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Discover top Android emulators for Chromebook, compare features, test apps, and pick the best option for performance and compatibility.

Harish Rajora
February 7, 2026
Emulators for Chromebook are a great option if you want to run or test Android apps on your device. Chromebooks run on ChromeOS, which doesn’t natively support all Android apps, but these emulators can bridge that gap, allowing you to run or test your mobile apps seamlessly.
They also help you evaluate how your app behaves in different situations, like adjusting to larger screens, maintaining stability during regular use, or supporting features that may not fully work on ChromeOS. Using an emulator for Chromebook provides a more complete way to test your app without needing multiple physical devices.
Why Use Android Emulators on Chromebooks?
Android emulators let you test and refine apps without needing multiple physical Chromebooks. They help ensure consistent performance and compatibility across virtual devices.
What Are Some of the Best Android Emulators for Chromebooks?
Several Android emulators offer unique features for Chromebook users, helping test apps across different screen sizes, Android versions, and hardware setups. These tools make development and testing easier without needing multiple physical devices.
How to Choose the Right Emulator for Chromebooks?
Choosing the right emulator depends on your testing purpose, workflow, and Chromebook’s hardware capabilities. Consider these factors:
Do Emulators Really Match Real Device Testing?
Android emulators on Chromebooks allow app testing without physical devices but may not fully replicate real-world performance, gestures, sensors, or device-specific behavior. For precise testing, using a real device cloud like TestMu AI provides instant access to actual Chromebooks and Android devices, ensuring accurate app validation.
Running an Android emulator on a Chromebook gives you access to virtual devices with different screen sizes, Android versions, and hardware configurations.
This allows you to:
For developers seeking accurate results, an Android emulator for Chromebooks provides a reliable way to test app performance, UI consistency, and compatibility across different Android environments, which isn’t always achievable through Play Store testing alone.
Top Android emulators for Chromebook include LambdaTest, Android Studio, Genymotion, Crosvm, Waydroid, and BlueStacks, each offering unique features for testing and development.
Exploring the best Android emulators for Chromebooks and their key features helps streamline mobile emulator for app testing. Emulators make it easier to test your app across different screen sizes, Android versions, and configurations without needing multiple physical devices, helping you ensure a smooth experience for Chromebook users.
TestMu AI is a cloud testing platform that enables you to perform mobile app testing on a wide range of Android emulators for Chromebook. Using TestMu AI's virtual device cloud, you can test your Android apps on the latest Android emulators, including devices from brands such as Samsung, Google, Xiaomi, OnePlus, and many more.
For small screens, you can test at 1366×768 resolution with a 14.0-inch display. For medium screens, TestMu AI supports 3840×2160 resolution on a 15.0-inch screen. On larger screens, testing is available at 1920×1080 resolution with a 17.0-inch screen. Refer to this ChromeOS testing guide.
Key features:
Note: Test your Android apps on ChromeOS. Try TestMu AI Now!
Test your Android apps on ChromeOS. Try TestMu AI Now!
Android Studio is a widely used IDE for Android development and can be installed on many Chromebooks via Linux (Beta). On compatible models with hardware virtualization, you may use its built‑in Android emulators for Chromebook to test apps across different Android versions and hardware profiles directly from ChromeOS.
Key features:
Genymotion is one of the leading emulators for Chromebooks, widely used for mobile testing and development. It offers multiple formats: as a SaaS-based emulator accessible via the cloud, as a device image for cloud platforms like AWS, and as a native desktop application for Windows, macOS, and Linux. When using it on a Chromebook, Genymotion’s SaaS version is ideal, specifically designed for automating tests on Android devices.
Key features:
Crosvm is a lightweight virtual machine monitor developed for ChromeOS, enabling developers to run an emulator for Chromebooks directly without physical devices. It allows Android virtual devices to simulate real hardware, including CPU, memory, storage, and GPU, ensuring accurate testing of apps on Chromebook-sized screens and proper interaction with ChromeOS features.
