This example adds a list of places with image and name by using an ArrayList of custom Place objects as dataset.

Activity layout

The layout of the activity / fragment or where the RecyclerView is used only has to contain the RecyclerView. There is no ScrollView or a specific layout needed.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<RelativeLayout xmlns:android="<http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android>"
    android:layout_width="match_parent"
    android:layout_height="match_parent">

    <android.support.v7.widget.RecyclerView
        android:id="@+id/my_recycler_view"
        android:layout_width="match_parent"
        android:layout_height="match_parent" />

</RelativeLayout>

Define the data model

You could use any class or primitive data type as a model, like int, String, float[] or CustomObject. The RecyclerView will refer to a List of this objects / primitives.

When a list item refers to different data types like text, numbers, images (as in this example with places), it is often a good idea to use a custom object.

public class Place {
    // these fields will be shown in a list item
    private Bitmap image;
    private String name;

    // typical constructor
    public Place(Bitmap image, String name) {
        this.image = image;
        this.name = name;
    }

    // getters
    public Bitmap getImage() {
        return image;
    }
    public String getName() {
        return name;
    } 
}

List item layout

You have to specify a xml layout file that will be used for each list item. In this example, an ImageView is used for the image and a TextView for the name. The LinearLayout positions the ImageView at the left and the TextView right to the image.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<LinearLayout xmlns:android="<http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android>"
    android:layout_width="match_parent"
    android:layout_height="wrap_content"
    android:gravity="center_vertical"
    android:orientation="horizontal"
    android:padding="8dp">

    <ImageView
        android:id="@+id/image"
        android:layout_width="36dp"
        android:layout_height="36dp"
        android:layout_marginEnd="8dp"
        android:layout_marginRight="8dp" />

    <TextView
        android:id="@+id/name"
        android:layout_width="wrap_content"
        android:layout_height="wrap_content" />

</LinearLayout>

Create a RecyclerView adapter and ViewHolder

Next, you have to inherit the RecyclerView.Adapter and the RecyclerView.ViewHolder. A usual class structure would be:

public class PlaceListAdapter extends RecyclerView.Adapter<PlaceListAdapter.ViewHolder> {
    // ...

    public class ViewHolder extends RecyclerView.ViewHolder {
        // ...
    }
}

First, we implement the ViewHolder. It only inherits the default constructor and saves the needed views into some fields:

public class ViewHolder extends RecyclerView.ViewHolder {
    private ImageView imageView;
    private TextView nameView;

    public ViewHolder(View itemView) {
        super(itemView);

        imageView = (ImageView) itemView.findViewById(R.id.image);
        nameView = (TextView) itemView.findViewById(R.id.name);
    }
}

The adapter’s constructor sets the used dataset:

public class PlaceListAdapter extends RecyclerView.Adapter<PlaceListAdapter.ViewHolder> {
    private List<Place> mPlaces;

    public PlaceListAdapter(List<Place> contacts) {
        mPlaces = contacts;
    }

    // ...
}

To use our custom list item layout, we override the method onCreateViewHolder(...). In this example, the layout file is called place_list_item.xml.

public class PlaceListAdapter extends RecyclerView.Adapter<PlaceListAdapter.ViewHolder> {
    // ...

    @Override
    public ViewHolder onCreateViewHolder(ViewGroup parent, int viewType) {
        View view = LayoutInflater.from(parent.getContext()).inflate(
                R.layout.place_list_item,
                parent,
                false
        );
        return new ViewHolder(view);
    }

    // ...
}