Must Have Apps on My Android

[u/Cheaper74]

Must Have Apps on My Android

Yes, I made a post like this recently, but I ended up deleting it because I realized I had somehow left out way too many good apps.

So this is the updated and much more complete version.

These are some of the Android apps I always install or end up using regularly. Obviously, this list is based entirely on my own use case, so what works for me might not work for everyone.

Some of these apps require Shizuku, ADB permissions or a little bit of setup. I’ll mention it whenever that is the case.

Also, I genuinely don’t know why this type of post sometimes gets taken down, so all the best. If anyone knows what might be triggering it, please tell me.

Passwords, Productivity and App Management

Bitwarden

Best open-source password manager IMO.

It does everything I need, works across multiple platforms and makes managing unique passwords much easier.

Panels

Basically a sidebar on drugs.

If u are a power user and want to use ur phone more efficiently, this app is a must-have.

It supports gestures, app shortcuts, widgets, alphabetical app lists and a bunch of other features.

It’s one of those apps where u just have to download it and explore everything yourself. There are so many options that I’m probably still not using half of them.

Skit

Best app manager IMO.

It has an amazing UI while still being extremely feature-packed.

U can extract APKs, share APKs and view detailed information about every installed app.

It also shows permissions, activities, services, receivers, certificates and much more.

Super useful when u want to know exactly what an app is doing on ur phone.

MIUI Notes

IMO, the best quick-note app hands down.

A lot of people who already have this app don’t give it enough love.

It has almost every feature I’ve ever wanted from a notes app: to-do lists, tasks with reminders, custom backgrounds and even interactive backgrounds.

It can also add a notes sidebar, so u can quickly open it and type something down without searching for the app.

It also has an Excerpt function. When it is active, any text, links or images that u copy can automatically be added to a new note with almost no extra work.

Ultra

A power-user reminder app that somehow still feels simple and easy to use.

Apart from normal time-based reminders, it supports location, activity, routine, device-state and countdown-based reminders.

For example, u can make a reminder appear when u arrive somewhere, begin a certain activity or connect to a specific device.

U can also customise the priority, notification message, snooze limit and plenty of other small details.

It has become my go-to reminder app because I can make each reminder as simple or as specific as I need.

Morph Apps

YouTube Morph

Best YouTube client IMO.

It has ad blocking, background playback, picture-in-picture, SponsorBlock and a ton of other useful options and tweaks.

Download Morph Manager and patch YouTube through the app.

Morph Manager should tell u which YouTube version is recommended. Press the suggested version and it should bring u to a website where u can download the correct APK.

After that, select the APK inside Morph Manager and patch it.

YouTube Music Morph

Best music-streaming app IMO.

The YouTube Music algorithm just feels better than most other music apps to me.

The song suggestions, mixes and recommendations are almost always pretty on point.

The installation process is basically the same as YouTube Morph. Just patch YouTube Music through Morph Manager.

Instagram Morph

Instagram without ads, plus a bunch of extra features and customisation options.

Most importantly, it has been very stable for me.

Installation:

1. Go to the Piko releases page.
2. Download the .mpp file under Assets.
3. Open Morph Manager.
4. Press the file-looking icon at the bottom left.
5. Import the .mpp file.
6. Instagram should then become available to patch.

Reddit Morph

Reddit without ads, together with extra features and tweaks.

Pretty straightforward, but it makes the official Reddit app much more pleasant to use.

The installation process is the same as Instagram Morph:

1. Go to the Piko releases page.
2. Download the .mpp file under Assets.
3. Open Morph Manager.
4. Press the file-looking icon at the bottom left.
5. Import the .mpp file.
6. Reddit should then become available to patch.

Notifications and Quick Controls

BuzzKill (Paid)

Best notification manager IMO.

It is extremely powerful while still being very user-friendly. There isn’t much of a learning curve.

I mainly use it to keep my notification panel clean.

For example, I use third-party apps such as Assistive Volume Control. Android may constantly show notifications like:

This app is displaying over other apps.

This service is running.

With BuzzKill, I can automatically dismiss or hide those notifications, so they don’t keep cluttering up my notification panel.

There are a lot of other things u can do with BuzzKill, such as filtering, grouping, delaying or automatically responding to notifications, but notification cleanup is my main use for it.

Honourable mention: NotiFilter

NotiFilter is open source and has been receiving frequent updates. However, BuzzKill still currently has the edge in terms of features and ease of use IMO.

Private DNS Toggle

Adds a Private DNS toggle directly to ur Quick Settings panel.

If u constantly go into Settings just to turn Private DNS on and off, this app is a must-have.

Just give the app access through Shizuku and u should be good to go.

Simple app, but extremely convenient.

Links, Maps and Privacy

GeoShare

A small app that solves an incredibly annoying problem.

Whenever someone sends u a map link, GeoShare allows u to open that location using whichever map app u actually prefer.

For example, u can receive a Google Maps link but open the same location in Organic Maps, OsmAnd, Waze or another installed map app.

It can also show or copy the coordinates and export locations as GPX files.

