Software Windows

10 Best BlueStacks Alternatives for Windows

Android is ubiquitous. And, these alternatives to Bluestacks make sure that it does.

This article covers some of the best Bluestacks alternatives for Windows you need to know. It only requires a bit of legwork to install these alternatives on your PC. But before we get on to discuss them in detail, a brief primer on what Bluestacks is, will give you a head start.

Bluestacks helps Windows users to imitate Android ecosystem on their PCs. You can play games, enjoy your favorite apps and easily carry out android tasks on your big PC screen.

alternative to Bluestacks

Reasons Why You Might Need A Software Like Bluestacks for PC

There are five reasons to this. Yours could be anyone.

  1. Say as assuredly as you can, Bluestacks is still a basic emulator only. You cannot do those intensive development based tasks on it.
  2. Your PC may encounter processing issues when it runs Bluestacks due to insufficient RAM.
  3. Bluestacks responds slowly and doesn’t sport an appetising UI.
  4. It is only available for Kitkat and Lollipop versions of Android.
  5. Not compatible with all apps that currently run on Android ecosystem.

Best Bluestacks Emulator Alternatives for Windows in 2021

You love Android to bits. Don’t you? Even more, when it alights on your Windows PC or Mac, giving you the comfiest controls and customization you’ve a fondness for.

Imagine using Snapchat or playing Mini Militia on PC. This is what an emulator like Bluestacks does.

While Bluestacks is considered the best Android emulator, there are several other options in the market that help make your PC as friendlier and versatile as your Android smartphone. They’re free, totally secure and an excellent way to play your favorite games straight on the bigger screen.

These emulators are platform independent and can run on almost all the operating systems – all versions of Windows, Linux, Ubuntu and Mac OS.

The list of best free alternatives to Bluestacks begins here.

1. AMIDuOS (Free Trial for 30 Days)

AMIDuOS

Availability: Windows 7/8/8.1

AMIDuOS is on the ranks for being the most user-friendly Bluestacks alternative for Windows PC. This is a great choice if you wish to test your apps first on older platforms to understand the basic bugs which may arise once your apps are published on the latest android OS. You can do all of it without the dual boot process and the long-drawn setup that irks.

AMIDuOS is downloadable from Amazon App Store. Having this, you get lucky by having sensor supports on your Windows tablets, while hardware and ethernet supports on your Windows PC.

With 3D acceleration support, AMIDuOS is the most amazing alternative to Bluestacks for gaming ever. It offers an immersive experience by improving the frame rates and is a perfect fit to run graphic-rich games on PC.

The downsides are its non-availability as a free emulator and that it only works for apps which are compatible with kitkat and Marshmallow. Once the trial offer completes, you need to do a thanking with your wallet – $15 for Lollipop and $10 for Kitkat.

2. Android x86 (Free)

Android x86

Availability: Windows 7/8/10/Vista/XP

Second on the list of the most popular apps like Bluestacks is Android X86, which lets you create a simulated experience on your desktop that closely resembles to that of Android OS.

Since the emulator is Linux-based, you can easily imitate the Android architecture on your Windows. The unofficial release of this program lets you run Android apps only on devices powered by Intel x86 or AMD processors. Also, you’ve the option to use a LiveCD to understand which features Linux based OS will support, for Windows OS is not very much flexible in terms of running emulators.

On the features’ front, Android x86 supports Wi-Fi with GUI applications, has a battery analyzer, comes with external monitor support and Bluetooth option, along with other functions, such as Power Suspend, Mouse Wheel, Kernel Support and more.

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3. Genymotion (Paid but you have a free option too)

Genymotion

Availability: Windows 8/10

With over 3000 configurations to test the apps, Genymotion is the most efficient and simplest Android emulator to try. The main purpose of its design is to facilitate the developers to run their beta apps in a safe environment before publishing them for the general use. This helps them understand their apps’ performance and find out the notorious bugs, if any.

Written in OPENGL 2.0 technology, it is compatible with all the Android SDK tools and OS devices in the market. Reason being its usefulness for the app developers. Using Genymotion, you can test your Android applications on any devices independent of the platform.  

Screencast, network quality, GPS, call interruption, audio/video support and SMS emulator are some of its prominent features. It is also equipped with Java API and Gradle Plugin command tools for easy development and automation for your app development.

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4. Andy Android Emulator (Free)

Andy Android Emulator

Availability: Windows 7/8

With Andy, you can easily run Android-based graphic rich apps on Windows or Mac. Being your ‘desktop mobile’, it not only offers you PC and Mac compatibility, but also maximizes storage space and lets you play the most popular Android games on your desktop.

You can play Android-specific games with zero problems and can also view your Snapchat on your PC.

The best part is that Andy offers you the freedom to use your smartphone as a joystick, so that you never compromise on multi-touch or gyro elements of gaming. Other features include push notifications in desktop, Android access to local file system and camera integration.

For a complete Android experience, Andy packs a great deal.

