Android and Mobile Apps on PC: A–Z Index of 54 Guides

Plenty of apps people rely on every day were built for a phone and never got a desktop version. Most can still be run on Windows or macOS — sometimes through an official desktop client, sometimes through the web app, and sometimes only through an Android emulator.

These 54 guides cover which of those three routes actually works for each app, because the answer differs and the wrong route wastes an afternoon.

A

• Android emulator with Bluetooth

B

• Best Android Emulator
• BlueStacks

C

• CapCut

D

• Du Recorder

F

• Facebook Messenger
• FlipaClip
• Flud

G

• GBWhatsApp APK
• gCMOB
• Geeni App
• Google Home App
• Google Lens
• Google Play Store

H

• How to Download BlueStacks
• How to Download Discord
• How to Download Imo
• How to Download iTunes
• How to Download KMPlayer
• How to Download NoxPlayer
• How to Download SHAREit
• How to Download Viber
• How to Download VLC Media Player
• How to Download Zoom App
• How to read Kindle Books with Kindle Cloud Reader

I

• iCloud
• iMessage
• InShot

K

• Kik
• Kinemaster

M

• Mematic
• Mi Home App
• Moj
• MX Player
• Mx Sharekaro

N

• Netflix App

O

• Oculus App

P

• PicsArt
• PLAYit

R

• Resso

S

• ShareMe
• Signal
• Skype
• Snapchat
• Snapseed

T

• Telegram
• Telegram Web on Windows PC and macOS
• TikTok
• Twitter

V

• VivaVideo

W

• WeChat
• WhatsApp
• WhatsApp Web on Windows 11/10/7 PC and macOS

X

• Xender

Windows tips

• Upgrade from Windows 10 or 7 to Windows 11
• Make VLC the default media player
• Use BiP Web on a PC

Which route should you take?

• Official desktop client, if one exists. Always the best option — native performance, proper notifications, no extra layer.
• The web app, if the service has one. WhatsApp, Telegram and Skype all work this way, and it needs nothing installed.
• An emulator, as a last resort. For apps with no desktop or web version. It works, but it is a full Android system running on your machine — see our comparison of Android emulators before picking one.

Missing an app you need? Let us know.