Downloading android apps to mac

How to Run Android Apps on Mac

While Android apps are not natively supported in macOS, running Android apps on Mac is not a difficult task. Just downloading the apps won’t be enough. Before you can start running them on your Mac, you’ll need to choose and install an Android emulator. This is a piece of software that effectively simulates the Android operating system on your Mac, allowing you to run the apps. We show you hear how to choose and install an emulator to run Android apps on Mac.

Choosing an Android Emulator

When it comes to emulators, you have a few different choices. If you’re particularly tech-savvy or just interested in the variety available, you may want an option that gives you more control over how it runs. If you’re using your Mac to develop Android apps, you may need better development functionality.

We show you next how to set up our favorite general-purpose Android emulator, BlueStacks. BlueStacks is one of the oldest and easiest-to-use Android emulators for Mac that’s still being updated. It’s also easy to set up, which makes it great for just about anyone – regardless of their technical ability or familiarity with Mac or Android.

BlueStacks is also very well-documented, so if you run into any troubles with setup or a specific app, someone out there has probably tackled the problem you’re dealing with.

Installing and Running Apps with BlueStacks

To run BlueStacks, you will need macOS Sierra or above. While macOS Big Sur wasn’t originally supported, BlueStacks has now added support for it. You’ll also need 4 gigabytes of RAM and 4 gigabytes of free disk space. If your Mac is particularly old (2014 or earlier), your graphics card may not be powerful enough to run Android apps. You can view the full requirements to ensure you’re all set.

Also, BlueStacks downloads Android app files by pulling them from the Google Play store. If you don’t have a Google account, you’ll need to set one up before you can run apps with BlueStacks.

Currently, BlueStacks 4 is the most current version available for macOS. However, BlueStacks 5 has been released and should be compatible soon. Keep checking to see when the newest version will be available.

If your system meets all those requirements, then follow the steps below to install BlueStacks:

1. First, navigate to the emulator’s download page, then double-click on the downloaded setup file with the .dmg extension.
2. When the application opens, double-click on the BlueStacks logo to proceed.
3. Click the “Install Now” button that appears at the bottom of the app window.
4. If you get a “System Extension Blocked” pop-up, click on the “Open Security & Privacy” button.
5. This should open a system privacy settings menu. At the bottom, click the “Allow” button.

After that, the installation should proceed by itself. If you’re having trouble following these steps, you can try following along with BlueStack’s video of the installation process.

Once BlueStacks is installed, running Android apps will be pretty simple. When BlueStacks is open, you’ll be able to navigate to the Google Play store from the main app page. From there, you can start downloading your apps. Once downloaded, you can launch these apps by clicking on their icons on the main page.

Other Emulator Options

There are other emulators available to help you run Android apps on Mac. BlueStacks is usually the most user-friendly, though. Some, such as Android Studio, are more development and testing environments than a tool to download and use apps.

The Nox App Player is a popular alternative that works similarly to BlueStacks. Once you get everything set up, you also get the added benefit of adding multiple user accounts. This is handy if you want to play multiple characters or accounts in the same game.

Andy is another option. It’s designed to offer a seamless experience between Android and Windows or macOS. While it does offer the ability to use your phone as a controller, it’s not the most up-to-date emulator. Currently, OS X Mountain Lion is the most current macOS version, and there’s no support for Windows. It may not be compatible with newer versions of macOS. However, for older versions, it could be a great BlueStacks alternative.

Genymotion is ideal if you’re a developer and want to test your apps. It’s not a free emulator, and it charges by the hour or year for desktop use. If you just want to play your favorite Android games on Mac, this one isn’t right for you.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Can I install Android apps directly on Mac?

No. Android apps are developed specifically for Android devices. These use different hardware. Plus, Android and Mac are two drastically different operating systems, meaning the coding for an Android app wouldn’t be compatible with Mac and vice versa.

2. Is BlueStacks compatible with Big Sur?

Yes. If you google this question, you’ll see many users complain that BlueStacks doesn’t work on macOS Big Sur, but BlueStacks has added support since then. Typically, it takes several months for emulators to make the necessary changes to support new major OS releases.

3. Will all Android apps work on Mac?

This depends on the type of app. As a general rule, most Android apps should work on Mac when using an emulator. However, apps that rely specifically on certain Android hardware or mobile carrier features may not work correctly. Some apps are also designed not to work with emulators.

Running Android Apps on Mac

Apple doesn’t make it easy to run Android apps on Mac, but with the help of an Android emulator, you can get your favorite apps up and running.

You have a few different options when it comes to emulators. BlueStacks, one of the oldest and easiest-to-use Android emulators, is a good bet. Once it’s installed, running Android apps is as simple as downloading them from the Google Play store and clicking launch. If you prefer a different OS, check out the best Android emulators for Linux and the best Android emulators for Windows.