Key features:
Brunch Framework allows running ChromiumOS on non-ChromeOS devices, letting developers test the Android emulator for Chromebook-like environments effectively. It helps simulate Chromebook environments, deploy Android virtual devices, and validate app performance, responsiveness, and UI behavior without needing a physical Chromebook.
Key features:
ARChon is a Chrome extension that allows running Android apps on Chromebooks by converting APK files to chromeos-apk. It works directly in the browser without installing a full emulator, making it one of the lightweight emulator for Chromebooks. While it does not offer pre-configured device profiles or hardware emulation, developers can run apps across different Chrome versions. ARChon is ideal for testing smaller apps or debugging browser-based behaviors without needing multiple Android devices.
Key features:
QEMU (Quick Emulator) is an open-source Android emulator for Chromebooks that provides virtualization and emulation of Android environments through Linux bindings. It enables developers to run Android applications on a virtualized system using Chromebook hardware without needing physical Android devices. QEMU supports multiple architectures and provides a flexible environment for testing and debugging Android apps on ChromeOS.
Key features:
Appetize.io is a cloud-based platform that allows you to use emulators for Chromebooks to run apps directly in a browser. Users can upload APK files, select device profiles, and simulate Android devices without needing physical hardware, making it ideal for testing and validating apps on ChromeOS efficiently.
Key features:
MEmu Play enables users to run Android apps and games smoothly on their Chromebooks. Known for its compatibility and high-performance features, MEmu Play allows Chromebook users to experience Android with optimized gaming performance, including keymapping for keyboard and mouse control and enhanced frame rates for demanding applications.
Key features:
Waydroid is an Android emulator for Chromebooks that runs in Linux mode. Using a container with direct hardware access requires some Linux Kernel adjustments during setup. It includes a minimal Android image based on LineageOS, providing improved performance and efficient app execution.
Key features:
AirDroid Web is an application that can mirror the physical Android device connected to the platform. It just requires a QR code scan and works as a cast to a bigger screen, such as a Chromebook on a desktop.
Key features:
BlueStacks is a powerful emulator for Chromebooks that works via a Chrome extension or cloud access. While widely used for gaming, it also allows developers and testers to install, run, and test Android applications directly on Chromebook devices. It supports multiple Android versions, keymapping, performance tuning, and customizable resource profiles, making it ideal for both app testing and casual use on ChromeOS.
Key features:
ARC Welder is an Android Runtime Chrome extension that serves as a lightweight emulator for Chromebooks, PC, Linux, and macOS. It just requires Google Chrome to be installed, eliminating the need to download and install heavy software on the system.
Key features:
Chromebook emulators differ by type (cloud vs local), Android version support, protocol compatibility, and use cases like gaming, development, or CI/CD integration.
Testing Android apps on Chromebooks can be challenging without the right emulator. The following table compares popular emulators based on type, setup, Android version support, device simulation, cloud availability, and best use cases.
| Emulators | Type | Android Version Support | Cloud Support | Best Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TestMu AI | Cloud-based | 4.4 – 14 | ✅ | Quick cross-device testing without physical devices |
| Android Studio | Local IDE | Old, current, preview | ❌ | Full development & detailed app testing |
| Genymotion | Cloud & desktop | Multiple versions | ✅ | Automation & CI/CD, multi-device testing |
| ChromeOS Emulator (crosvm) | Local VM | Multiple versions | ❌ | Lightweight ChromeOS testing |
| ChromiumOS (Brunch Framework) | Local / cross-platform | Custom builds | ❌ | Chromebook-like Android environment testing |
| ARChon | Chrome extension | Depends on APK | ❌ | Lightweight app testing & debugging in browser |
| QEMU | Local emulator | Multiple architectures | ❌ | Flexible Android virtualization & debugging |
| Appetize.io | Cloud-based | Multiple versions | ✅ | Browser-based testing without installation |
| MEmu Play | Local / gaming-focused | Multiple versions | ❌ | High-performance gaming & app testing |
| Waydroid | Local container | Minimal LineageOS image | ❌ | Fast containerized Android execution |
| AirDroid Web | Browser-based / mirroring | Depends on device | ✅ | Device mirroring & interaction on Chromebook |
| BlueStacks | Local / cloud | Multiple versions | ✅ | Gaming, app testing, automation macros |
| ARC Welder | Chrome extension | Depends on APK | ❌ | Lightweight Android testing in Chrome |
Yes, you can run Android emulators on Chromebooks via Linux (Beta) or cloud-based platforms, depending on hardware virtualization support and RAM capacity.
