Where is the ViewModel typically placed in the application architecture?

In the architecture of an Android application using the MVVM pattern, the ViewModel is usually placed in the presentation (UI) layer but is logically separated from the Activity or Fragment. The ViewModel acts as an intermediary between the UI and business logic, providing storage and management of data necessary for display, and survives configuration changes (such as screen rotation).

Typically, the ViewModel is located in a separate package or module related to the UI, for example ui.viewmodel or presentation.viewmodel. This helps clearly delineate responsibilities and facilitates testing.

An example package structure:

com.example.app
 ├─ data
 ├─ domain
 └─ ui
     ├─ view
     └─ viewmodel

Thus, the ViewModel is closer to the UI but does not contain display code; it only manages data for it.