How to Download Apps on Huawei Phones without the Play Store

The Chinese manufacturer Huawei is one of the largest smartphone OEMs around the world and gives tough competition to other world-class brands like Apple, Samsung, etc. But the US Trade War with China has led Huawei to discontinue its market from the US apart from Google services. Now, if you’re one of the Huawei/Honor device users then you may ask How to Download Apps on Huawei Phones without the Play Store.

Well, that’s somewhere a major drawback or a limited amount of exposure for the Huawei/Honor device users when it comes to using the company’s own Huawei App Store or Huawei Mobile Services (HMS). It’s been more than a year since Huawei is making their Android devices without the integrated Google Play Store or Google Play Services as well as the Google Mobile Services (GMS) out of the box.

In that scenario, it’s going through a tough phase for most of the Huawei/Honor device users to get an unlimited number of apps or games that are accessible from the Google Play Store easily. Now, users have to only rely on the official Huawei AppGallery or other third-party app stores to download Android apps or games whatsoever which aren’t available on Huawei AppGallery. Luckily, there are a handful of options as Play Store alternatives.

How to Download Apps on Huawei Phones without the Play Store

How to Download Apps on Huawei Phones without the Play Store

There are a couple of best alternatives to the Google Play Store if you’re using Huawei/Honor devices. But make sure that you’ve updated your Huawei/Honor smartphone or tablet to the latest software version before you begin. It’s important.

So, just head over to Settings > Tap on ‘System & updates’ > Tap on ‘Software update’ > The system will check for an update. If there is an update available, make sure to ‘Download and Install’ it. Once done, reboot your handset to apply the software update. Now, you’re good to go.

1. Use Huawei AppGallery (Official)

Huawei AppGallery is the official app/game store for Huawei & Honor devices that has been developed by Huawei itself. The Huawei AppGallery applications come preinstalled on each Huawei/Honor device or have already been added to the existing models too. So, it’s a better and official way to easily or securely download all apps & games directly on your handset without any hassle.

  • Just open the app drawer on your Huawei/Honor phone.
  • Search for the AppGallery icon (red bag logo) and open it.
  • Now, you’ll get the Featured section on the homepage. Search for the app or game that you want to install.
  • If the app or game is available and appears on the search result then just tap on it to open the preview page and select ‘Install’ (blue colored button) at the bottom of the screen.
  • Finally, you’ll have to wait for the application to install, then tap on ‘Open’ to start using it.

2. Use Huawei Petal Search

Huawei Petal Search is another service from Huawei that can be used for online searching, news, images, and apps. It’s almost like the Google app for all-in-one solution. If you’re using a Huawei P40-series or the Mate 40 Pro, then the Petal Search should come preinstalled.

While if you’re on an older device like Huawei Mate 30 Pro or any other model then you can install the app via Huawei AppGallery.

  • Tap on the Petal Search icon to open the app > Tap on the search bar and type the app name that you want to install then hit the enter key.
  • Once the search result appears, you should tap on the ‘Apps’ tab to check for apps only.
  • Now, tap on your preferred application that you want to install. It’ll display the app page either from AppGallery or a third-party source.
  • So, find and tap on ‘Install’ > Tap on ‘Download’.
  • Wait for the device to install the app completely > Tap on ‘Open’ to open the installed app.

3. Use Huawei Phone Clone

Huawei’s Phone Clone app is just a cloning service that offers multiple accounts or guest mode on a single device. This will be a great addition to installing apps from a Google Play running device. Although this method may not work for all apps, it’s can be useful and effective enough whatever it’ll offer.

Most of the Huawei/Honor devices have the Phone Clone pre-installed. So, if you don’t want to use the Huawei AppGallery application then don’t worry. Just start using the Phone Clone app and you’ll also require an Android device having the Google Play Store and Play Services. Now, follow the steps below to install apps directly from the Play Store on your Huawei device.

  • Open the ‘Phone Clone’ app on your Huawei/Honor device.
  • Now, make sure to give the storage permission to the app > Allow the data transfer permission.
  • Select ‘This is a new device’ to allow the phone to receive data.
  • Then allow the permissions > Choose which platform is using another device. [Select ‘Other Android device’]
  • Next, open the Google Play Store app on the secondary handset > Search for the Phone Clone app.
  • Tap on ‘Install’ and then let the phone start installing the app that you want.
  • Once installed, tap on ‘Open’ > Allow the required permissions and scan the QR code of the Huawei device.
  • If your Huawei device has been detected on the secondary device then tap on ‘Connect’.
  • Now, you’ll be able to see a list of applications and tools on the secondary device.
  • Just select the preferred app that you want to install on your Huawei handset.
  • So, tickmark the checkboxes and hit ‘OK’ > Select ‘Transfer’ at the bottom of the screen.
  • Wait for the transfer process to complete. Once done, make sure to check whether the Huawei device is showing a ‘Transfer complete’ notice or not.
  • Finally, tap on the ‘OK’ and then the ‘Finish’ button.

4. Use a standalone APK

There is another useful and direct way to install third-party Android apps or even stock apps outside of the AppGallery application. Just search for the app name on the internet and download the APK file for your Android handset. In this way, you can easily install the preferred app or even game whether an older version or a new version whatsoever.

Now, you can do the same thing on either your mobile browser or via the computer browser. Just open the web browser on your Huawei mobile or the computer and search for the APK file of the app/game. You’ll find out a bunch of platforms or websites that offer APK files to download. But we’ll recommend you to go with a popular and reliable website such as APKMirror or APKPure or Softonic, etc.

Once you’re inside the website and on the app download page, just check for the latest APK file version of the particular app/game then download it on the device. If you’re downloading the APK file on your computer or any other handset then make sure to transfer the APK file to the Huawei/Honor device for sure.

Then tap on the APK file (.apk) directly > Hit ‘Install’ and allow the ‘install apps from unknown sources’ permission on the Huawei device. Once done, tap on install again and wait for it. Finally, tap on the ‘Open’ button to start using the app. Enjoy!

This is how you can easily download and install the Android apps or games on your Huawei/Honor phones even without using the AppGallery service or even having the Google Play Store.

That’s it, guys. We assume this guide was helpful to you. For further queries, you can comment below.

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