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- System requirements to run Android emulator
Want to experience your favorite mobile games on a bigger screen like a laptop or desktop? You might want to take advantage of your keyboard and mouse for better controls. You will need one of these Android emulators on your PC or Mac.
System requirements to run Android emulator
Before we start, you should know the requirements to run Android emulator on your computer. These are the minimum system requirements to run a popular Android emulator, such as BlueStacks 5, for example:
- AXIS: Windows 7 or later
- Processor: Any Intel or AMD dual-core processor
- Memory: 4 GB of RAM
- Storage: 5 GB of free disk space
Some emulators, like Nox Player, have stricter minimum requirements, like 8GB of RAM and 64GB of storage. So, check the requirements of the respective emulator before installing it.
If you want to play graphically demanding games like PUBG Mobile or Genshin Impact, your computer must meet the recommended system requirements instead:
- AXIS: Windows 10 or later
- Processor: Any Intel or AMD multi-core processor that supports Intel VT-x or AMD-V virtualization technology
- Memory: 8 GB of RAM
- Storage: 16 GB of space on SSD or hybrid disk
- Video: OpenGL 4.5 or later
Although we’re not focusing on Macs here, some of these emulators are available for Intel Macs as well. However, if you own a modern Apple silicon Mac, you’re limited to cloud-based Android emulators or development tools like Android Studio.
From several emulators we tested on Windows and macOS, we selected the best and ranked them based on performance and stability. Let’s look.
1. MEmu Play
MEmu is one of the most powerful emulators on this list, making it an excellent choice for playing Android games on PC. So if you have a fairly powerful Windows PC with a discrete NVIDIA or AMD GPU, you should have no problem playing graphically demanding games.
You can even install games and apps from outside the Play Store just by dragging and dropping APK files from your computer. It really couldn’t be more fitting than that.
MEmu supports key mapping, which is convenient for playing games on a touch-sensitive computer. Simply put, you can map the actions you’re supposed to perform in the game to a keyboard, mouse, or gamepad keyboard. For example, you can use WASD keys to move, left-click to fire weapons, and more.
Download files: MEmu for Windows (free, subscription available)
2. NoxPlayer
NoxPlayer is another popular Android emulator with over 150 million users. It is available for Windows and macOS, but note that the macOS version is limited to Intel Macs. So, before downloading, check if your Mac is running Intel or Apple silicon.
The emulator is optimized to provide stable and smooth gameplay, even while playing graphically intensive games. NoxPlayer also supports keyboard mapping and script recording. If you’re not aware, script recording allows you to assign a series of actions to a single keystroke.
In 2024, NoxPlayer runs on Android 9 Pie, but you can download the beta version running Android 12 from its site if you’re interested. Other features include optional root access, app installation by dragging and dropping APK files, and the option to limit CPU and memory usage.
Download files: NoxPlayer for Windows | Mac (free, subscription available)
3. BlueStacks
BlueStacks is the oldest and probably the most popular Android emulator on this list. Its developers have supported it for more than a decade, and it has over 500 million users.
In 2024, you can download two versions of BlueStacks: BlueStacks 5 and BlueStacks 10 (or X). However, there is a big difference between the two. While BlueStacks 5 is your standard Android emulator that runs locally on your computer, BlueStacks 10 is a cloud-based emulator.
BlueStacks 5 is perfect for Windows users who want to play Android games on their computers. Supports keyboard mapping with preset controls for some popular games. While playing, you can take screenshots and record your gameplay.
Unfortunately, BlueStacks 5 is not available for macOS, so if you own a Mac, you need to install BlueStacks 10 to play Android games over the cloud. However, the game selection on the Now.gg BlueStacks 10 platform isn’t great, but you’ll still find popular titles like EA Sports FC Mobile and EA Sports UFC Mobile 2.
Unlike most of the other emulators on this list, BlueStacks 5 doesn’t need a premium subscription to get rid of ads. You can easily do this from the app Settings > Settings Menu.
