Pick an Image from the Gallery – Android Studio - Java

How to Pick an Image from the Gallery?

In this tutorial, we will walk through the complete process of selecting an image from the device’s Gallery in an Android application. This feature is commonly used in many modern apps—for uploading profile pictures, choosing photos for posts, or attaching images to forms.

We will start by creating a simple layout with a button that the user can tap to open the Gallery. Once the button is clicked, the system’s built-in image picker will appear, allowing the user to browse their photo library and select a single image. After the user chooses an image, we will retrieve its URI and display it inside an ImageView within our app.

>> Check for Java
>> Check for Kotlin
>> Check for Compose

Code:

activity_main.xml

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<LinearLayout xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
    xmlns:app="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res-auto"
    xmlns:tools="http://schemas.android.com/tools"
    android:id="@+id/main"
    android:layout_width="match_parent"
    android:layout_height="match_parent"
    android:gravity="center"
    android:orientation="vertical"
    android:padding="50dp"
    tools:context=".MainActivity">

    <ImageView
        android:id="@+id/imageIv"
        android:layout_width="match_parent"
        android:layout_height="300dp"
        android:adjustViewBounds="true"
        android:scaleType="fitCenter"
        android:src="@drawable/ic_image_black" />

    <com.google.android.material.button.MaterialButton
        android:id="@+id/pickImageBtn"
        android:layout_width="wrap_content"
        android:layout_height="wrap_content"
        android:text="Pick Image Gallery" />

</LinearLayout>

MainActivity.java

package com.technifysoft.myapplication;

import android.content.Intent;
import android.net.Uri;
import android.os.Bundle;
import android.util.Log;
import android.widget.Toast;

import androidx.activity.EdgeToEdge;
import androidx.activity.result.ActivityResultLauncher;
import androidx.activity.result.contract.ActivityResultContracts;
import androidx.annotation.Nullable;
import androidx.appcompat.app.AppCompatActivity;

import com.technifysoft.myapplication.databinding.ActivityMainBinding;

public class MainActivity extends AppCompatActivity {

    private ActivityMainBinding binding;

    private static final String TAG = "MAIN_TAG";

    private Uri imageUri = null;

    @Override
    protected void onCreate(@Nullable Bundle savedInstanceState) {
        super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
        EdgeToEdge.enable(this);
        binding = ActivityMainBinding.inflate(getLayoutInflater());
        setContentView(binding.getRoot());

        binding.pickImageBtn.setOnClickListener(v -> pickImageGallery());
    }

    private void pickImageGallery() {
        Log.d(TAG, "pickImageGallery: ");
        Intent intent = new Intent(Intent.ACTION_GET_CONTENT);
        intent.setType("image/*");
        galleryActivityResultLauncher.launch(intent);
    }

    private final ActivityResultLauncher<Intent> galleryActivityResultLauncher =
            registerForActivityResult(new ActivityResultContracts.StartActivityForResult(), result -> {
                //Check if image is picked or not
                if (result.getResultCode() == RESULT_OK) {
                    //Image Picked from Gallery, get data/intent from ActivityResult
                    Intent data = result.getData();
                    if (data != null) {
                        //get uri of image picked
                        imageUri = data.getData();
                        Log.d(TAG, "onActivityResult: Image Picked From Gallery: " + imageUri);

                        try {
                            //set to profileIv
                            binding.imageIv.setImageURI(imageUri);
                        } catch (Exception e) {
                            Log.e(TAG, "onActivityResult error: ", e);
                        }
                    }

                } else {
                    //Cancelled
                    Log.d(TAG, "onActivityResult: Cancelled...");
                    Toast.makeText(this, "Cancelled", Toast.LENGTH_SHORT).show();
                }
            });
}

Screenshot: