Google App is Published on Internal Test Track but Can't Be Found/Downloaded

Question

If this is the first time your app is being published on a track, it will take a couple of hours to be processed. This is only a one-time thing though, for future updates, the availability will be immediate on the internal test track.

Once the app is available, you'll also need to follow the opt-in link to be eligible for the download of the app.

Please delete cache and data of google play app on your device, then new updated version will be available

For Android App Bundles (AAB)

1. On the left menu, select Release > Devices and versions > App bundle explorer.

2. Select the artifact filter near the top right of the page.

3. On the “Choose an artifact” table, select the right arrow on the artifact you want to view.

4. Select the Downloads tab.

5. To share a link to install a specific APK: In the “Internal app sharing link” section, select Copy shareable link.

As of today, the format of the shareable link:

https://play.google.com/apps/test/<package.name>/<version.number>

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For Both APKs and AABs

You can use Internal app sharing instead.

Upload an APK or app bundle on the internal app sharing upload page Then you can make your app available to anyone by sharing a download link.

Before anyone can download, they need to turn on internal app sharing on their Google Play Store app.

• Open the Google Play Store app Google Play.
• Tap Menu Menu > Settings.
• In the “About” section, tap the Play Store version 7 times.
• After the Internal app sharing setting appears, tap the switch to turn on internal app sharing.

More information can be found here.

I just went through this completely unintuitive process, so let me clear up some myths:

1. Internal testing does NOT require the app be publicly released
2. The review process for your app apparently needs to complete before the app is available, as others pointed out, but the Play Console gives no indication this is a prerequisite, and happily states in several places that the App is available to internal testers when it is not. In my case the review took about a month to complete, which is why the "We are experiencing longer than normal review times" message was appearing in the console. This was the initial creation of my app, so I don't know which items-under-review were actually required, as the whole backlog completed at the same time (also with no notice to me).
3. Even at this point, if I follow the 'join' link on my phone, I still have the same issues the OP had. Clearing Play Store cache and other tricks did nothing. Instead, I had to click it from a PC, follow the prompts, and choose to install to a specific device (which requires the 7-tap developer mode on the device mentioned by others)