Download files: BlueStacks for Windows and Mac (Free)
4. Google Play Games (Beta)
Google Play Games on PC is the official Google Android emulator. You cannot use it to run any Android app or game. Instead, you are limited to a select selection of games. As of March 2024, you can access over 120 games on Google Play Games.
Popular titles include Asphalt 9: Legends, Alto’s Odyssey and Genshin Impact. In addition to the popular ones, consider checking out our favorite games on Google Play Games for PC.
Since its rough launch, Google Play Games for PC has been updated to support keyboard remapping to fine-tune the controls to your liking.
My experience playing Asphalt 9: Legends using Google Play Games was mixed. It remained stable while delivering smooth frame rates on my Intel powered laptop. However, when I tried to run the game on a high-end PC with an AMD CPU, I often saw black boxes covering textures during multiple races.
Download files: Google Play Games for Windows (Free)
5. LDPlayer
LDPlayer is one of the newer Android emulators that was launched in 2016. However, in a relatively short time, LDPlayer has crossed 100 million downloads with more than 2 million daily active users.
Like some of the other Android emulators on this list, LDPlayer supports key mapping, script recording, and optional root access. The emulator is optimized for many popular graphically demanding games to enable high frame rates during gameplay.
LDPlayer displays some ads, but you can purchase a premium membership to remove them.
Download files: LDPlayer for Windows (free, subscription available)
6. GameLoop
GameLoop is a popular game emulator developed by Tencent. With over 500 million downloads, the company claims it is the most downloaded Android emulator. Although it was originally known as Tencent Gaming Buddy, the company later renamed it GameLoop.
If you want to play games developed by Tencent, such as PUBG Mobile and Call of Duty Mobile, GameLoop is the best emulator for you. In fact, it is an official emulator for Call of Duty Mobile, so you don’t have to worry about your account getting banned while playing online using it.
It is optimized for around 200 popular games, including games from some third-party developers, to ensure stable performance with high frames per second.
GameLoop doesn’t come with the Google Play Store pre-installed, but you can install it manually if needed.
Download files: GameLoop for Windows (Free)
7. MuMu Player
MuMu Player is one of the lesser known emulators for this task. NetEase, the company behind many popular smartphone and PC games, developed this emulator. If you want to play titles developed by NetEase, you should definitely try this emulator.
MuMu Player 12 runs Android 12 out of the box and is one of the few emulators that supports this version. You can run multiple instances of MuMu Player simultaneously to play different games at once.
Like GameLoop, MuMu Player doesn’t have many games in its store. Fortunately, it comes with the Google Play Store pre-installed.
Download files: MuMu Player for Windows (Free)
8. Android Studio
Android Studio is not a game emulator; it’s actually a developer tool for building Android apps. We don’t recommend installing it on a Windows PC for gaming, as all other options are better.
However, if you’re using an Apple silicon Mac, Android Studio is your only option if you want to run Android games locally on your computer.
After you install Android Studio, you need to create a new project and deploy an Android device from Device Manager section. The process is a bit complicated, but I followed the instructions in the YouTube video below to get it up and running.
Android Studio is not ideal for running any graphically demanding games like Genshin Impact as they would freeze. However, it is perfectly fine for playing light casual games like Fruit Ninja, Angry Birds, Planets vs. Zombies and more.
If you’re not a fan of a cloud-based emulator like BlueStacks 10 for its streaming quality, Android Studio is worth a try.
Download files: Android Studio for Windows and Mac (Free)
As you can see, there are many Android emulators available. Depending on the games you plan to play, your choices may vary. But if you want a seamless gaming experience, make sure the emulator you download supports keyboard mapping.
While Mac users, especially those with Apple’s silicon Macs, have very limited options, cloud-based emulators like BlueStacks 10 still make it possible to play some Android games without relying on your PC’s hardware.