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For an Android app, BluetoothAdapter.getAddress() is the API for the phone’s own Bluetooth adapter address—but an ordinary app generally cannot retrieve the real hardware address on modern Android. The current API contract also requires the privileged LOCAL_MAC_ADDRESS permission. If you mean a paired accessory’s address, that is a different API: BluetoothDevice.getAddress().
First, identify which Bluetooth address you need
“Bluetooth MAC address” can mean three different things. The distinction matters because the APIs and privacy limits differ.
| What you need | API or source | Important limitation |
|---|---|---|
| The Android phone’s local Bluetooth adapter | BluetoothAdapter.getAddress() |
Current Android API documentation lists privileged LOCAL_MAC_ADDRESS access; ordinary apps should not expect the real hardware address. |
| A paired accessory, such as a headset or keyboard | BluetoothDevice.getAddress() |
On Android 12 (API 31) and later, Bluetooth access requires BLUETOOTH_CONNECT. |
| A nearby device found by scanning | The scan result’s BluetoothDevice.getAddress() |
Scanning has separate permission requirements, and a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) address may be random or change over time. |
A Bluetooth MAC is typically displayed in six pairs of hexadecimal digits, such as 00:11:22:AA:BB:CC. That format alone does not tell you whether it belongs to the local adapter or another device, or whether a BLE address is stable.
Get the local adapter address: API and limits
Use BluetoothManager to obtain the adapter. BluetoothAdapter.getDefaultAdapter() was deprecated in API level 31. The following example shows the local-address API, handles a missing adapter, and treats denied access as unavailable:
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fun getLocalBluetoothAddress(context: Context): String? {
val manager = context.getSystemService(BluetoothManager::class.java)
?: return null
val adapter = manager.adapter ?: return null
return try {
adapter.address
} catch (e: SecurityException) {
null
}
}This is an example of how to call the API, not a promise that the returned string is the phone’s factory address. The current BluetoothAdapter API reference lists BLUETOOTH_CONNECT for apps targeting Android 12/API 31 or later and the privileged LOCAL_MAC_ADDRESS permission for the local hardware address. A regular third-party app cannot treat that privileged permission as an ordinary runtime permission it can simply request from the user. Access therefore remains restricted even when the app has BLUETOOTH_CONNECT.
Android’s historical privacy documentation also describes local Bluetooth-address calls returning 02:00:00:00:00:00 instead of the actual address. Treat that value as anonymized or unavailable—not as the phone’s real MAC. It is not a guaranteed result on every Android release or manufacturer build. See the Android Developers’ privacy explanation.
Permissions: what they do and do not grant
| App target version | Relevant permission | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Android 11 (API 30) or lower | BLUETOOTH |
The legacy permission applies to the documented local-address API contract for apps targeting API 30 or lower. |
| Android 12 (API 31) or later | BLUETOOTH_CONNECT |
Declare it in the manifest and request it at runtime before using Bluetooth APIs that require it. It does not grant privileged LOCAL_MAC_ADDRESS access. |
| Android 12 (API 31) or later, when scanning | BLUETOOTH_SCAN |
Needed for discovery/scanning, not merely to enumerate already paired devices. |
For modern apps, the manifest entry for connecting to or querying Bluetooth devices is:
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<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.BLUETOOTH_CONNECT" />Request the runtime permission on Android 12 and later before calling APIs that require it. A concise check in an Activity might look like this:
if (Build.VERSION.SDK_INT >= Build.VERSION_CODES.S &&
checkSelfPermission(Manifest.permission.BLUETOOTH_CONNECT) !=
PackageManager.PERMISSION_GRANTED
) {
requestPermissions(
arrayOf(Manifest.permission.BLUETOOTH_CONNECT),
REQUEST_BLUETOOTH_CONNECT
)
return
}Handle the permission result before continuing. Catch SecurityException as well: permission can be denied or the particular operation can remain unavailable. Granting BLUETOOTH_CONNECT is not a workaround for the local-address restriction.
Get the address of a paired accessory
If you need a paired headset, watch, keyboard, or other remote device, enumerate the adapter’s bonded devices and read each BluetoothDevice.address. This is not the phone’s own adapter address. Android’s Bluetooth device discovery guidance describes the paired-device flow.
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val manager = getSystemService(BluetoothManager::class.java)
val adapter = manager?.adapter
if (adapter != null) {
try {
for (device in adapter.bondedDevices) {
Log.d("Bluetooth", "${device.name}: ${device.address}")
}
} catch (e: SecurityException) {
// On Android 12+, check/request BLUETOOTH_CONNECT first.
}
}bondedDevices means paired devices; it does not mean every device is currently connected. If Bluetooth is disabled or a device is out of range, a saved pairing may still be present, but you should not infer a live connection from the list.
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For a nearby device, use Bluetooth discovery or the appropriate BLE scanning API, then read the address from the resulting remote BluetoothDevice. Scanning is asynchronous and consumes Bluetooth resources; it is unnecessary if the device is already paired. Classic Bluetooth discovery can take around 12 seconds and significantly reduces available Bluetooth bandwidth, so cancel discovery before trying to connect.
On Android 12 and later, a scan commonly requires the following declarations, alongside BLUETOOTH_CONNECT if the app also interacts with or reads information about devices:
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<uses-permission
android:name="android.permission.BLUETOOTH_SCAN"
android:usesPermissionFlags="neverForLocation" />
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.BLUETOOTH_CONNECT" />Use neverForLocation only if the app does not derive physical location from scan results; Android notes that this declaration can affect which scan results are available. For some pairing-oriented discovery flows, Android recommends considering Companion Device Manager, which can perform discovery on the app’s behalf on Android 8 (API 26) and later.
BLE addresses may not be permanent
A BLE address observed during a scan is not necessarily a fixed hardware identifier. Devices can use public or random addresses, and privacy mechanisms can rotate addresses. Android added BluetoothDevice.getAddressType() in API level 35; it can identify types including public, random, anonymous, or unknown. Check the BluetoothDevice reference for API details. A changing address does not necessarily mean the accessory is a different physical device.
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If an app needs to recognize a companion accessory over time, use a supported association or bonding flow and, where applicable, an identifier defined by the accessory’s protocol. Android’s CompanionDeviceManager documentation discusses rotating BLE MAC addresses and address resolution. Do not build an account or installation identity around a MAC address.
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Can you find the phone’s address in Settings?
Possibly. Some manufacturers show a Bluetooth address under a page such as Settings → About phone → Status or Settings → About phone → Hardware information. Labels and paths vary by device, Android version, and manufacturer software, and many devices do not show the address there. There is no universal Android Settings path; if the field is absent, that is normal.
Troubleshooting
SecurityException: On Android 12 or later, verify thatBLUETOOTH_CONNECTis declared and granted for the Bluetooth operation. ForBluetoothAdapter.getAddress(), remember that the API also lists privilegedLOCAL_MAC_ADDRESS; the runtime permission alone does not make the local hardware address available.02:00:00:00:00:00: Treat it as a privacy placeholder or unavailable address, not a valid reading of the phone’s hardware identity.- Adapter is null: The device may lack Bluetooth support, or the system service may be unavailable. Check support with
packageManager.hasSystemFeature(PackageManager.FEATURE_BLUETOOTH)and handle a null result rather than assuming every Android device has an adapter. - Bluetooth is off: An adapter can exist while disabled. A normal app should send the user to system controls if Bluetooth needs to be enabled; apps targeting Android 13 (API 33) or later generally cannot enable or disable Bluetooth with
BluetoothAdapter.enable()ordisable(). For example, open the system page withstartActivity(Intent(Settings.ACTION_BLUETOOTH_SETTINGS)). The exact UI is device-dependent. - The address changes between scans: You may be seeing BLE address randomization. Do not assume a discovered address is stable; use an association, bonding, or protocol-level identity appropriate to the accessory.
- A paired-device example returns an address, but the phone’s address does not: These are separate operations.
device.addressidentifies a remote device;adapter.addressasks for the local adapter’s address.
Use an identifier intended for your app
If your goal is to identify an app installation, use an app-generated UUID stored in app-private storage or an account-backed identifier. If the goal is to connect a user’s accessory, use a companion-device association or a stable identifier supplied by the accessory’s protocol. These approaches avoid depending on a privacy-restricted local hardware address or a BLE address that may rotate.
Do not rely on undocumented ADB settings keys or vendor-specific filesystem paths to retrieve the real local MAC. They are not portable supported interfaces and may be inaccessible, absent, or stale on current devices.
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