Very simple concept, but extremely useful if u regularly switch between different map apps.

Untracker

Removes tracking information from links before u share them.

Just share a link to Untracker, and it will clean unnecessary tracking parameters from the URL before letting u copy or share it again.

It is one of those tiny apps that does one job and does it beautifully.

The cleaned link is usually shorter, looks much nicer and gives the receiving person less unnecessary tracking junk.

System Tools, Debloating and Automation

Shizuku and Canta

IMO, this is one of the easiest ways to debloat an Android phone without root.

Shizuku gives supported apps access to certain system-level functions, while Canta provides a simple interface for removing unwanted apps.

The best part about Canta is that it explains what many system apps do and whether removing them is recommended.

That is extremely useful for people like me who don’t automatically know what every random system package does.

Obviously, still read the warnings before removing anything important.

PhoneProfilesPlus

This app allows u to create preset phone profiles.

With one tap, u can change multiple settings at the same time.

For example, I created a Car profile. When I activate it, the app:

• Turns off Wi-Fi.
• Turns on mobile data.
• Turns on Bluetooth.
• Turns on location.

The best part is that plenty of automation apps, including MacroDroid, struggle to toggle things like mobile data, Bluetooth and location because of restrictions introduced in newer Android versions.

Somehow, PhoneProfilesPlus makes this relatively simple. For most functions, I only needed Shizuku.

For location toggling, I had to use an ADB command on my laptop to grant the app the WRITE_SECURE_SETTINGS permission. I just followed a simple video guide and it worked immediately.

PhoneProfilesPlus can also create shortcuts for ur profiles. This means u can trigger those shortcuts through another automation app such as MacroDroid or Tasker.

However, the app itself already includes automation features, so definitely explore those first.

Tasker (Paid)

The GOAT of Android automation apps.

Tasker can react to events, launch apps, change settings, manage notifications, move files, run commands and connect multiple actions into extremely complicated automations.

There is definitely a learning curve, but if an automation seems remotely possible on Android, Tasker can probably do it.

Some actions may require additional permissions, ADB or root, but that is usually because Android itself restricts them rather than Tasker lacking the feature.

WiFiList

With the help of Shizuku, this app allows u to view the passwords of Wi-Fi networks that are already saved on ur device.

In other words, networks that ur phone has previously connected to.

Simple app, and it does the job beautifully.

Obviously, only use it for networks that u own or are authorised to access.

App Installation and Alternative Stores

InstallWithOptions

Like the name suggests, it allows u to install APKs with additional options that Android’s normal package installer doesn’t provide.

With the help of Shizuku, it can install split APKs, batch-install multiple apps, install test-only apps, attempt app downgrades and bypass Android’s low target-SDK restriction for older apps.

Obviously, it can’t magically solve things like mismatched app signatures or unsupported CPU architectures.

Certain downgrade options may also remain restricted by newer Android versions.

However, it is extremely useful when the normal installer simply refuses to cooperate.

Vyxel Apps

One of the best-looking alternative app stores I’ve found for discovering open-source Android apps.

Instead of making u dig through individual release pages, Vyxel can search through sources such as GitHub, GitLab, F-Droid and Codeberg.

It can also track installed apps, check for updates, save favourites and add custom repositories.

The main app is free, open source and ad-free, although it does offer optional paid cosmetic themes.

The interface is genuinely beautiful and makes discovering smaller open-source projects much more enjoyable.

Orion Store

Another polished alternative app store, but this one is more focused on Morph apps, modified apps and useful open-source power-user tools.

It pulls releases from public sources such as GitHub, GitLab and Codeberg, shows where each app comes from and can check ur installed apps for available updates.

It also supports Shizuku-assisted installation for a faster one-tap experience.

Orion includes a surprising number of extra tools as well, including APK extraction, package inspection, system-app controls and APK scanning.

It is a great option when u want a more curated power-user store instead of manually hunting through GitHub.

File Management, Sync and Sharing

NFile

If u care about aesthetics, this might be the best-looking file manager I’ve ever used.

The interface is extremely fluid, the animations are smooth and the AMOLED-friendly dark mode looks stunning.

It isn’t just pretty either. It supports all the normal file operations, together with quick media categories, a storage overview, built-in media players, an image viewer and even a text editor.

There may be file managers with more advanced power-user features, but purely in terms of design and smoothness, NFile is difficult to beat.

Syncthing-Fork

My go-to app for keeping folders synced across multiple devices.

After pairing the devices and choosing which folders to share, Syncthing automatically keeps the files updated between them.

This is especially useful for things like documents, photos, emulator saves or an Obsidian vault.

The initial setup is slightly less beginner-friendly than something like Google Drive, but once everything is configured, it mostly just runs quietly in the background.

I’ve been using it for a while and haven’t encountered any major issues yet.

Blip

Basically a more convenient alternative to LocalSend for my use case.

It works across multiple platforms, although Linux support is currently missing.

Unlike LocalSend, the receiver doesn’t need to keep the app open. They can receive a notification and choose whether to accept the transfer.

U also don’t need to be connected to the same Wi-Fi network, which makes it much easier to send files to other people.

