Downloading an APK from the Play Store to your PC is very easy. There are pages on the internet that extract APKs from Google Play just by entering the URL of the application, although there are also specialized programs. There are also secure independent websites, which have hundreds of free APKs.
If you don’t have the Google Play Store on your Android phone or can’t install it, don’t worry. You can download the applications from this store directly to the PC, and then transfer them to the memory of your phone and install from there. This process is known in English as «SIDELOADing» or «lateral loading». There are various online utilities and software for this, which only need the app name or Google Play URL to get the APK file, which you can then copy to your phone and install.
Contents
How to download an APK from Google Play to my PC
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Websites
APK Downloader: One of the pages to download APK from Google Play , WITHOUT Play Store installed
It is the easiest and fastest way to download an application from Google Play to the PC: you only need a browser.
APK Downloader : On this page, only enter the URL of the Google Play application you want to download (image above). The download link is generated and finally click on the Download button.
APK Tools : In the same way it requests the package name, but it also works with the application URL.
apk-downloaders.com : Although on this page it says to enter the name of the package or the application, it also works if you enter the URL of the app in Google Play.
Other pages to download APK without Play Store : Safe places from where you can download APK free without Play Store. You don’t need the Google Play URL. These are independent app stores. These are apkmirror.com and f-droid.org. Just search for what you need and download.
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Programs to download APK from PC
Raccoon : is a portable (executable) program to download APKs directly from Google Play. The ease offered by this alternative is enormous. You only need a Google account and to download.
Its great advantage is that you can start downloading immediately, without filling in previous data, as in some of the following programs.
Real APK Leecher : I have been able to download applications from Google Play without problems with the previous tool. If in your case errors are generated when doing so (you would not be the only one since there are several comments about it), you can use this Real APK Leecher. Unlike the previous utility, this is an executable Windows program.
Real APK Leecher main screen
Before you can use it, in the program options (in the File menu) you must indicate the following information: username and password of a valid Google account, and also the ID of the device where the applications downloaded with the program will be installed. (see below). The other data is according to your preferences.
The data necessary to use the software
Once these data are filled in the settings of the Real APK Leecher, the changes are saved and that’s it. On the main screen of the software, search for the application you want to download from Google Play, by name or by its developer. After finding it, click on it to download its APK.
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Download APK from Google Play with Chrome and Firefox
It is about having a direct button to download the APK of any app on Google Play.
In the case of Chrome you can use the extension Direct APK Downloader and in older versions of Firefox the APK Downloader add-on . In both cases you will need a Google account and the Android Device ID of your cell phone (I explain it below).
Note : If the error “Authentication Failed” appears when configuring the extension, it may be due to the security settings of the google account. To solve, go to google.com/settings/security/lesssecureapps and leave the option Activate checked (by default the option Deactivate is marked ). This only applies to accounts WITHOUT 2-Step Verification enabled.
Android Device ID
Use the Device ID app to find this information. It is the 16 character string that is in the “Android ID” field)
In some cases you can also use the code *#*#8255#*#* in the phone app. On the screen that appears, you will have to look for the line that says “aid” or also “Device ID: android-xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx”. That string of “X” is the ID you need.
Conclusion
Three ways to download APKs from Google Play to the PC, in case your phone does not have the Play Store or for any other reason. With any of these utilities, in a couple of steps you can get applications directly from the store on your PC. Once the file has been downloaded, you just have to copy it to the memory of your phone with the USB cable, and execute it by clicking on it to install it on your mobile. Remember that before this you must first activate the installation of unknown sources on your cell phone. You can find how to do it in this article (it doesn’t take a minute).
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