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5. YouWave (Free)

YouWave

Availability: Windows 7/8/10/XP/Vista

YouWave guarantees a good Android experience. Available for all Windows versions (XP, 7, 8 and 10) and for both the 32-bit and 64-bit architecture, this emulator proves to be of maximum utility, and the best alternative to Bluestacks.

With YouWave, you are in for an impressive gaming experience with the multiplayer support. Using dynamic rotation, you can flip screens to portrait from landscape and vice versa. It can also run in low configuration PCs.

Since YouWave isn’t available on Google Play Store, you need to look for other third-party sources to get it. Also, the emulator is based on VirtualBox, and that’s  reason why you might be bogged down while using it on your PC. But, worry not, as you’ll not be experiencing any dearth of resources you essentially find on Android.

In totality, it’s an all-good Bluestacks emulator to have a go at.

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6. Droid 4X

Droid 4x

Availability: Windows 7/8/10/XP/Vista

If there’s one bluestacks emulator with a rocketing user count, it is Droid 4X. The emulator is used by many to emulate Android experience on Windows, so as to run Android-specific apps and programs seamlessly.

You can easily install Droid 4X by reaching this link. Using this, you get enough room to run your favorite applications across various platforms even with less RAM . You can turn your smartphone into a remote for playing the games you like Clash of clans. Keyboard shortcuts are also available.

7. MEmu

MEmu

Availability: Windows XP/Vista/7/8/10

The star feature, that MEmu supports both Intel and AMD chipsets, makes this Android emulator a sure deal for everybody who swears great love for gaming. Since most of the configurations are supported, you can easily play a huge heap of Android games on your desktops. MEmu allows you to have an optimized version of Android, be it Jellybean, KitKat or Marshmallow, on your PC. That’s what makes it even more desirable.

Creating two or more instances of Android emulator to do simultaneous jobs is also a thing with MEmu. This is particularly useful for those having a deep-riding passion for gaming and wants to run multiple games simultaneously.

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8. Nox Player

Nox Player

Availability: Windows Vista/XP/7/8/8.1/10, Mac OS X

Nox Player can easily be a gamer’s paradise. Why? Because it’s backed with supreme technology to offer a gameplay that outsmarts the one you experience on your smartphones. By technology, we mean Android 4.4.2, compatible with X86/AMD. It supports high FPS support, keyboard controls, gamepad and screen-recording as well, making Nox Player an absolute must-have. This is the most stable and fastest kind to run Android apps and games.

Further, Nox Player is amazingly compatible with almost the entire range of games and apps, including the popular titles. So, if you’re deciding on having this as your Android emulator, you’re in for one heck of an experience. It’s incredibly useful with a pre-installed Google Play and a File Explorer. Given these, you can search for compatible apps inside its ambience, and download APK files respectively.

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9. Windroy

Windroy

Availability: Windows XP/Vista/7/8

Windroy is very primitive, but good enough to clone Android’s ambience on that of Windows PC. It’s quite fast and delivers smooth performance. With installation and launching of apps made easy, you can use Windroy to run apps and games of your choice with little fuss. The best part about Windroy is that it doesn’t really work as a simulator, but as a part of the operating system itself. That means, almost all the Android-specific apps are conditioned to work on Windows PC, and that too, at a faster pace.

The downside of Windroy is the lack of access to Google Play, which being so, you’ve to install applications by using the app’s APK file. Other highlights are its integration with Flash and Windows Media Player, and support for all screen resolutions (like 1920X1080), keyboard controls, mouse use and network devices.  

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10. KoPlayer

koplayer

Availability: Windows XP/Vista/8/8.1/10, Mac OS

KoPlayer has recently glided to a prominent position in the emulating space. Again, like many other emulators on the list, the emphasis of KoPlayer is to improve the gaming experience on your PC to a hilt. Besides this, you can also record the gameplay, save it and upload it wherever you want.

The common problem with KoPlayer has always been its giant size, that eats up a lot of resources, and it buggy nature. However, the makers are proactively working on it. The version 1.4.1055 promises to be way better than the earliest versions, since the size of the software has been reduced and a lot of bugs have been duly fixed.

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That’s a wrap, folks! Here ends our checklist of best BlueStacks alternatives for Windows in 2021. Windows has always been a very restrictive and insular platform, and for a reason we still aren’t really sure about. Not that Windows isn’t famous and easy as that of other platforms like Android and iOS. As a fact, Windows is the most earliest OS to have ever ventured in the tech space. But it nosedived, because it failed to create strong ripples in the smartphone market. On the flip side, Android and iOS shot to fame for being well-optimized to the ballooning smartphone trend. They moved by the wind and this is why, most developers chose them over Windows to launch their apps and reach huge population using them. Fortunately, BlueStacks and its alternatives Android PC emulators have made it easy for Windows users to use Android apps and games. These Windows Android emulators are freely available and highly intuitive to use. It’s for these emulators that now the typical Android-like experience on your PC is now unmissable.