Fix “Error Could not find method implementation() for arguments [com.android.support:appcompat-v7:26.0.0]” in Android Studio

16 Jun, 2021
Implementation is a dependency configuration used for library declaration and was introduced in the Android Gradle Plugin 3.0 by Google. Implementation dependencies are declared in this configuration which is internal and not meant for consumer exposure. The main reason for “Could not find method implementation() for arguments [com.android.support:appcompat-v7:26.0.0]”” error is that the Gradle cannot recognize the implementation configuration. In this article, we will be discussing 5 different methods to solve this error.
Method 1: Update to the latest Gradle version
Method 2: Change “implementation” to “compile”
Method 3: Move dependencies to module build.gradle
Method 4: Change apply plugin: “java” to “java-library”
Method 5: Change “implementationSdkVersion” to “compileSdkVersion”
In case you are using the “implementation” configuration in an older version of Gradle, the Gradle will not recognize it and throw this error. Hence updating Gradle and Gradle build plugin to the latest version can help solve this issue. 
Step 1: Navigate to  app > Gradle Script > build.gradle (Project: app). Now inside the “dependencies” block, update the classpath to the latest version of the Gradle build plugin. 
dependencies { classpath "com.android.tools.build:gradle:4.0.2" }
Step 2: Now navigate to app > Gradle Script > gradle-wrapper.properties and update the “distributionUrl” to the latest version of Gradle. After adding this code sync your project to solve this issue. 
distributionUrl=https\://services.gradle.org/distributions/gradle-6.1.1-all.zip
If you are using the “implementation” configuration in a Gradle Plugin version less than 3.0, the Gradle will not recognize it and will throw this error. Hence changing “implementation” to “compile” would work. Navigate to app > Gradle Script > build.gradle (Module:app). Inside the dependencies block change “implementation” to “compile“, “testImplementation” to “testCompile” and “androidTestImplementation” to “androidTestCompile“. 
dependencies {
    compile fileTree(dir: "libs", include: ["*.jar"])
    compile 'androidx.appcompat:appcompat:1.3.0'
    compile 'androidx.constraintlayout:constraintlayout:2.0.4'
    compile 'com.google.firebase:firebase-database:20.0.0'
    compile 'com.google.firebase:firebase-analytics'
    compile platform('com.google.firebase:firebase-bom:28.0.1')
    compile 'com.google.android.material:material:1.3.0'
    compile 'com.google.android:flexbox:2.0.1'
    compile 'androidx.cardview:cardview:1.0.0'
    compile 'com.google.firebase:firebase-storage:20.0.0'
    testCompile 'junit:junit:4.12'
    androidTestCompile  'androidx.test.ext:junit:1.1.2'
    androidTestCompile 'androidx.test.espresso:espresso-core:3.3.0'
}
In Android Studio, there is two build.gradle files. One is for the Project level and another one for the Module level. If application dependencies are added in the Project level build.gradle file, it throws the error “Could not find implementation() method”. Adding these dependencies into the module build.gradle can help solve this issue.
The Java Library plugin expands the capabilities of the Java plugin by providing specific knowledge about Java libraries. Change the code inside the Module level build.gradle from 
apply plugin: 'java'
to 
apply plugin: 'java-library'
After adding this code sync your project to solve this issue. 
The version of the compiler used while building the app is determined by the “compileSdkVersion” while there is no such method as “implementationSdkVersion” in Gradle. Hence changing “implementationSdkVersion” to “compileSdkVersion” can solve this issue. Navigate to  app > Gradle Script > build.gradle (Module:app). Change the code from
android {
   implementationSdkVersion 30
   .......
   }
to
android {
   compileSdkVersion 30
   .......
   }
After adding this code sync your project to solve this issue. 
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