WSATools – install APK files on Windows 11 with a single click

WSATools is a new tool that will install APK files on Windows 11 with a single click. Microsoft recently launched Windows Subsystem for Android on Beta versions of Windows 11, allowing Windows Insiders to test Android apps support. Officially, you can download Android apps via the Amazon App Store only (and only in the US), but there is an option to sideload APK files using Command Prompt. To make installing Android apps on Windows 11 easier, one developer is currently working on a GUI-based tool.

WSATools from Simone Franco will let you open APK files on Windows 11 and install them with a single click (similar to how you can deploy MSIX files using App Installer). The utility will utilize file associations in Windows 11, allowing users to install Android apps by simply opening them. Once installation finishes, you can find applications in the Start menu, pin them to the taskbar, create shortcuts, etc.

WSATools is available in the Microsoft Store, but the developer explained that that is an outdated version. A new release will get a significantly improved user interface and the ability to handle background operations. Specific timings remain unknown, but Simone promises to release the final version of WSATools soon. You can follow the project by subscribing to Simeone's Twitter account.

It has been just a couple of weeks since Microsoft released the initial Android apps support for preview builds of Windows 11. Still, enthusiasts have already delivered numerous hacks. For example, you can now install the Google Play Store on Windows 11 and get your favorite apps from there (including those requiring Google Play Store to operate). Of course, Microsoft does not endorse nor support installing Google Play Services on Windows 11, so proceed at your own risk. If tinkering with a modified Windows Subsystem for Android is not your thing, you can track working Android apps on Windows 11 using a dedicated page on Github.