- 2 days ago
Looking for Android apps the Google Play Store rarely surfaces? This guide explores alternative app stores and app discovery tools for finding fresh widgets, open-source projects, privacy-focused apps, indie games, alternative browsers, and software for Android TV. App Finder adds more precise Play Store search filters, while ZapStore highlights community-published apps from trusted developers and GitHub Store makes browsing and updating Android projects easier.
Discover Neo Store, Dragon Store, Mitch, FFUpdater, Flicky, Aurora Store Nightly, IzzyOnDroid, OpenAPK, and OrionStore, plus update managers that help track sideloaded apps. Whether you want free and open-source Android apps, GitHub APK downloads, indie games, or Google Play alternatives, this Android app store guide offers practical options for exploring beyond the Play Store. Find Android app recommendations, third-party app stores, FOSS apps, and sideloading tools for better app discovery and updates.
Discover Neo Store, Dragon Store, Mitch, FFUpdater, Flicky, Aurora Store Nightly, IzzyOnDroid, OpenAPK, and OrionStore, plus update managers that help track sideloaded apps. Whether you want free and open-source Android apps, GitHub APK downloads, indie games, or Google Play alternatives, this Android app store guide offers practical options for exploring beyond the Play Store. Find Android app recommendations, third-party app stores, FOSS apps, and sideloading tools for better app discovery and updates.
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TechTranscript
00:00Honestly, the Play Store nowadays is just way too limiting and just filled with too much junk.
00:04So in this video, I want to show you some of the best alternative app stores that let you discover
00:08way more unique and actually useful apps, including a bunch that you won't even find on the Play Store.
00:14And honestly, what better place to start than by improving the search functionality
00:18on the Play Store itself to actually help you find cool new apps?
00:22Because after all, we all know how terrible the Play Store's search engine is
00:26just constantly showing you outdated results.
00:29Like let's say you're wanting to find the freshest and newest KWGT widgets out there.
00:34Well, right when you search for that on the Play Store, you don't get the option to filter out the
00:38new ones.
00:38You just end up seeing the same old outdated packs that have been around forever.
00:43And that's not just for widgets too. It happens with most searches.
00:46So here's a great workaround. Download App Finder and you can search way more specifically on the Play Store.
00:52Before you begin, you can filter the apps by date released, set the number of downloads to something
00:57like under 5,000, adjust how recently the app was released, like within the last few months,
01:03and then at the top, you can just search for what you want. In my case, it's KWGT widgets.
01:09And right away, I can see packs that were literally released just a few days ago.
01:14Widget packs that the Play Store never even showed me.
01:17Same thing with regular widgets too. For comparison, if you search widgets on the Play Store,
01:21this time you actually do get filters and if you switch it to new, it still doesn't really work.
01:27You'll scroll down and you'll see apps that were released around a month ago.
01:31But when you switch to App Finder and do the same search with those filters that we did earlier,
01:36you suddenly uncover the actual newest widget apps from a few days ago.
01:41Stuff the Play Store would have never even shown you.
01:44It's honestly one of the best new ways to discover new hidden gems on the Play Store.
01:49And speaking of widget packs, our team actually made some seriously clean,
01:52Material 3 Expressive widgets that adapt perfectly to any wallpaper.
01:56We even created matching wallpapers to go with them, all available exclusively on my Patreon link down below.
02:02Now, if you're looking for an actual App Store alternative, Zap Store is a great option.
02:07You've probably never heard of it because it's pretty new, but I've honestly been loving it because,
02:11unlike most other app stores, this one doesn't use a random algorithm to show you low effort apps.
02:18Instead, it focuses on showing you quality apps from trusted developers.
02:23Like, it's built on a community and various developers will publish their apps themselves,
02:28cryptographically sign them, and you can even view the source code because they're open source as well,
02:32so you know exactly what you're installing and where the app came from.
02:36I've honestly found a ton of amazing indie tools, amazing privacy-focused apps on here,
02:40and a bunch of other open source forks.
02:43But probably the coolest and most unique feature here that most third-party app stores don't do
02:47is that you can support the developers of those apps directly.
02:51And those are just two out of 12 of the best third-party app stores you can download on your
02:55phone right now.
02:56I didn't really want to just show you guys the usual ones that everyone already knows about,
03:00like F-Droid, Droid of 5, or APK Mirror. I really wanted to just go above and beyond and just
03:06highlight
03:06newer app stores and forks that seriously take app discovery to the next level.
03:11As well as mentioning a few classic app stores that most of you have already heard about but
03:15probably forgotten and since then they've received some major improvements and redesigns.
03:20So if you ended up downloading even one app from this video,
03:23I'd really appreciate a quick thumbs up to show your support.
03:26Let's try to hit 10,000 likes, that would honestly mean a lot.
03:29And believe it or not, only 18% of people who watch my videos are actually subscribed.
03:34So if you end up liking what you see, get subscribed with the notification bell turned on.
03:38I guarantee I've got even more amazing ideas coming every week just like this video.
03:42Now another place that actually has tons of unique apps outside the Play Store is GitHub.
03:47The problem is, discovering apps on GitHub is kind of a nightmare.