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Crystal Crowder has spent over 15 years working in the tech industry, first as an IT technician and then as a writer. She works to help teach others how to get the most from their devices, systems, and apps. She stays on top of the latest trends and is always finding solutions to common tech problems.

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5 Best Android Emulators for Mac OS X to Run Android Apps [2019] | Run and install Android apps on your Mac OS X , Macbook Air/Pro

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What are Android Emulators for Mac ? Why do you need them ?

Android Emulators are software which let you install Android apps and games on your Mac . Thus, enabling you to run apps and play games made for Android on your system. Considering, the vast number of productive apps and great games for Android, it increases the amount of activities you can do on your Mac. As using it, you can even run Android apps in addition to apps made for your Mac OS X system.

5 Best Android Emulators for Mac OS X –

1. Bluestacks AppPlayer Android Emulator

Bluestacks emulator for Mac OS

Bluestacks AppPlayer is probably the Best Android Emulator for Mac OS because it uses the unique “LayerCake” technology which allows android OS apps to be emulated and run without requiring an external Virtual Desktop Application such as Virtual Box or Vmware.

Bluestacks for Mac OS X Features & Drawbacks

Features	Drawbacks
Gaming performance needs to be improved. Some games face lag Double click on any apk file in Mac OS X to install in Bluestacks Snapchat and Pokemon Go do not work Push Notifications support from Bluestacks to Mac, thus enabling use of Chat apps Free version may show some ads Camera support, thus upload live videos to Android app from Mac Camera

• • • Clicking here to download the Bluestacks .dmg file . (Direct Installer)
    • Click here to Download Bluestacks for Mac OS X

2. Nox Emulator for Mac OS X

Nox Android Emulator for Mac

• • Nox is a great emulator for Mac and Mac OS X and is the best suited for playing games without fuss.

