Following the recent announcement, Google has finally brought the ability to install Android apps on Chromebook without Developer Mode. This is truly great and path-breaking for both developers as well as the Chrome OS enthusiast community. You can finally install Android APKs on your Chromebook which are not available on the Play Store, and for that, you don’t have to sacrifice your security. So without any delay, let’s go ahead and learn how to sideload Android apps on Chromebook.

Before we begin, make sure your Chromebook is updated to Chrome OS 86 or above. You can update your Chrome OS build from Settings -> About Chrome OS. Apart from that, note that you don’t need to move to any other update channel or Developer mode. The ability to sideload Android apps on Chromebook has already moved to the Stable channel.

  • Set Up ADB on Chromebook
  • Install Android APK on Chromebook

Set Up ADB on Chromebook

  1. Open Settings and turn on Linux (Beta) from the left menu. If you don’t know how to do it, follow our guide and learn how to set up Linux on Chromebook.

  2. After setting up Linux, open Settings again and navigate to Linux -> Develop Android Apps -> Enable the toggle for ADB Debugging. Now, restart your Chromebook and an ADB prompt will come up after the reboot. Click on “Allow” and you are done.

  3. After the installation, run the below command to connect the Android system with Linux on Chrome OS. Remember, your Chromebook should be connected to a WiFi network for this to work.

  4. A window will instantly open up to “Allow USB Debugging”. Enable the checkbox for “Always allow” and then click on the “Ok” button. By now, you have successfully set up the base.

  5. Now, go back to the System page again and open Developer Options. Here, enable “ADB Debugging”.

  6. Now that you have set the foundation, go ahead and download the Android APK that is not available on the Play Store and move it to Linux files. For example, I have downloaded the Firefox APK to install on my Chromebook without Developer Mode.

Note: Rename the downloaded APK to something shorter, just so you can easily type it on the Terminal.

adb -s emulator-5554 install firefox.apk

So that was our guide on how to sideload Android apps on Chromebook without Developer mode. While the solution is not that straightforward, it’s immensely helpful for geeks. Also, once you set up the ADB, you just have to download the APK, and then it can be installed via the adb install command.