How to Run Android App on Your PC

You no longer need a dedicated Android phone or tablet to experience the 1.4 million apps available in Google Play. Android emulators make it easy to run Google's mobile OS side by side with Windows, so you can always access your favorite mobile messaging apps, games and more on the PCs you already own — and take advantage of your larger monitor, hardware keyboard and other peripherals. Here are the best ways to run Android on your computer.


How Android Emulators Work

Emulators are programs that basically mimic or act like the hardware and operating system of other machines. When you install an emulator, you get a virtual console in which you can install other apps and play around with the system. Whether you want to check out Android before you buy a device, develop and test your own Android apps, expand Windows' paltry app selection, or sync apps between your Android phone or tablet and your PC.

Use BlueStacks







BlueStacks App Player was one of the first Android emulators. Rather than virtualize the full Android OS, the program lets you install and run individual Android apps on your PC, either in full-screen or windowed mode. According to the company, the system is compatible with 96 percent of the apps available in Google Play and 86 percent of Android games.
While you can search for any Android app to install on your PC using BlueStacks, it is particularly focused on games, as its home page filled with suggested games by category reveals. If you have a touch-screen computer, you can interact with Android apps just like you would on an Android phone or tablet: by tapping, swiping and tilting away.
Unfortunately, although BlueStacks runs many games quite well, I found the program to be buggy and the user interface inflexible. However, it is a free program that doesn't take up a lot of resources (it requires just 2GB of RAM) — as long as you're willing to occasionally install BlueStacks' recommended apps. Otherwise, the program costs $2 a month to keep playing.
Best for: people who don't need the entire Android OS, want a free solution (and are OK with installing random apps) and just want to play Android games, particularly on a resource-limited computer.