---
title: "runEmptyComposeUiTest"
description: "Variant of [runComposeUiTest] that does not launch an Activity to host Compose content in and
thus acts as an \"empty shell\". Use this if you need to have control over the timing and method of
launching the Activity, for example when you want to launch it with a custom Intent, or if you
have a complex test setup.
When using this method, calling [ComposeUiTest.setContent] will throw an IllegalStateException.
Instead, you'll have to set the content in the Activity that you have launched yourself, either
directly on the Activity or on an [androidx.compose.ui.platform.AbstractComposeView]. You will
need to do this from within the [test lambda][block], or the test framework will not be able to
find the content.
Avoid using [androidx.compose.ui.test.junit4.ComposeTestRule] (e.g., createComposeRule) inside
[runEmptyComposeUiTest][block] or any of their respective variants. Since these APIs
independently manage the test environment, mixing them may lead to unexpected behavior."
type: "function"
---
Function
Android
> **Deprecated** Use `androidx.compose.ui.test.v2.runEmptyComposeUiTest` instead. The v2 APIs align with standard coroutine behavior by queuing tasks rather than executing them immediately. Tests relying on immediate execution may require explicit synchronization. Please refer to the migration guide for more details.
```kotlin
@ExperimentalTestApi
fun runEmptyComposeUiTest(block: ComposeUiTest.() -> Unit): TestResult
```
Variant of `runComposeUiTest` that does not launch an Activity to host Compose content in and
thus acts as an "empty shell". Use this if you need to have control over the timing and method of
launching the Activity, for example when you want to launch it with a custom Intent, or if you
have a complex test setup.
When using this method, calling `ComposeUiTest.setContent` will throw an IllegalStateException.
Instead, you'll have to set the content in the Activity that you have launched yourself, either
directly on the Activity or on an `androidx.compose.ui.platform.AbstractComposeView`. You will
need to do this from within the `test lambda`, or the test framework will not be able to
find the content.
Avoid using `androidx.compose.ui.test.junit4.ComposeTestRule` (e.g., createComposeRule) inside
`runEmptyComposeUiTest` or any of their respective variants. Since these APIs
independently manage the test environment, mixing them may lead to unexpected behavior.
Android
```kotlin
@ExperimentalTestApi
fun runEmptyComposeUiTest(block: ComposeUiTest.() -> Unit): TestResult
```
Variant of `runComposeUiTest` that does not launch an Activity to host Compose content in and
thus acts as an "empty shell". Use this if you need to have control over the timing and method of
launching the Activity, for example when you want to launch it with a custom Intent, or if you
have a complex test setup.
This implementation uses `kotlinx.coroutines.test.StandardTestDispatcher` by default for running
composition. This ensures that the test behavior is consistent with
`kotlinx.coroutines.test.runTest` and provides explicit control over coroutine execution order.
This means you may need to explicitly advance time or run current coroutines when testing complex
coroutine logic, as tasks are queued on the scheduler rather than running eagerly.
When using this method, calling `ComposeUiTest.setContent` will throw an IllegalStateException.
Instead, you'll have to set the content in the Activity that you have launched yourself, either
directly on the Activity or on an `androidx.compose.ui.platform.AbstractComposeView`. You will
need to do this from within the `test lambda`, or the test framework will not be able to
find the content.
Avoid using `androidx.compose.ui.test.junit4.ComposeTestRule` (e.g., createComposeRule) inside
`runEmptyComposeUiTest` or any of their respective variants. Since these APIs
independently manage the test environment, mixing them may lead to unexpected behavior.