--- source_url: https://www.pubnub.com/docs/sdks/android/api-reference/channel-groups title: Channel Groups API for Android SDK updated_at: 2026-05-25T05:45:10.038Z --- > Documentation Index > For a curated overview of PubNub documentation, see: https://www.pubnub.com/docs/llms.txt > For the full list of all documentation pages, see: https://www.pubnub.com/docs/llms-full.txt # Channel Groups API for Android SDK :::warning Unsupported docs PubNub no longer maintains Android SDK docs, but our [Java SDK](https://www.pubnub.com/docs/sdks/java) or [Kotlin SDK](https://www.pubnub.com/docs/sdks/kotlin) are fully compatible with the Android platform and you can use them to build mobile apps, ensuring stable software development. ::: [Channel groups](https://www.pubnub.com/docs/general/channels/subscribe#channel-groups) allow PubNub developers to bundle thousands of [channels](https://www.pubnub.com/docs/general/channels/overview) into a group that can be identified by a name. These channel groups can then be subscribed to, receiving data from the many back-end channels the channel group contains. :::note Channel group operations You can't publish to a channel group. You can only subscribe to it. To publish within the channel group, you need to publish to each channel individually. ::: ## Add channels to a channel group :::note Requires Stream Controller add-on This method requires that the *Stream Controller* add-on is enabled for your key in the PubNub [Admin Portal](https://admin.pubnub.com/). Read the [support page](https://support.pubnub.com/hc/en-us/articles/360051974791-How-do-I-enable-add-on-features-for-my-keys-) on enabling add-on features on your keys. ::: This function adds channels to a channel group. ### Method(s) Use the following method in the Android SDK: :::note Maximum number of channels You can add up to 200 channels to a channel group per API call. ::: ```java this.pubnub.addChannelsToChannelGroup() .channelGroup(String) .channels(Array) ``` | Parameter | Type | Required | Default | Description | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | channelGroup | String | Yes | | The channel group to add the channels to. | | channels | Array | Yes | | The channels to add to the channel group. | | async | PNCallback | Yes | | `PNCallback` of type `PNChannelGroupsAddChannelResult` | ### Sample code #### Add channels ```java pubnub.addChannelsToChannelGroup() .channelGroup("cg1") .channels(Arrays.asList("ch1", "ch2", "ch3")) .async(new PNCallback() { @Override public void onResponse(PNChannelGroupsAddChannelResult result, PNStatus status) { } }); ``` ### Response The `addChannelsToChannelGroup()` does not return actionable data, be sure to check the status object on the outcome of the operation by checking the `status.isError()`. ```json { "service" : "channel-registry", "status" : 200, "error" : false, "message" : "OK" } ``` ## List channels in a channel group :::note Requires Stream Controller add-on This method requires that the *Stream Controller* add-on is enabled for your key in the [Admin Portal](https://admin.pubnub.com/). Read the [support page](https://support.pubnub.com/hc/en-us/articles/360051974791-How-do-I-enable-add-on-features-for-my-keys-) on enabling add-on features on your keys. ::: This function lists all channels in a channel group. ### Method(s) Use the following method in the Android SDK: ```java pubnub.listChannelsForChannelGroup() .channelGroup(String) ``` | Parameter | Description | | --- | --- | | `channelGroup` *Type: String | The channel group for which to list channels. | | `async` *Type: PNCallback | `PNCallback` of type `PNChannelGroupsAllChannelsResult`. | ### Sample code #### List channels ```java pubnub.listChannelsForChannelGroup() .channelGroup("cg1") .async(new PNCallback() { @Override public void onResponse(PNChannelGroupsAllChannelsResult result, PNStatus status) { } }); ``` ### Returns The `listChannelsForChannelGroup()` operation returns a `PNChannelGroupsAllChannelsResult` which contains the following operations: | Method | Description | | --- | --- | | `getChannels()`Type: List`` | List of `channels` of a `channel group`. | ## Remove channels from a channel group :::note Requires Stream Controller add-on This method requires that the *Stream Controller* add-on is enabled for your key in the [Admin Portal](https://admin.pubnub.com/). Read the [support page](https://support.pubnub.com/hc/en-us/articles/360051974791-How-do-I-enable-add-on-features-for-my-keys-) on enabling add-on features on your keys. ::: This function removes channels from a channel group. ### Method(s) Use the following method in the Android SDK: ```java pubnub.removeChannelsFromChannelGroup() .channelGroup(String) .channels(Array) ``` | Parameter | Description | | --- | --- | | `channels` *Type: Array | The channels to remove from the channel group. | | `channelGroup` *Type: String | The channel group from which to remove the channels. | | `async`Type: PNCallback | `PNCallback` of type `PNChannelGroupsRemoveChannelResult`. | ### Sample code #### Remove channels ```java pubnub.removeChannelsFromChannelGroup() .channelGroup("family") .channels(Arrays.asList("son")) .async(new PNCallback() { @Override public void onResponse(PNChannelGroupsRemoveChannelResult result, PNStatus status) { } }); ``` ### Response The `removeChannelsFromChannelGroup()` does not return actionable data, be sure to check the status object on the outcome of the operation by checking the `status.isError()`. ```json { "status" : 200, "message" : "OK", "service" : "channel-registry", "error" : False } ``` ## Delete a channel group :::note Requires Stream Controller add-on This method requires that the *Stream Controller* add-on is enabled for your key in the [Admin Portal](https://admin.pubnub.com/). Read the [support page](https://support.pubnub.com/hc/en-us/articles/360051974791-How-do-I-enable-add-on-features-for-my-keys-) on enabling add-on features on your keys. ::: This function deletes a channel group. ### Method(s) Use the following method in the Android SDK: ```java pubnub.deleteChannelGroup() .channelGroup(String) ``` | Parameter | Description | | --- | --- | | `channelGroup` *Type: String | The channel group to delete. | | `async`Type: PNCallback | `PNCallback` of type `PNChannelGroupsDeleteGroupResult`. | ### Sample code #### Delete channel group ```java pubnub.deleteChannelGroup() .channelGroup("family") .async(new PNCallback() { @Override public void onResponse(PNChannelGroupsDeleteGroupResult result, PNStatus status) { } }); ``` ### Response The `deleteChannelGroup()` does not return actionable data, be sure to check the status object on the outcome of the operation by checking the `status.isError()`. ```json { "status" : 200, "message" : "OK", "service" : "channel-registry", "error" : False } ``` ## Terms in this document * **Channel** - A pathway for sending and receiving messages between devices, created automatically when you first use it, that can handle any number of users and messages for different communication needs, like 1-1 text chats, group conversations, and other data streaming. * **PubNub** - PubNub is a real-time messaging platform that provides APIs and SDKs for building scalable applications. It handles the complex infrastructure of real-time communication, including: Message delivery and persistence, Presence detection, Access control, Push notifications, File sharing, Serverless processing with Functions and Events & Actions, Analytics and monitoring with BizOps Workspace, AI-powered insights with Illuminate.