10 Best Android Emulators For PCs In 2023

LambdaTest is an online Android emulator where you can test both web and mobile apps on the latest and legacy Android operating systems, devices, and browsers. Lambatest is compatible with Windows, Linux, as well as macOS.

LambdaTest comes with Native App Testing features that let you conduct online live interactive native mobile app testing anywhere in the world by simply uploading your .apk file. Perform cross browser testing and run your automation tests at scale.

With LambdaTest you can run automated mobile tests using appium. Doing so lets you find bugs sooner as it tests both your native apps and mobile websites on real devices and other official emulators.

Geolocation testing is also a feature LambdaTest comes with. It enables you to to target, block, and localise your tests in certain countries.

LambdaTest costs from $15/Parallel Test. They offer a free trial.

Why use LambdaTest?

• Mac OS and Linux compatible, not just PC
• Integrates with over 120 tools
• Geolocation testing

Android Studio is a development IDE (integrated development environment) from Google itself and especially caters to developers. It basically comes with a bunch of tools and plugins to help developers build and test their apps.

Android Studio has a built-in emulator but packs fewer features in comparison to tools like Genymotion. The emulator is unquestionably not for general usage and playing heavy games. Android Studio is tough to set up but simultaneously favorite of many developers.

Key features include a visual layout editor with drag-and-drop simplicity; an APK analyzer to check app sizes; access to ARCore, Google’s supported platform for building augmented reality experiences; and an intelligent code editor with auto-completion tech for code completion for Kotlin, Java, and C/C++ languages.

Android Studio is free to use.

Why use Android Studio?

• Compatible with Windows, Mac, Linux, and Chrome
• Google’s official emulator
• Regular updates

BlueStacks Android emulator is the oldest and the most popular Android emulator in the mobile gaming market. It’s easy to install, run, and play games on. BlueStacks comes with a library of 2 million+ Android games and apps, fastest boot times, great features (keymapping, game controls, Multi-Instance Sync, among others), and enhancements offered with less to no lag. In addition, the emulator keeps getting frequent product updates to address any issues that gamers experience, making it popular among the community.

If we look specifically at BlueStacks 5, it’s the fastest and lightest version of the app player yet. It claims to consume up to 50% less RAM, has introduced some new features like performance modes & trim memory (to help further reduce the memory usage). It currently supports Android 9 (Pie).

The emulator recently introduced BlueStacks 10, the mobile cloud for Android games. Android apps can be streamed directly on your PC, eliminating the need for expensive hardware.

BlueStacks is free to use. Paid plans cost from $24/month.

Why use BlueStacks?

• Easy to set up with no technical knowledge required
• Multiple accounts support
• Latest Android version
• Can be used for Android O or Android Nougat

LDPlayer is the second most popular emulator in the world. It’s South East Asia’s best and the fastest android emulator within the gaming market. LDPlayer allows players to run their mobile games and app on PC for free. The inbuilt store (named LDStore) carries multiple android apps and games.

One of the most significant features is its flexibility, even for a low-end device. It doesn’t take much from the storage. LDPlayer is great to play heavier games as well, players can run them smoothly on their computers as it comes with adjustable settings no matter what type of computer you are using.

The advanced features like the keyboard mapping and keyboard macros make controls way easier, while the multi-instance sync like features are helping players to enhance their gaming by creating several instances for the same game.

This emulator supports multi-languages, so it doesn’t matter where you come from because LDPlayer will guide you with the easiest instructions.

LDPlayer is free to use.

Why use LDPlayer?

• Fast and light emulator with multi-language support
• Adjustable settings and more advanced settings for any using device
• Multiple instances can be created for the same device for the same game

MEmu (sometimes called MEmu Player) is relatively a new app player in comparison to the others. Launched in 2015, the MeMu Play, again, is focused on gaming. Regarding the speed, this Android emulator gives similar results as Nox and BlueStacks.

