With millions of Android apps to download from the Google Play store, it’s understandable that you might feel a bit rudderless. Don’t fret – we’re here to guide you through the jungle of the Google Play store and offer up the best Android apps available.
We’ve listed the most loved Android apps, sorted by type from social and entertainment to fitness and travel apps. You may notice that there are no games in the list. That’s not an oversight, it’s because we have the best Android games listed elsewhere. To be clear, we’re not saying you should download every one of these – it’s just that, if an app sounds appealing, it shouldn’t disappoint.
1. GlassWire
GlassWire helps you keep track of your data. It shows you a real-time graph that shows how much data you’ve used, the apps that use it, and more. It’s most useful for those who have limited data caps and want to keep track of how much they’ve used. However, it’s also an excellent way to see the apps that access your network the most and how often they do it. You can even have GlassWire alert you whenever a specific app accesses data. It’s free to download with no in-app purchases.
2. Libby
Libby is an ebook and audiobook platform by Overdrive Labs. It works by using your library card to let you borrow content for free. You simply sign up with your library card and the entire platform is open to you. It features thousands of ebooks and audiobooks to choose from. You can download books for offline reading, rate books, and more. Overdrive Labs has an official app that does a lot of these things. However, Libby aims to be more of a simplified experience. It’s also free and has no in-app purchases.
3. Microsoft To Do
To Do is Microsoft’s latest app. It’s a to-do list app with a simple design and simple function. It allows you to create lists of things that you need to do. It then syncs them between your PC and your Android device. You can create tasks, add reminders, make the tasks recur (like taking out the garbage every week), and create new lists to help keep yourself organized. It looks and works a lot like Wunderlist except that it’s more simplified. It’s currently completely free to download and use. The only caveat is that you have to sign into your Microsoft account to use it.
4. Movie Pal
Movie Pal is a social app for movie watchers. The basic idea is that it helps you keep track of what movies you’ve seen and the ones you want to watch. You can create groups and invite friends to share in the movie watching the fun. You can also add movies to a watch list. When you’ve seen it, you mark the movie as seen and it’ll no longer show up in search results. That way you can always get a fresh list of movies that you haven’t seen yet. It’s free to download and use. There is some advertising, but it’s not really that bad.
5. Outdoor Family Fun with Plum
Outdoor Family Fun with Plum is a new app from PBS Kids. The idea is to give kids something to do that gets them out of the house. Some of the stuff we found was taking selfies with trees, counting dogs in passing cars, and observing the weather. It boasts 150 total activities, tips to help kids learn about science, and even a progress tracker to see how you’re doing. The design is fun and it should be easy to use for kids. Best of all, it’s totally free with no in-app purchases.
6. Podcast Go
Podcast Go is a good, simple podcast app. It features a colorful, modern design and it’s easy to use. It boasts a collection of over 300,000 podcasts across a variety of genres. You can subscribe to them, download episodes, and listen offline. It is missing the occasional feature that podcast fans are likely used to. However, those people are likely using more powerful podcast apps anyway. It’s a good, simple app for the casual podcast fan. It’s also free with no in-app purchases. There are some ads, though.
7. Runtasty
Runtasty is a new cooking app from Runtastic. It aims to provide healthy meal ideas without being too restrictive. It features over 40 recipes that include options for vegans, vegetarians, gluten-free, and other dietary restrictions. Each recipe is accompanied by a step-by-step video. The recipes can be organized based on how long they take to cook, how many calories they have, and other filters. It’s currently free to use but we expect Runtastic to improve the selection and probably add some paid options over time.
8. Today Weather
Today Weather is a relatively newer weather app. It boasts a minimal design, most of the basic weather app features, and even tons of weather photos to explore. The features include access to the current weather, future forecasts, air quality and UV graphs, severe weather alerts, and other useful info. You can even take your own photos to add to the app’s UI if you want to. You can get most of the features for free or unlock everything with the $3.99 price tag. There are cheaper subscription options available, but the full price tag is the best deal.
9. WalletHub
WalletHub is a financial app. It allows people to check their credit scores. It’s very simple in scope to an app like Credit Karma. Along with your daily updated credit score, you’ll get credit improving tips, credit monitoring, and more. It’ll also show you savings alerts for financial products. That’s likely also its advertising strategy. It’s not really bothersome so it’s nothing to worry about. The design is decent enough and it’s useful for virtually anybody. It’s free to use with no in-app purchases.
10. YouTube TV
YouTube TV is the latest online TV service to hit the world. At its launch, it was only available in five areas although more coverage has been promised soon. It has a decent design, an unlimited cloud-based DVR, and each account can be shared with up to six people. Of course, it also has Chromecast support and integration with YouTube Red Originals. It’s not bad for the price, although its lack of availability has slowed the hype train considerably. Keep an eye on this one in the long term.
