How to sideload Apk to Firestick/Fire TV

Once you have bought your favorite Amazon Fire TV Stick, it is incomplete if you don’t use its Android compatibility features. Fire TV Stick runs on Fire OS which is an Android based mobile operating system. The latest version of Fire OS is Fire OS 6.2.1.0 which is based upon Android 7.1.2 (API Level 25). So, you can sideload Android apps via APK files to Fire TV Stick. Full compatibility of any app is not guaranteed as it was originally designed for Android OS, but you can use most of the popular Android Apps without any issues. Here in this guide I will teach you how to sideload APK files on Fire TV Stick.

sideload apk on fire tv stick

There are two methods to sideload Android APK to Fire stick, one is using Fire TVs default Downloader App (You may have to install it from Amazon App Store) and the other method is by using FireDL App on Fire TV Stick.

Similar to Android, we need to enable Unknown Sources to install third party apk files on Fire TV Stick. The steps are very much similar to Android, here is the guide on how to enable Unknown Sources on Fire TV Stick. Once you have enabled Unknown Sources, follow below steps to sideload Apk files to Firestick/Fire TV.

Steps to sideload APK to Fire TV/Firestick

You need to download and install Downloader app on Fire TV Stick, follow linked guide for the steps. Downloader app helps you to install other Android APK files on Fire TV.

Downloader app has inbuilt browser that lets you navigate to websites from where you can download APK files. You can use the remote and on screen keyboard to type in the Download URL.

  • Open Downloader App and on the home screen you will see a navigation bar.
downloader app
  • Enter the Download link/website URL in navigation bar and click on Go button.
  • If you have entered the direct download link, the apk file will be downloaded automatically. If you have entered the Website URL then go to the APK download page and click on download link to download APK file.
  • Once the download is finished, it will automatically opens Installer Window. Click on Install button to install the app.
  • Thats all! Now you can install any Android app on Fire TV stick using above steps.

There are two more procedures that you can use to install Android APK files on Fire TV Stick. You can either use FireDL to install Android APK files on Fire TV or you can also use ES File Explorer app to install APK files on Fire TV Stick. Follow the one that is easier to you.

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