03:51There are so many cool indie projects on there, but the search experience just isn't great,
03:56so most people never really find them.
03:58But that changes with this new app called GitHub Store.
04:00It turns GitHub into this clean, app store style experience.
04:04No more hunting through random repositories, it automatically filters everything to show you
04:09projects that actually have installable Android apps.
04:13You can browse what's trending, see brand new releases, and even see recently updated apps.
04:19Just like you would in a regular app store.
04:21Plus, just like the Play Store, each app has its own listing, you can see the full description,
04:25how many stars it has, open issues, forks, all that good stuff.
04:30And the best part is that you can even install the latest version of the app right there,
04:35without needing to leave the screen.
04:37Plus, and this is huge, it even has an update section.
04:40If you've ever installed apps from GitHub before,
04:43you know that you never get notified when there's a new version.
04:46This fixes that completely.
04:47Now, a lot of you have heard of FDroid by now.
04:50It's the biggest third-party app store for free and open source apps.
04:54And yeah, it recently got a Material You makeover.
04:57But I've got to say, there are still way better alternatives out there.
05:00I used to swear by Droidify because the UI was so much nicer.
05:04But honestly, lately, I've been leaning more toward NeoStore.
05:08It has a similar clean interface and works the same way,
05:11showing all the new apps in one big scrollable feed.
05:14But where it really shines, though, is the extra details.
05:18For example, for each app, you get this nice little color-coded chart,
05:22showing how many trackers and permissions it has.
05:25Green means it's clean, and red means maybe think twice before installing.
05:30You can also see the most downloaded apps based on stats from the Izion Droid repository,
05:35which makes it way easier to spot what people are actually using.
05:39And it's obviously way more customizable.
05:41Like, you can change the entire layout, see descriptions when enabling new repositories,
05:46so you know what kind of apps they offer,
05:49even enable a kids mode to prevent new app installs.
05:52There's a lot more where that came from.
05:54It's easily my go-to app store for installing FOSS apps from FDroid.
05:58Next up is Dragon Store, and this one's another really solid find.
06:02It pulls together apps from around the web that aren't available on the Play Store,
06:06so you don't have to go hunting for APKs on sketchy websites.
06:10Instead, it either takes you straight to the app's official website to download the latest version,
06:15or for some, like those from GitHub, it lets you download the APK a bit more easily.
06:21So you always know exactly where the file is coming from.
06:23It also doesn't connect to any outside servers too, which is a plus for security.
06:27It uses a repo as a backend setup, which makes it more private and secure.
06:33I even love how clean the UI looks.
06:35Everything loads fast and downloads really smooth too.
06:38Honestly, my only complaint is that I wish it had screenshots for each app.
06:43Other than that, it's absolutely worth checking out.
06:45Now, if you're into indie games, especially the kind that you never see on the Play Store,
06:49you've got to check out Mitch.
06:51Mitch is basically an unofficial app for itch.io,
06:54which is this awesome website full of indie games.
06:57A lot of them aren't even on Android officially,
07:00but with Mitch, you can browse, download, and install them right from your phone.
07:05And just like on the website, you don't even need an account to download anything.
07:09You can just start right away.
07:10With each game that you tap on, it just takes you to their website to grab the APK,
07:15and some even let you try them out without even needing to download anything.
07:19It's like a little preview.
07:20Just keep in mind that some games aren't compatible with every device out there.
07:24I myself found a few issues with some games when I tried to run it on some of my Androids.
07:29So just keep that in mind.
07:31Then there's FF Updater.
07:32This one's a bit different.
07:34It's like an app store for just alternative browsers to Chrome.
07:39So if you've been looking to switch to a better browser, you'll find it inside this store.
07:43It's got a huge library of options, including a bunch you won't find on the Play Store.
07:47We're talking Firefox-based forks, Chromium-based browsers, privacy-focused ones, security-focused ones,
07:55basically everything that's better than Chrome.
07:57Tap on any browser, and you'll get a description, and you can install it right there.
08:02Updating them is super easy too, because it's literally on the main page,
08:06and you can update the app from there.
08:08And by the way, my personal favorite browser, if you must know, is Chromite.
08:11It's inside the app too, and it just feels like Chrome, but it has a built-in ad-blocking experience,
08:17and it doesn't really have any of Google's tracking nonsense, so it's a great option.
08:22From there, we can even get a store for your TV.
08:25That's right.
08:26It's called Flicky, and it basically brings F-Droid to your Android TV.
08:31I mean, you can use the app on your phone, but the interface is really designed for bigger screens,
08:36so you can easily browse and sideload apps from your couch using your remote.
08:41It's got big icons, simple navigation, a built-in search.
08:45It all feels really smooth.
08:47And to get it on your TV, you can use apps like LocalSend,
08:51the Downloader app by AFTV, which is what I used, or even just use any web browser.
08:56So if you ever wanted to sideload apps on the big screen, this is easily the best new way to
09:01do it.
09:01This next door is an absolute classic, and has been around for a really long time.
09:05It's called Aurora Store, and I'm sure a lot of you have heard of it,
09:09but here's something that not everyone talks about.
09:12It's nightly version.