One of the most important features of MeMu Android emulator is its support for both AMD and Nvidia chips. It also supports different Android versions like Android Jelly Bean, Kit Kat, and Lollipop. While MeMu advocates for high-performance gaming, the graphics performance is relatively poor. I saw textures and smoothness missing in comparison to other app players.

MEmu is currently based on Android Lollipop and works top of the class with productivity apps. And if you are looking forward to playing games like Ingress or Pokémon Go, this should be your choice.

MYmu is free to use.

Why use MEmu?

• Key Mapping
• Set your virtual location on Google Maps
• Support both AMD and NVidia
• Can be used for Android O or Android Nougat

Remix OS Player is an Android emulator that allows users to test applications and play games on Windows devices. It’s one of few emulators that are compatible with nearly all Google Play Store games and applications.The platform provides a desktop version of Android designed to function like a normal operating system. It features many desktop elements familiar to Windows users, including a start menu, system tray, and taskbar, making the emulator highly intuitive. Users can also run multiple applications in different resizable windows, enabling you to switch between programs easily.Windows users can download Remix OS Player for free. *Why use Remix OS Player?,*Compatible with nearly all Android, *applications and games, *Custom key mapping, *Easy installation and simple user interface

Nox Player (sometimes called Nox App Player) especially targets Android gamers. Although the emulator works perfectly fine for other Android apps and enjoying the whole Android experience, it is best suited for playing massive games like PUBG or Justice League. The best part of Nox Emulator is that it’s absolutely free with no sponsored ads at all.

The Nox Player allows you to map the keys of Keyboard, Mouse, and Gamepad. You can even assign keyboard keys for gestures, for instance, mapping shortcut for swiping right.

Also, you can specify the CPU and RAM usage in the settings option to get the best gaming results. If rooting Android is your focus, Nox Player makes it easy to root the virtual device under one minute.

The only problem with Nox is that it puts a lot of load on the system. Thus, you can’t use tons of other apps. Another thing is it is based on Android 5 Lollipop which might be a concern for you.

Nox Player is free to use.

Why use Nox Player?

• Multiple windows on the single device
• Mapping shortcuts on controllers
• Easy to root
• Can be used for Android O or Android Nougat

Bliss OS is a little different from the above emulators. Where ‘Android Emulators’ emulate Android on your Windows PC, Bliss OS, on the other hand, is Android itself and needs to be installed as a separate OS.

As for its installation, you could use a Virtual Box or you can create a bootable USB drive and install the Bliss OS ROM on the external storage.

Now, installing Bliss OS or any other Android x86-based projects is always better if you are looking for the exact Android experience on your PC. Not to mention the fact is Bliss OS is open source and doesn’t encompass ads or any Android emulator clutter.

Bliss OS is free to use.

Why use Bliss OS?

• Open-source and ad-free
• Beta version running on Android 9 Pie
• Supports Substratum Theme engine

Just like other Android gaming emulators out there, KoPlayer focuses on delivering lag-free gaming experience with a lightweight software.

As KoPlayer is free of cost yet you might see few ads here and there. The app player is easy to install and navigate through the apps. It also supports keyboard mapping and gamepad emulation.

The downside of this Android emulator is that it sometimes freezes out of the blue. Also, the player is a little buggy and makes it difficult for the user to uninstall the Android O emulator.

KoPlayer is free to use.

Why use KoPlayer?

• Windows and Mac OS compatible
• Simple UI
• Set up any Android device
• Easy to set up

ARChon is not some big shot Android emulator, nor it has a huge fan following, it’s more of a fix to run Android apps on Chrome OS.

It started out when Google brought support for two or three Android apps on Google Chrome Web Browser. Following which, a GitHub developer took it a little notch further and released ARChon to run all Android apps on Chrome.

The ARChon Android O emulator is not suited for hardcore gaming, but it is excellent for using a productivity app due to its easy access.

ARChon is free to use.

Why use ARChons?

• Compatible with OS X, Linux and Windows
• Integrated into Chrome
• No troublesome installation
• Good for productivity apps