A single destination for most Android users who want to install apps is the Google Play Store, but there are some issues with using the same. One of the major problems is the unavailability of selected apps due to geographical or legal restrictions, which makes it impossible to install them through the Play Store. However, geoblocking isn't the only reason people are looking for alternatives on the Google Play Store. Although Google has introduced and improved the measures used to detect and clean apps with malware, some still sneak in and steal data. Not all "wannabe" Play Store alternatives on the web can be considered safe; hence the need calls for a proper list. So we created this list, including only those that we enthusiasts have been using for years, if not decades. Also, thanks to the way Android is built, it's easy to install supported apps on Android without much hassle. So let's quickly jump into the list.

APKMirror is a great alternative on the Google Play Store that is trusted by the Android community to download apps. Although it is not an app but a website, it is a huge repository of Android apps. One of the many primary uses for APKMirror is downloading the latest version of an app whose update hasn't landed in your region yet, but downloading geo-restricted apps is also a good use case for the site. The site has APKs and the latest Split APK format from Google, and the platform also has an app to install Split APKs on your device.

APKMirror verifies the signature of all new APK files with the original one to authenticate the publisher. The best thing about the platform is that it keeps track of app versions; Therefore, if the new version of the app does not work, you can always download the previous version from the same web page, install it and it should start working fine again. Overall, APKMirror is one of the best Play Store alternatives for Android.

Unlike APKMirror, Aurora is a full-fledged app store that uses GPlayApi to fetch packages directly from Google and show you the apps and updates. Also unlike many apps on this list, Aurora is completely free and open source and is available on GitHub. One of Aurora Store's main selling points has to be its anonymous sessions, where users can start installing apps right away without logging into the app.