Are Third-Party App Stores Really Worth Using for Android Users?

[danielmartinhq 0]

Hey everyone,

I’ve been reading a lot about third-party app stores lately — places like Aptoide, APKPure, and similar platforms. Some people say they’re a great way to access apps that aren’t available on Google Play, while others warn about privacy and security issues.

Given that many folks here value digital freedom and privacy (and often avoid Google’s ecosystem when possible), I’m curious — what’s your take on third-party app stores?

• Do you think they’re a good alternative app stores if you’re careful about what you install?

• How do you personally verify app safety before downloading from them?

• Are there any stores you actually trust or recommend?

Would love to hear what the privacy-minded crowd here thinks about this.

Edited ... by danielmartinhq

[Tech Jedi Alex 1499]

F-Droid is probably the most well-known alternative app store that is also reputable in aspects of both privacy and security. The project exclusively builds and hosts FLOSS software, and even comes with a repo from the Guardian Project which hosts privacy-centered APKs like Orbot. It's an example of a good store.
All other stores, especially Aptoide, are comparable to user-managed alternative repositories for software on Linux, like Launchpad for Ubuntu or the AUR for Arch Linux. The AUR in particular was recently in the news because some user posted malware packages of popular browsers with "patched" or "fix" in their name, suggesting that they are "patched" versions of the original browsers found in the official repository. That very same thing can happen on Aptoide: You're looking for an alternative YouTube player (since they are not allowed on Play) and all you install is one that asks for questionable permissions not needed for video playback. The next moment someone gets your installed apps, your location, phone number and maybe other things. It's even much more difficult to verify that your download is safe for you because, well, you cannot look into the APK, so arguably alternative stores are even riskier than using the AUR on Arch. Not sure if "due dilligence" is enough to avoid harm. I for one don't use, much less recommend, them.

Soon, all those stores will be no more once Google's new PKI-like registration of package names will come into effect. Or will at least drastically alter how they work. Starting 2026, all devs need to register their package names with their Android developer account which holds their personal ID information, so if F-Droid builds org.airvpn.eddie (which they don't, just an example) the installation of that build will fail on all certified devices (maybe unless it's a reproducible build, but different story). Google say it's for security, and that might have some kernels of truth to it (e.g. cracked paid APKs, and maliciously modified apps on Aptoide and elsewhere with the same package name will fail to install), but in essence this is Google taking complete control over the Android software ecosystem – a shift to a centralized Android, like iOS always was.
Android more and more ceases to be an open platform (also for other things that happened, especially in the Custom ROM circles). And it's maddening to know that there is no viable alternative. All the devs are on iOS and Android. Wearables, TVs, cars, they all use SDK from those two OSes. And Linux phones largely don't work as daily drivers yet.

So in essence,

• if they have a good track record like F-Droid, they're probably safe. Aptoide fails in this regard, see also Hacker News.
• as F-Droid is a reputable APK source, it's usually safe to simply download from there. I additionally go to the code repo and check one or two things out that catch my interest. If good, I download the build from the developer if one is available, and if that is not, from F-Droid.