Nox Emulator for Mac OS X Features & Drawbacks

Features

Drawbacks

Difficult to transfer files between Nox and the Mac OS X system Inbuilt Screen Capture and 60Fps Video Recording Support Camera Module doesn’t work , so cannot use Camera based apps (Video Call) Assign Macro and Keyboard mapping to play touch games via Keyboard The Mac version is less frequently updated compared to Windows version Smooth Video Streaming on Streaming Apps NOTE – You might want to check out this new emulator which runs directly inside Google Chrome Browser – ARChon! Android Emulator., thus it will work on Mac too! 3. Andy OS ANDY Emulator Gameplay Andy OS by Andyroid.net is another great Android Emulator for Mac OS , but it requires Virtual Box to be preinstalled on the MAC. You can also use your phone as a controller for controlling / playing the games, the picture alongside explains it 🙂 Andy OS for Mac Pro’s & Cons Pros Cons Resource Heavy, long-time usage may heat up your system OpenGL Acceleration for Better Graphics Camera Module doesn’t work , so cannot use Camera based apps (Video Call) Camera & Microphone Supported Uses Old Android Version Update : You might love it to check out the New Firefox OS on PC – Click here to Configure Firefox OS Emulator on your Mac 4. Genymotion Genymotion Live on MAC One of the most striking features of Genymotion is unlike other Android Emulators it allows us to change the type of android device as well as android version we are using!! This is a great feature and allows us to select a particular device as well as particular Android version which we want to emulate. It also supports configuring the amount of resources e.g RAM ,harddisk to be allocated to the Android device is possible! Great feature if your are limited on hardware resources. Directly supports networking through ethernet /Wi-Fi , emulates your connected connection directly so you can use internet directly in your emulated android. ADB Support and it also supports OpenGL hardware acceleration so you can use your Android device fullscreen and play Games on your MAC! Also supports drag and drop file transfer to the emulated SD Card 🙂 , supports Gyroscope,Light and accelerometer sensors too. You need an account on Genymotion Cloud – to Download and deploy Genymotion android device . 5. Xamarin Android Player for MAC Xamarin is yet another android emulator with variety of devices supported, it supports OpenGL, and virtualizes a device instead of emulating it. This Virtualization increases speed of the emulator to a great extent! Click here to download Xamarin Android Player for Mac. The Configuration/installation instructions for Xamarin on Mac OS can be found here . So these were the Best 5 Android Emulators for Mac OS , besides these there are other options available too such as the Android SDK (Official) Emulator ,AndroVM , AndroLite but configuring official Android SDK is a tedious task and other two didn’t interest me much , you can check them out too.. Hope you liked this post, if you have any doubts/queries/suggestions feel free to comment! Share this: Like this: Related 43 Comments Have you been able to download Andy for the Mac? When I use the link provided it gives the message: “Andy version for Mac & Linux is due end of May 2014, if you want to join the beta testers please email [email protected] or please visit us again soon.” i got it installed from them as i am a beta tester 🙂 Thanks Can you upload the .dmg somewhere? Thank you 🙂 Will try to get it from them, if i get it,I will upload it and shall send you the link 🙂 I would also like the DMG link if possible! Sorry to say, but i don’t have the dmg file Rob 🙁 looking for some alternative myself 🙁 Hello Chaitanya… I’m requesting the dmg as well. Thanks a bunch! Great post! Hello James 🙂 there’s a bad news though, My Portable hard drive has crashed 🙁 hence, i have lost the dmg file 🙁 , i have given it for recovery but it may take some time , i guess. 🙁 In the meantime i can upload the Windows virtual box virtual machine, which is available with me, we can transfer it to Mac’s virtual box with a little modifications, i can upload that, will it do ? What changes did you have to make to get it working in Virtualbox on Mac? I copied over the resources folder and the andy folder with the virtual disks, then redirected the resources and andy folders but it does not start a working version of andy just the processes for it. Hello Carl, In the beta version i just had to add the vmdisks in to the virtualbox on mac, and they automatically booted up! , Though android was pretty much laggy, it actually started up after taking 7 minutes. Also other functionalities such as connecting android phone as a remote didn’t work during the beta stage on windows Andy for Mac is now available. Check it on the Andy website. Hi Chaitanya, I am also not able to download Andy for mac. Can you send me the link of your uploaded .dmg file? Thanks! Problem Problem Andyroid for mac not public yet 🙁 If you uploaded the dmg file to somewhere twice already, can’t you just post the link to that file here in one of the comments, please? I would like the old dmg file as well, can’t find it anywhere now… by the way, Andyroid was not available for download for months now, in June there was a notice about it being available in May, since then they have changed it to “Andy version for Mac & Linux is due mid July 2014” 🙁 and since they already broke their own timelines for a beta release, I have a feeling it’s may not be out even in August or September… so maybe you should change your post reflecting it’s current unavailability I am very much sorry for the inconvenience El, but my hard drive crash had led me to lose the file and due to its bigger size 400Mb+ i wasn’t able to upload it 🙁 and now for testing i copied the Andyroid Virtual Machine from my Ubuntu installation to the Mac, and it worked fine. Ya you’re right changing my post confirming its unavailability 🙁 End of August 2014 and Andy is still Vaporware. Ya, its still vaporware 🙁 i fear its never gonna get released 🙁 but the beta one was surely worth using.. lets say i run a android mmorpg game on mac using andy.. while running the app.. can someone run a damage hack on mac to affect the android mmorpg? Currently its not possible 🙂 as running Andy on Mac itself is a uphill task because of installation of virtual box and copying the windows virtual machine to mac Hi another good emulator, is Droid4x. Its still in beta mode, but works awesome. Been playing Modern Combat 5 and blitz brigade. Plus, it comes prerooted. Enjoy! Hi..I download it more than one time from different website but it`s not working! could you please tell me what`s wrong? Hello 7mom, can you tell us which emulator did you try to download? So that we can assist you better 🙂 Hi I tried to download Droid4x but it is stuck at 80% booting can anyone help with this? Hello Robert, we have an old offline installer with us, are you ready to install an older version on your device? Than you Chaitanya For such a nice post Keep posting like this. i cant play coc on the bluestack for mac app from that link. it say i need like jelly bean or something pls help me that Genimotion , i can’t find the google playstore. it does not appear on any of the virtual android devices. The bluestack works flawlessly on my pc but not on my mac mini running the latest os x genymotion has been great, but can’t get instagram to install. andy don’t install on mac 10.7 🙁 Try DuOS using Bootcamp Windows! Both Bluestack and Andy runs very slow in mac, in fact it got hanged and other applications are also slow due to the android emulator installation. Is there any freeviOS emulator for mac? BlueStacks is regarded as the number one Android Emulator for Windows computers at present. It has extremely simple and easy process of Downloading and Installing it in your computers. i’ve tried bluestack, genymotion, andy os, and droid4x on MBP 13″ i5 2.6ghz, i tried play seven knights netmarble game, laggy, and eaten up RAM so much, so i must close all application to open those app player and it’s still laggy.. Dunno what to do. Maybe the solution is installing Bluestacks/Nox app player using bootcamp windows. after installing bluestack pop up coming to login administration,anyone please tell me bout this.. Источник Читайте также:  Teamviewer для андроид как настроить Оцените статью Вам также может понравиться Как деактивировать режим наушников на смартфоне с Android? 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