What is the difference between processes and threads in Android?

The concepts of Android processes and threads are two distinct entities.

1. Processes: Processes are programs running in a computer, serving as the basic unit for resource allocation and scheduling by the operating system. Each process has its own independent memory space, containing the application’s code, data, and runtime state. Processes are separate from each other and cannot directly access each other’s memory space. When running, Android applications are allocated their own separate process, ensuring isolation between applications.
2. Threads: Threads are the unit of execution in a process, and a process can contain multiple threads. Threads are the basic unit scheduled by the operating system, they share the memory space of the process to access its resources. Different threads can share data and execute concurrently. In Android, applications by default run on the main thread, also known as the UI thread. Performing time-consuming operations on the UI thread can lead to lagging interfaces, thus the need to use multiple threads for such operations.

Summary: Processes are independent execution environments, while threads are the execution units within a process. Processes are independent of each other, while threads can share data. Processes have their own memory space, while threads share the memory space of the process.