.5 KB | 1 KB | 2 KB | 4 KB | 8 KB | 15.5 KB |
| VectorDrawable | 0.2 KB | (single file) | 0.2 KB |
Our Preparation Process
- Obtain SVG or PDF from the designer (vector source)
- Simple icons → convert to
VectorDrawableusing Android Studio (File → New → Vector Asset → Local SVG) - Raster assets → export from Figma with multipliers 1×, 1.5×, 2×, 3×, 4× into corresponding folders
- Check names against naming conventions
- Optimize PNG via
pngquantoroptipngto reduce APK size
A Real Case: Fintech App with 50+ Icons
One of our recent projects involved a fintech application with 50+ icons, mostly UI elements and simple illustrations. The client provided a single SVG per icon. We converted all of them to VectorDrawable, eliminating the need for multiple PNG densities. This reduced the APK size by 2 MB and completely removed scaling artifacts on devices of any density. The whole preparation took 6 hours.
What's Included in Our Work
- Audit of existing assets (if any)
- Conversion of icons to VectorDrawable
- Export of raster assets into 5 densities
- Correct folder structure (mipmap and drawable)
- File size optimization
- Ready-to-use asset set for Android Studio or developer handoff
Timeline
4 hours – 2 days, depending on the number of assets and whether vector conversion is required. Pricing is determined after analysis.
Contact us for an assessment of your project. We will prepare the assets turnkey with guaranteed quality and exact compliance with Android requirements.