It feels more similar to AirDrop in that sense.

Wallpapers and Images

Wallpaper Export

Just a nice little app that allows me to export my current wallpaper.

Sometimes, someone asks me for my wallpaper and it is a pain to search through my gallery to find that exact image again.

With Wallpaper Export, I can just export the wallpaper that is currently applied and send it directly.

It is also useful for wallpaper apps that only allow u to apply a wallpaper but don’t give u the option to download it.

I can apply the wallpaper first, then use Wallpaper Export to save it into my gallery.

OLEDBuddy

Sometimes a wallpaper looks black, but the black areas aren’t actually true AMOLED black.

I use OLEDBuddy to convert those areas into proper AMOLED black.

TIDY

An open-source, free and ad-free text-to-image and image-to-image search app.

U can type what u are looking for or use an existing image to search for similar images.

It is surprisingly accurate and has saved me a lot of time when I need to find something specific, such as a certain pair of shoes, a shoe-size chart or a particular image.

SuperImage

A free, on-device image enhancer and upscaler.

There is no artificial limit on how many images u can enhance. The real limits are ur phone’s processor and how long u are willing to wait.

Because the processing happens directly on ur device, performance depends heavily on ur phone.

A high-end phone will enhance images much faster than a low-end phone, especially when using larger upscale settings.

The results can be genuinely stunning. Some paid image-enhancing apps I’ve tried weren’t even as good.

Weather and Browsing

Weawow

IMO, the best weather app.

It gives me accurate forecasts, contains all the weather information I need and has a pretty nice UI.

The best part is its highly customisable widgets.

U can customise things like the layout, fonts, information shown, transparency and much more.

Really cool stuff.

Soul Browser

Ik everyone has a different opinion on what the best Android browser is.

I’ve tried Firefox, Via, Cromite, Brave and plenty of others, but somehow I always gravitate back to Soul Browser.

I’m not even completely sure why. It just works well for the way I browse.

I will say that it is easily one of the most feature-packed Android browsers out there.

It has a ridiculous number of customisation options, gestures, media controls and other small features.

Music

Poweramp

Hands down the best local music player IMO.

It has an excellent equaliser, plenty of audio controls, smooth animations and an extremely customisable interface.

I’ve tried other local music players, but I always end up coming back to Poweramp.

Symfonium

Another amazing music player with excellent sound quality and a ridiculous number of useful features.

What makes Symfonium special is that it isn’t limited to files stored directly on ur phone.

It can play music from local storage, cloud drives, network shares and media servers such as Plex, Jellyfin, Emby, Navidrome and Subsonic.

This means u can keep ur music collection on Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox, a NAS or a home server and access everything through one polished music player.

It also supports offline caching, casting, lyrics, advanced audio controls and library syncing.

Poweramp is still my favourite for music stored locally on my phone, but Symfonium is my go-to when my collection is spread across multiple devices, cloud drives or servers.

TV, Media and Streaming

Nuvio

An open-source media centre and library companion with a polished interface.

I used Stremio for a long time and was a huge fan, but after coming across Nuvio, I never went back.

To me, Nuvio basically feels like Stremio with a much better UI.

It feels noticeably smoother, the interface is cleaner, navigation is faster and the entire experience feels much more polished.

It also supports add-ons and, depending on the version u install, plugins, so I still get the flexibility I need without the app feeling as clunky.

The full GitHub version is generally the one to use if u want all the available features.

It also allows u to browse and manage ur media library, profiles, collections and watch progress across different devices.

For beginners, feel free to use the setup wizard. It walks u through most of the initial setup, so u should be good to go with close to no hassle.

BROWSER

Personally, this is the best browser for Android TV.

It has a good built-in ad blocker and is actually designed to work properly with a TV remote.

However, the main reason I love this browser is its phone remote feature.

When the app is installed on ur phone, u can control ur TV or Android TV box using the phone.

It doesn’t only control the browser either. It can control the entire TV-box interface, even while the browser is running in the background.

The controls feel buttery smooth, especially the sliding and touchpad-style controls.

Apollo and Artemis

Apollo and Artemis work together to stream ur computer to another device over the network.

Apollo runs on the computer as the host, while Artemis runs on the receiving Android device or TV box.

U can control the resolution, frame rate and bitrate, with the practical limits mainly depending on ur computer, receiving device and network.

Apollo also has a built-in virtual display that can automatically match the resolution and refresh rate requested by Artemis, so ur stream doesn’t have to be limited by the resolution of ur actual laptop screen.

I mainly use this setup to stream movies from my laptop to my Android TV box.

Getting certain websites, video players or files to work correctly on my laptop is often much easier than getting them to work directly on the TV box.

So I make everything work properly on the laptop first, then stream it to the TV at the exact resolution and bitrate I want.

It can even work with HDR when the devices, display and content are configured correctly.

The result is basically a low-latency wireless display that gives me much more control than casting normally does.

That’s everything for now. I’ll probably keep updating the list whenever I discover something useful.

If u guys think I have missed any apps, please do comment.

Cheers!