Yes, you can run Android emulators on Chromebooks, but the experience depends on the Chromebook model and its hardware capabilities. ChromeOS already supports Android apps through the Google Play Store, so for basic app usage, you don’t need an emulator.
For development or testing, you can install Android Studio through Linux (Beta) and use its built-in emulator for Chromebooks. This works only if your Chromebook supports hardware virtualization and has sufficient RAM, since the emulator relies on Android Virtual Devices (AVDs) to create simulated Android environments.
An emulator is especially useful when you need to test your app on different device profiles, screen sizes, or Android versions, something that the Play Store environment alone cannot provide. For general users, most Android apps can be installed directly from the Play Store without needing an emulator.
Choose based on purpose (testing, development, gaming), platform type (cloud vs local), Android version support, hardware requirements, and ease of setup.
Selecting the right Android emulator for your Chromebook depends on your testing needs, development workflow, and system capabilities. With multiple options available, ranging from cloud-based platforms like TestMu AI and Appetize.io to local emulators such as Android Studio and Waydroid, it’s essential to evaluate key aspects before making a choice.
If you’re also working on Windows devices, many of the same principles apply. Android emulators for Windows, like BlueStacks, MEmu Play, or Genymotion, provide similar functionality, allowing app testing, development, or gaming, but are optimized for PC hardware and OS environments. This makes it easy to maintain consistency across platforms while testing your Android apps.
Consider the following factors:
By evaluating your requirements across these areas, you can select an Android emulator for Chromebook that best matches your development or testing workflow, ensuring accurate app performance, compatibility, and productivity.
No, emulators cannot fully replicate real device performance, sensors, touch gestures, or device-specific behaviors. Real device testing ensures accurate validation.
Android emulators for Chromebooks provide a convenient way to run and test apps without needing physical devices. However, when it comes to precise results, an Android emulator for app testing may have limitations compared to real Chromebook hardware.
Emulators often cannot perfectly replicate performance, network behavior, touch gestures, sensors, or device-specific quirks found on actual Chromebooks. This can result in differences in app responsiveness, UI rendering, and overall functionality.
To overcome these challenges, you can use a TestMu AI real device cloud offers instant access to real Chromebooks and Android devices, helping developers and testers validate their apps in real-world conditions without maintaining a physical device lab.
TestMu AI provides instant access to a wide range of Android devices without the need to maintain an in-house device lab. It helps developers and testers identify device-specific issues early, ensures apps perform consistently across models, and accelerates the release cycle by enabling remote and scalable testing. With TestMu AI, you can test on real devices from anywhere, ensuring your app delivers a seamless experience to all users.
Testing on real devices provides several key advantages over emulators:
Using emulators is helpful for early development or quick testing, but real device testing ensures your Android apps run smoothly on actual Chromebooks.
Testing Android apps on Chromebooks can be challenging without the right emulator. The following table compares popular emulators based on type, setup, Android version support, device simulation, cloud availability, and best use cases.
Android emulators for Chromebooks are a sought-after way to run and test Android applications on ChromeOS without purchasing a new device. From cloud-based options like TestMu AI to Chrome extensions like ARChon, each emulator has a different setup method and performs differently. The list above helps explore all these Android emulators for Chromebook so that a user, a tester, or a developer can select one that suits their needs, requirements, and projects the most.
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