Note: this release was initially expected for mid-December 2025 but unexpected events led us to change expected release to early February 2026. We've changed the post title, the base version for new betas, and made updates below to reflect this.
This release is currently planned for early February. It will make the bottom sheet for select one from map more user friendly, prevent self-intersecting geoshapes and geotraces, enable offline Entity updates from repeats, and make a number of smaller improvements. Check back for updated betas as we get closer to release.
Why we do betas
ODK Collect betas are an opportunity to get community feedback on upcoming releases. If you have an ongoing data collection campaign, we recommend quickly verifying your form on a test device. We will keep sharing new betas as we respond to your feedback and will let you know when the beta is a release candidate.
Joining the beta program
To join the beta program, find ODK Collect in the Play Store on your device (not in the web browser) and scroll all the way down. Please don't join the beta with a device or account actively used for data collection! In particular, note that joining the beta is account-based. If you use the same Google account across multiple devices, do not join the beta with that account.
Leaving the beta program
You can leave the beta program from the bottom of the Play Store listing at any time. Once you leave, you will get the next production update when it is released. If you need to go back to the previous production release, uninstall and reinstall the app. Please make sure to back up or submit any important data.
What to check in this release
Updated repeat dialog to increase clarity. Learn more.
intersects function to detect self-intersections in geotrace or geoshape values. Try it with this sample form.
Real-time evaluation of geotrace and geoshape constraints. Try it with this sample form.
Guidance hints are now displayed and collapsed by default. Previously, guidance hints were not shown by default. They are now shown collapsed unless explicitly configured to be turned off or always shown.
Updated style for markup and signature exit dialog. The functionality should still be clear to existing users.
Mapbox mapping library upgrade. If you rely on Mapbox you may want to double check this.
@LN - I just found out that I can't tap to select a geopoint or a geoshape in Mapbox in the beta. Assume same goes for geotrace. Google basemap allows selection.
We’ve added the intersects function, which detects self-intersections in geotrace and geoshape values. This is our first step toward preventing invalid polygons, which we discussed on the Insiders call last month. You can now try the function out using this sample form, see how it behaves, and share your feedback as we continue shaping the feature.
Other improvements
System Entity properties (__version) and styling properties are now hidden in the select one from map bottom sheet
Does anyone have feedback on the new repeat dialog?
If you’ve tried the beta, you’ll notice we’ve updated the language, added icons, and stacked the buttons (so that it works better on smaller devices with longer translations). Let us know what you think!
@Tyler_Depke reminded me about this. I didn't think that a Collect beta offered this feature yet as I haven't seen it mentioned in the Beta announcements or the thread about entities from repeats, but did I miss it? Looking at the beta release notes, is this it?
Following up on @ahblake’s comment – I've implemented entities from repeats in Central but Collect (v2025.3.3) doesn't seem to support it. The entities from repeat Central update thread responses make it seem Collect 2025.4 beta 2 does support forms with entities from repeats.
Is there an update for the launch of Collect 2025.4? Would really love to have this for my new project but will default to manual manipulation into a .csv if need to!
@laurespake we're not yet sure whether we'll make Entities from repeats available in this coming release. I've written up some more details on why at Create and update Entities from repeats - #11 by LN, we'd love to see your test form if you can share it.
We are now targeting the first week of February for release. We have changed the release version to v2026.1 to reflect this change in timeline. There are still a few unknowns but we are getting close. Thanks to everyone for the great feedback.
ODK Collect v2026.1.0-beta.0 is now available
You can now try offline Entity updates and creation from repeat! You will need to opt in from Experimental settings. You can use these sample forms:
This beta also provides partial support for continuous constraint evaluation for geotrace and geoshape. You can try it by adding incremental=true to the parameters column of a geotrace or geoshape question in XLSForm. You can also use this sample form to try out what we have so far.
There is still work to do on this functionality:
Once the constraint is violated, it will not be possible to add points until the violation is fixed
It will not be possible to save a trace/shape until there are no constraint violations
Invalid traces/shapes will be shown in red, valid traces/shapes will be shown in blue
Vertex markers will be increased in size so they can be moved more easily
More information on how to fix the issue will be available from the constraint error message
Note: this release was initially expected for mid-December 2025 but unexpected events led us to change expected release to early February 2026. We've changed the post title, the base version for new betas, and made updates below to reflect this.
Updated repeat dialog to increase clarity. Learn more.
Real-time evaluation of 
Guidance hints are now displayed and collapsed by default. Previously, guidance hints were not shown by default. They are now shown collapsed unless explicitly configured to be turned off or always shown.
Updated style for markup and signature exit dialog. The functionality should still be clear to existing users.
Mapbox mapping library upgrade. If you rely on Mapbox you may want to double check this.
Offline Entity create/update from repeat. Try it with this registration form and this follow-up form, don't forget to turn off network access!
