Kotlin – How to Use ViewBinding in Android (2025 Guide)

🔰 What is ViewBinding in Android?

ViewBinding is a feature introduced by Google that helps you directly reference views in your XML layout files without using findViewById(). It improves code safety, reduces boilerplate, and works great with Kotlin.

🚀 Why Use ViewBinding?

• ✅ Type-safe view access
• ✅ No need for findViewById()
• ✅ Works with Fragments, Activities, Adapters
• ✅ Prevents NullPointerExceptions
• ✅ Faster & better than Kotlin synthetics (which are now deprecated)

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🧱 How to Enable ViewBinding in Your Project

👉 Step 1: Enable ViewBinding in build.gradle

Add the following inside the android {} block of your build.gradle file:

Click Sync Now in Android Studio.

📄 Example Layout (activity_main.xml)

✅ Full Kotlin Code (MainActivity.kt)

📌 Notes

• The generated binding class is named ActivityMainBinding (based on your XML filename).
• Use .inflate(layoutInflater) to initialize it.
• Replace setContentView(R.layout.activity_main) with setContentView(binding.root).

💡 Using ViewBinding in Fragments

✅ Benefits Over findViewById() or Kotlin Synthetics

Feature	findViewById	Kotlin Synthetics	ViewBinding
Null Safety	❌	❌	✅
Type Safety	❌	✅	✅
Code Readability	❌	✅	✅
Deprecated?	❌	✅ (Deprecated)	❌

🎯 Conclusion

ViewBinding is a modern, powerful way to access your views in Android development. It’s fast, safe, and works perfectly with Kotlin. If you’re still using findViewById() or Kotlin Synthetics, now is the best time to switch!