09:13That's where you get all the newest, coolest features first.
09:16For anyone who doesn't know too, Aurora Store lets you download pretty much any free app or game
09:21from the Play Store, but without actually needing a Google account or Play services.
09:26That means Google isn't tracking everything you install.
09:29Plus, to take it even further, you can spoof your device,
09:32so it looks like you're installing apps with a different phone,
09:34which is great if you want to download apps that aren't supported for your device.
09:39Now, the stable version of Aurora Store is super reliable,
09:41but it hasn't been updated in a few months.
09:44The nightly builds, on the other hand, get updated almost daily.
09:47That means you get new features and redesigns first.
09:50For example, the latest nightly versions recently switched over to a new
09:54Material 3 expressive look, and everything still works normally when downloading apps.
09:59Just remember though, like any alpha software, you might run into a bug or two here and there,
10:04but if you want the newest features, it's totally worth it.
10:08All right, next up is Easy on Droid Unofficial.
10:11This one's a little different because originally, it wasn't really meant to be a standalone app store.
10:16It just started off as an app drawer repository that you'd plug into clients like Neostor, for example.
10:22But it's grown so big that why not just use an unofficial app style front end?
10:27Everything in here is open source and free, and it tracks GitHub releases almost instantly,
10:32so you're not waiting weeks for updates.
10:34And what I really like is that it actually shows you the changelog for each app too.
10:38You know, what's new in the latest version, just like the Play Store does.
10:42The huge downside obviously is that the store's UI is really outdated, but everything still works.
10:47I mean, it loads fast, installs apps without a problem.
10:50But with that said, just keep in mind that you don't need to download this
10:53if you're already using stores like Neostor or Droidify.
10:57Those are already using the Easy on Droid repository there by default.
11:01This standalone app really only makes sense if you specifically want apps
11:05from this repository and nothing else.
11:08Moving on, this next one doesn't even require you to download an app.
11:12Instead, it's a website called openapk.net.
11:15However, you can still install it through the browser as a progressive web app,
11:20so it gets added to your app drawer and still lets you launch it right from your home screen,
11:25just like a regular app.
11:26Now, openapk isn't anything fancy.
11:28It's kind of like a lightweight version of fdroid.
11:31It just pulls apps from GitHub and other open source repositories.
11:35The big plus though is that it takes up almost no space on your phone,
11:38since you don't need to install it like an app,
11:40and you don't need to create any accounts.
11:43It still lets you browse, search, and download apps just fine.
11:47The only real downside though is that there's no built-in update system
11:51that you get in most other app stores,
11:53so you'll need to manually update apps or use a separate update manager.
11:57I'll show you some good ones in a bit too.
11:59So while it's not the flashiest option, it's a super simple,
12:02no-nonsense way to grab open source apps without installing yet another app store.
12:08Then there's my favorite app store on this entire list, Orient Store.
12:12It's a modern serverless app store that runs entirely on GitHub repositories and GitHub Actions.
12:18That means every app on here is open source and free,
12:21and it supports over 90,000 apps, which is kind of wild.
12:25Everything loads super smoothly, app pages open instantly,
12:29screenshots show up right away, which honestly is something that a lot of other app stores struggle with.
12:34Downloads are also fast, installs are seamless, and it'll even give you the option to delete the APK 2
12:41right after the install, which is nice.
12:43Plus, it even supports Shizuku for silent background installs,
12:46so you don't have to manually confirm every single app.
12:50And here's a cool bonus, it doesn't just show you Android apps.
12:53You'll also find great apps for your PC and your TV.
12:58Definitely give this one a look, it's incredible.
13:00And those are the 12 best app stores I recommend you check out.
13:03But wait, this video isn't over yet because if you're looking to sideload apps,
13:07you may also need a good update manager app to keep all those sideloaded apps updated.
13:12Because even though a lot of these app stores have a built-in update page,
13:16they don't always get the absolute latest version right away.
13:19That's why I always use a dedicated update manager.
13:22The most popular option is Uptanium.
13:24You add an app by pasting a GitHub or GitLab link or even just searching for it.
13:29And from there, it tracks new releases and notifies you when there's an update for that app.
13:35Just like the Play Store.
13:36It's really a solid way to keep sideloaded apps up to date,
13:40and it even supports Shizuku for silent installs.
13:43But with that said, manually pasting links for every app can get pretty annoying.
13:49So a better alternative, one that I've been using, is APK Updater.
13:53It works in a similar way, but instead of adding apps one by one, it instead scans the apps already
13:59installed on your phone and looks for updates across GitHub, APK Mirror, Afdroid,
14:05Izzy on Droid, and more, all in one place.
14:08That way, you can update them all right then and there, and it makes your life easier too,
14:13because you don't have to paste each one manually.
14:15Anyway, if you want to keep it going, just tap this video right here to check out the top 20
14:18apps
14:19to get you started this year, or this one to learn about the future of Android in 2026, this year.
14:25If you end up downloading even one app store from this entire list, just drop a quick thumbs up.
14:29It would mean the world.
14:30Thanks for sticking around to the end, and I'll catch you guys in the next one.
14:34Kapow!