Dozens of updates. No file size. No version change. And they're happening all the time. What's up with the Google Play Store refreshing apps that apparently don't need it?

Android owners over the past month and change have been sharing screenshots from the Play Store's updates page showing apps that apparently have updates in the queue, but with no file size. Those who dug into those apps' listings found no new changelog and no change in version number.

Image: Webber

There seems to be no appreciable effect when those updates are installed.

The so-called "phantom updates" or "ghost updates" seem to affect Google-made apps for the most part, but Android Police's Artem Russakovskii has come across exceptions.

An early report from 9to5Google late last month noted that if users swiped the Play Store off their Recent apps screen, then reopened it, they would see new apps awaiting an empty update.

A Pixel Phone Help thread on the matter was locked after a single reply.

Benign as these gremlins may seemingly be, it'd be great if they didn't exist in the first place. Short of that, an explanation would be nice.

  • Thanks:
  • Jonathan,
  • Webber