How to Login to Google on Android 4.0

April 28, 2025

When you try logging into Google on a device running Android 4, every attempt will fail, saying your login is incorrect. This is because the ability to login to Google accounts on Android 4 has been discontinued. However, there is still a way to login, just in case you really want to.

Now, I want to say that there is little to no benefit of logging in. The Google Play store will never load, and most Google services don't work on Android 4. The only thing that I could get to work was favorites on Google Maps, and I don't know why you would want those on an old Android device in the first place. But, just in case, here is a tutorial on how to login to Google.

1. On Another Device

This part should be completed on another device in preparation. No, you don't have to download anything.

  1. Login to the Google Account you would like to use on the Android device
  2. Go to Google Keep[1]
  3. This part is optional, but highly recommended. If you have any other notes, archive them. Old Android devices are slow, and as a result, layout changes from them loading new notes (especially with images) takes forever.
  4. Make a new note that says the following:

    https://accounts.google.com/o/android/auth

2. On The Android Device

  1. Login to your "Existing" Google account
  2. Hit the 3 dots in the top right corner of the screen and select "Browser sign-in" Screenshot of "Browser sign-in" being visible in a context menu
  3. This will take you to a 404 page. Tap the Google logo on this screen to be taken to the Google homepage Screenshot of a Google 404 page
  4. Sign into your Google Account from the homepage. If you get a "This app or browser may not be secure" error, just keep trying again, or try a different account if you're feeling impatient. Restarting from step 1 of this section may also work.
  5. Once you're logged in, search for "Google Keep" on Google
  6. Open the link. After a few seconds, the note should load. Tap the link, and for some reason you will get a Google Keep error the first time. Just hit "reload" and tap the link again. Screenshot of the Google Keep desktop interface in a browser sign-in page
  7. You should now be signed into your Google account! Enjoy your synced Google Maps favorites! Screenshot of a favorite Google Maps location in Tennessee called "Please show this Rd as Rogers Rd Thansk

  1. Other people say you can email the link to yourself, but I could never get the email to load in the legacy Gmail interface. Using a Google service for this is required as the login screen will automatically error you out if you visit a site that isn't on a Google domain ↩︎