diff --git a/pythonforandroid/recipe.py b/pythonforandroid/recipe.py
index 1d5e3e9104..de075be4ee 100644
--- a/pythonforandroid/recipe.py
+++ b/pythonforandroid/recipe.py
@@ -531,11 +531,10 @@ def unpack(self, arch):
     def get_recipe_env(self, arch=None, with_flags_in_cc=True):
         """Return the env specialized for the recipe
         """
-        if arch is None:
-            arch = self.filtered_archs[0]
+        arch = arch or self.filtered_archs[0]
         env = arch.get_env(with_flags_in_cc=with_flags_in_cc)
 
-        for proxy_key in ['HTTP_PROXY', 'http_proxy', 'HTTPS_PROXY', 'https_proxy']:
+        for proxy_key in ('HTTP_PROXY', 'http_proxy', 'HTTPS_PROXY', 'https_proxy'):
             if proxy_key in environ:
                 env[proxy_key] = environ[proxy_key]
 
diff --git a/pythonforandroid/recipes/python3/__init__.py b/pythonforandroid/recipes/python3/__init__.py
index 3da132d698..79b67962f4 100644
--- a/pythonforandroid/recipes/python3/__init__.py
+++ b/pythonforandroid/recipes/python3/__init__.py
@@ -73,23 +73,28 @@ class Python3Recipe(TargetPythonRecipe):
     configure_args = [
         '--host={android_host}',
         '--build={android_build}',
-        '--enable-shared',
         '--enable-ipv6',
         '--enable-loadable-sqlite-extensions',
-        '--without-static-libpython',
-        '--without-readline',
+        '--enable-shared',
+
+        # Attempt on making the builds lighter
+        '--disable-test-modules',
+        '--without-doc-strings',
         '--without-ensurepip',
+        '--without-readline',
+        '--without-static-libpython',
 
         # Android prefix
         '--prefix={prefix}',
-        '--enable-loadable-sqlite-extensions',
 
         # Special cross compile args
-        'ac_cv_file__dev_ptmx=yes',
         'ac_cv_file__dev_ptc=no',
-        'ac_cv_header_sys_eventfd_h=no',
-        'ac_cv_little_endian_double=yes',
+        'ac_cv_file__dev_ptmx=yes',
         'ac_cv_header_bzlib_h=no',
+        'ac_cv_header_sys_eventfd_h=no',
+        'py_cv_module__curses=n/a',
+        'py_cv_module__curses_panel=n/a',
+        'py_cv_module__tkinter=n/a'
     ]
 
     '''The configure arguments needed to build the python recipe. Those are
@@ -100,26 +105,31 @@ class Python3Recipe(TargetPythonRecipe):
     MIN_NDK_API = 21
     '''Sets the minimal ndk api number needed to use the recipe.
 
-    .. warning:: This recipe can be built only against API 21+, so it means
-        that any class which inherits from class:`GuestPythonRecipe` will have
-        this limitation.
+    .. warning:: Starting from Python 3.14 this recipe can only be built
+       against API 24+, so it means that any class which inherits from
+       class:`GuestPythonRecipe` will have this limitation.
     '''
 
     stdlib_dir_blacklist = {
         '__pycache__',
-        'test',
-        'tests',
-        'lib2to3',
+        'curses',
         'ensurepip',
         'idlelib',
+        'lib2to3',
+        'pydoc_data',
+        'test',
+        'tests',
         'tkinter',
+        'turtledemo',
+        'venv'
     }
     '''The directories that we want to omit for our python bundle'''
 
     stdlib_filen_blacklist = [
-        '*.py',
         '*.exe',
+        '*.py',
         '*.whl',
+        'turtle.pyc'
     ]
     '''The file extensions that we want to blacklist for our python bundle'''
 
@@ -139,7 +149,8 @@ class Python3Recipe(TargetPythonRecipe):
     if the full path contains any of these exceptions.'''
 
     site_packages_filen_blacklist = [
-        '*.py'
+        '*.py',
+        '*.pyx'
     ]
     '''The file extensions from site packages dir that we don't want to be
     included in our python bundle.'''
@@ -235,19 +246,18 @@ def prebuild_arch(self, arch):
     def get_recipe_env(self, arch=None, with_flags_in_cc=True):
         env = super().get_recipe_env(arch)
         env['HOSTARCH'] = arch.command_prefix
-
         env['CC'] = arch.get_clang_exe(with_target=True)
-
-        env['PATH'] = (
-            '{hostpython_dir}:{old_path}').format(
-                hostpython_dir=self.get_recipe(
-                    'host' + self.name, self.ctx).get_path_to_python(),
-                old_path=env['PATH'])
-
+        env['PATH'] = '{hostpython_dir}:{old_path}'.format(
+            hostpython_dir=self.get_recipe(
+                'host' + self.name, self.ctx
+            ).get_path_to_python(),
+            old_path=env['PATH']
+        )
         env['CFLAGS'] = ' '.join(
             [
-                '-fPIC',
-                '-DANDROID'
+                '-ffunction-sections',
+                '-fdata-sections',
+                '-fPIC'
             ]
         )
 
@@ -402,7 +412,7 @@ def compile_python_files(self, dir):
             longer used...uses .pyc (https://www.python.org/dev/peps/pep-0488)
         '''
         args = [self.ctx.hostpython]
-        args += ['-OO', '-m', 'compileall', '-b', '-f', dir]
+        args += ['-OO', '-m', 'compileall', '-b', '-f', '-q', dir]
         subprocess.call(args)
 
     def create_python_bundle(self, dirn, arch):
diff --git a/tests/recipes/test_python3.py b/tests/recipes/test_python3.py
index e3b69e4bcb..b5e239cbcd 100644
--- a/tests/recipes/test_python3.py
+++ b/tests/recipes/test_python3.py
@@ -40,7 +40,7 @@ def test_compile_python_files(self, mock_subprocess):
         hostpy = self.recipe.ctx.hostpython = '/fake/hostpython3'
         self.recipe.compile_python_files(fake_compile_dir)
         mock_subprocess.assert_called_once_with(
-            [hostpy, '-OO', '-m', 'compileall', '-b', '-f', fake_compile_dir],
+            [hostpy, '-OO', '-m', 'compileall', '-b', '-f', '-q', fake_compile_dir],
         )
 
     @mock.patch("pythonforandroid.recipe.Recipe.check_recipe_choices")
@@ -61,7 +61,7 @@ def test_get_recipe_env(
         )
         env = self.recipe.get_recipe_env(self.arch)
 
-        self.assertIn('-fPIC -DANDROID', env["CFLAGS"])
+        self.assertIn('-fPIC', env["CFLAGS"])
         self.assertEqual(env["CC"], self.arch.get_clang_exe(with_target=True))
 
         # make sure that the mocked methods are actually called