Microsoft releasing Android app support on Windows 11 to Insiders, US only for now

Ben Schoon | Oct 20 2021 - 8:56 am PT

Windows 11 saw its formal release earlier this month, but without support for Android apps as was announced early on. Today, Microsoft is changing that with the first Insiders build of Windows 11 that supports Android apps through the Microsoft Store.

Rolling out soon to Insiders members, Microsoft’s beta testing group, Windows 11 and the Microsoft Store will be able to install and run Android apps as if they were native programs, opening up a bit more functionality for your desktop or laptop PC.

Android apps in the Microsoft Store are provided by the Amazon Appstore, but with a custom interface for finding and downloading these apps. While not as expansive as the Google Play Store, this will provide Windows 11 users with access to mobile games, social apps, and more. Android app support on Windows 11 is based on Android 11.

There are, however, a couple of caveats with the launch of Android apps in the Microsoft Store on Windows 11 in this early preview. Only 50 apps are available, curated by Microsoft to ensure they work on a “broad set of hardware.” More apps will be added “in the coming months” with this initial batch including games, reading apps, and kids’ content. The other big catch is that this is only available at launch in the United States.

Today, we are announcing the first preview of our Android apps experience into the Windows Insider Program. We are proud to deliver this experience with our partners – Amazon and Intel – to Beta Channel users in the United States on eligible devices running Intel, AMD, and Qualcomm platforms.
To enable these types of experiences, we are introducing a new component on top of Windows 11 called Windows Subsystem for Android™, which powers the Amazon Appstore and its catalog. The Subsystem includes the Linux kernel and the Android OS based on the Android Open Source Project (AOSP) version 11.
To get started with using Android apps on Windows, please visit our Windows Insider Program instructions.