How to Extract the APK File of an Android Application or Game

I can show you how to extract and save or share the exact version of an Android app or game that you have installed on your smartphone or tablet.
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Video Description
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Have you ever noticed an Android application or game has an update waiting for you, and then when you look at the changelog you notice there are some new restrictions that have been added?
#android #googlepixel #samsunggalaxy #androidapp #androidapps
Maybe you have something installed on your device that is no longer available via the Google Play Store and you want to share it with a friend or family member.
Today, I want to show you how we can extract the APK file of an Android application or game so that you can save it for later, install it on another device you own, or send it to someone you know.
There are a number of free 3rd-party apps in the Google Play Store that can do this for us, but today we'll be doing this with Google's file manager. Depending on which device you own, you likely won't have this application pre-installed so we need to find it in the Play Store.
Just search for the app Files by Google and it should show up.
Once installed, let's launch the application and grant it permission to access the storage on our smartphone or tablet.
Google does a good job of categorizing the files we have on the device, so let's tap on the one labeled Apps and then look through this list. It should show you all of the applications and games you have installed so just find the APK file that you want to extract.
We're going to tap the 3-dot menu icon for whatever you are looking for.
And from here we will select the Share option.
This will bring up Android's share menu where we can pick how we want to send this file.
If you wanted to, we could choose Google Drive and the Files by Google application would upload the APK file to your Google Drive account.
Or we could select Gmail or whatever email app you use, and then send it to someone that way.
Many file manager applications also come with a share target option. So we could select that to store the APK file somewhere on your local storage. That way, you can store it and save it for later. If you select to save it to your device this way, you could even use the Files by Google app to share it with someone next to you without ever needing access to the internet.
I would like to see Google add a save option to this menu here, so we don't have to use Android's share menu just to extract the APK file of an app or game you have installed. But this app does make it really easy to find the APK file and send it somewhere.
The only thing I really need to point out here is that an Android application or game can be released with specific hardware in mind. If you have a newer phone or tablet and try to install the APK file on an older device then you could get an error because the APK file you extracted was for newer hardware.
I don't want to get into the differences between ARMv8 and ARMv7 CPUs here in this video. . .but it is something you may run into if you have devices from before 2011 that you're using. The good news is that you will not ruin a smartphone or tablet by trying to install an incompatible APK file.
Android will just display an error message if you end up having trouble installing it.
As mentioned, there are a number of 3rd-party apps that can extract an APK file of an app or game you have installed on your Android device. If there's an application you like that does this job, then share it with the community down in the comments section below.
Mentioned Links
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Files by Google - play.google.co...
Step by Step Tutorial
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1. Intro [00:00]
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[@andycarter917]

I've done this multiple times before however the apks aren't always the same size as what they were when I downloaded them. For example 1 game may have been 3GB but the apk is around 30mb meaning you aren't extracting the actual apk that was downloaded. You can however find some additional files within the Android/data and android/obb folders however there maybe other files and folders that can't be accessed. Doing all this with one game did make it start downloading the additional files required for the game.

[@grey3414]

It's not really saving the whole apk because it doesn't install. Have you tried to reinstall the saved apk yourself?

[@jodifisher2183]

Worked great. Thank you for theclear, precise explanation.

[@selvakumarm4382]

Extracted app installs. But its not opening

[@cyblackbox]

same issue with me too, what is your mobile ?, mine huawei

[@Melvin-AljoshaPaulsberg]

happens to me all the time. no matter which way

[@andycarter917]

That's because it's not the full apk, you're only extracting part of it, some additional files will be located in Android/data and android/obb however this isn't always the case as they may be hidden especially if part of it needs to be installed into the system files which isn't accessible.

[@didyouknowamazingfacts2790]

I'm noticing the file I'm getting is about half the size of the original. I'm wondering if this is just a compression issue?

[@kyledupont7711]

Holy crap it worked! It kept failing, I had to restart both devices, and set both of them to without internet which transfers through Bluetooth. Stuff like this is why I'm glad to be an Android user. Imagine iPhone letting you transfer your own files LOL

[@ExplainingAndroid]

that's awesome. thanks for sharing the tip that helped to fix an issue you were having. that could help others who come across the same issue If you're able to, please consider becoming a KZbin channel member here - www.youtube.com/@ExplainingAndroid/join If not, then liking the video, subscribing to the channel, and sharing it online are all great things that can help, too

[@rogeriobp8052]

I'm feeling very stupid, because for 3 years I've been trying, unsuccessfully, to extract apk files without the need to use specialized Apps. Now, I discovered how easy to do this.

[@sanket13x]

It works but only apk file is transfered not whole installed file

[@PUBGWORLD366]

Super ❤❤❤❤ working Great, Thank You

[@RenZerS2]

thank you

[@ExplainingAndroid]

You're most welcome

[@TECHPROMINDSET]

system app extract but unable to install

[@georgelgrama5943]

Hello, please, can you help me, I also have Android 14 and One UI 6.0 on my phone, I want to look for 2 applications on the play store and I can't find them, but when I search on Google, it says that your device is not compatible with this application. please, how do I proceed?

[@smwinstarable]

Same problem. Did you ever find a solution?

[@georgelgrama5943]

I don't know what the solution is

[@ownitg4f588]

So it's the SAME as File explorer and Es explorer.....

[@RodneyKimbangu]

Worked for me!

[@YMauldin]

0:03

[@redpurple1035]

does license carry over too?

[@lindayz4331]

Thanks ❤

[@LeticiaGoodmanuj]

Hall Matthew Lee Maria Perez Lisa