However, it can also just flat run on your computer through a USB stick. It works as an Android emulator for PC via virtual machine. We linked to the official GitHub where you can find detailed instructions for its use.īliss is something a little bit different. On the plus side, though, it works with any operating system that can run an instance of Chrome (Mac OS, Linux, Windows, etc). There are a lot more steps to make this work than most other Android emulators for PC. As an added rub, you may need to use a tool to change the APK in order to make it compatible. From there, you have to obtain APKs and load them in. You’ll have to install the thing to Chrome. It’s not an easy emulator to get running. It then gives Chrome the ability to run Android apps and games (albeit with limited support). You install it as a Google Chrome extension.

However, most emulators right now run anywhere between Android 7.0 Nougat and Android 9.0 Pie.ĪRChon isn’t a traditional emulator.

Luckily, most apps and games still function on older versions of Android so this shouldn’t be a big deal. At this time, no emulators run the latest versions of Android except for ones made for developers. It’s better that way.įinally, a bit of a disclaimer.

Even so, in this day and age, we recommend going the Chromebook route if you want to run Android apps in a laptop or computer environment. However, those with hyper specific use cases and a little knowledge can try ARChon and Bliss. Any gaming emulator works as a productivity emulator to an extent. This isn’t nearly as common because Chromebooks are cheaper and better for using Android apps on something other than a phone and most productivity tools are cross-platform. Of course, this is no problem for developers that already have all the necessary software on their machines. The only drawback for non-developers, is that it comes with an installation of the space-hungry Android Studio and Android Software Development Kit (SDK). Fortunately, Android Studio comes with the “Android Virtual Device” (AVD) which blows all other emulators out of the water in terms of performance and functionality. Android app and game developers like to test apps and games on as many devices a possible before launch. The second most common use case is development. The best Android emulators for gaming include LDPlayer, Bluestacks, MeMu, KoPlayer, and Nox. In most cases, these little tricks aren’t illegal (in most games) so nobody really has a problem with it. They don’t have to rely on the battery life of their devices and the existence of macros and other tricks help the process. Gamers can use emulators on their computers to make some games easier to play. The first is the most common and it’s for gaming. Read more: The three main uses for Android emulators This could mean big things for the Android emulator market. It’s also worth noting that Windows may allow for Android apps directly in Windows 10 starting in 2021. Here are the best Android emulators for PC and Mac. Some old favorites either left the space or become unusable (Andy, AmiduOS, and Leapdroid), but everything else here should work okay for most people. In any case, Android emulation on PC is possible and it’s a lot easier than it used to be. Gamers may want to use a mouse and keyboard on their games. App developers may be trying to test their application before shipping it out.

Most of the rest simply haven’t been updated or in active development in years and don’t really work well anymore with newer operating systems and hardware.There are a lot of valid reasons why someone would want to run Android emulators on their PC.

You can still get it at the link, but it’s not in active development so it won’t get any more updates.

YouWave, a once-popular option, has fallen out of favor because it runs much older versions of Android than most of its competitors.

If it comes back up by the time we update this piece again, we’ll gladly add it back to the list. However, the website appears to be down as of the time of this writing.

KoPlayer is an outstanding Android emulator for gamers.

However, it is no longer actively updated so we removed it from the list.

Droid4x used to be one of the best options and its later builds are still available.

We don’t know if it’s from the third-party installer or from the Andy developers so until that whole situation resolves, we’re keeping it off of the list.

Andy began using some seriously not great development tactics, including suspected bitcoin mining without user permission.

You can still try it out, but you have to browse the official subreddit for download links.

AMIDuOS closed its doors officially on March 7th, 2018.

Leapdroid was purchased by Google and no longer operates.

Multi android emulator mac