Your phone-only apps, within reach
Open the apps that never made it to macOS without reaching for another device. ARAs keeps your mobile life close while you work.
Feels native
Mobile apps without a second screen.
ARAs gives Android its own borderless place on macOS. Move it beside your browser, keep a call open while you work, or turn a phone-first app into a window you can actually live with.
Everyday use
Android notifications on your Mac
Keep up without keeping the Android window open. ARAs can bring app notifications to macOS, then take you back to the right app when you open one.
Games feel at home on a keyboard
Play Android games with built-in keyboard input and a window that can move, resize, and sit naturally beside everything else on your Mac.
A phone-shaped space when you need it
Go tall for calls and social apps, wide for stores and games, or choose your own size. The content follows the window.
Quiet when you do not
Hide the window and ARAs settles into idle mode, staying available for your Android life without demanding your attention.
Supported apps & games
Bring Android apps and games to your Mac.
Use social apps, productivity tools, video calls, and games from Android directly on macOS. ARAs connects them to the Mac hardware they need, including the camera, microphone, speakers, and keyboard.
Apps, including calls
Use Android apps on your Mac, including communication apps that need the camera, microphone, speakers, and calling features. ARAs is designed for up to 98% app compatibility.
Games with keyboard support
Play Android games on Mac using native keyboard input whenever the game already includes keyboard support.
Touch-first games
For touch-only games, a key-mapping app can bind onscreen controls to your Mac keyboard. Built-in ARAs key mapping is planned for a future release.
Compatibility can vary by app, game, Android version, and hardware requirements.
Browse game compatibilityFast by feel
Crisp pixels. Fluid motion. No emulator chrome.
High density rendering keeps text and apps sharp on Retina displays. On supported Macs, higher refresh rates let scrolling, games, and motion make full use of ProMotion.
Clarity
Retina-ready
Motion
Up to 120 fps
Display
ProMotion-aware
Platform
Apple silicon
Shortcuts
macOS & Android shortcuts.
Quick actions for window control, screen rotation, Android system buttons, and clipboard sync.
Navigation & Screen
Home
⌘+H
Rotate screen
⌘+O
Recent apps
⌘+R
Idle ARAS
⌘+I
Clipboard & System
Copy in Android
⌃+C
Paste into Android
⌃+V
Show AndroidStatus menu toggle
⌃+⌥+A
Quit ARAS
⌘+Q
Gamepad map
Keyboard Gamepad & Virtual Controller.
Turns your Mac keyboard and trackpad into a standard Xbox-style controller. Toggle mode anytime with ⌃ + ⌥ + S.
Ergonomic map: Two-finger trackpad swipes drive the camera / right stick and automatically re-center. Hold ⌥ (Option) to send native touch gestures to Android instead.
Bindings can be customized, tuned, or remapped anytime in Settings → Bridge Controller.
Action Buttons
A / Cross
Space
B / Circle
C
X / Square
R
Y / Triangle
F
Thumbsticks & Movement
Left Stick (Move)
WASD
Right Stick (Camera)Hold ⌥ for Android touch
Two-finger trackpad swipe
L3 (Left Stick Click)
Left ⇧
R3 (Right Stick Click)
V
Bumpers & Triggers
LB / L1
Q
RB / R1
E
LT / L2
Z
RT / R2
X
D-Pad & Navigation
D-Pad
↑↓←→
Menu / Start
Escape
View / Select / Back
Tab
Technical research
Researching a better home for Android on Apple silicon.
ARAs explores how Android can feel less like a separate machine and more like part of macOS. The work focuses on responsive ARM performance, low latency graphics, native window behavior, keyboard and clipboard input, camera and microphone access, and a quieter background state.
Built specifically for Apple silicon. Frames are presented from Android's graphics memory through Metal, not captured or streamed as video.
Native integration
Windows, input, media, notifications, and everyday controls designed around how Mac users already work.
Efficient by design
Active performance when an app needs it, with less visual work when ARAs is hidden and waiting in idle mode.
Device identity, sensors, orientation, and Gaming Mode, in detail.
Read the full technical breakdownGlobal reach
Used in 79+ countries.
A snapshot of where ARAs traffic has come from recently - a broad, global spread rather than any single market.
United StatesIndiaGermanyPhilippinesItalyTurkeyAustraliaCanadaUnited KingdomSouth KoreaFranceTaiwanIndonesiaPolandJapanBrazilSpainMexicoNetherlandsVietnamMalaysiaUnited Arab EmiratesUkraineAustriaChinaDenmarkBelarusSwitzerlandHungaryMoldovaPortugalRomaniaRussiaSwedenSingaporeArgentinaBelgiumCzech RepublicFinlandHong KongCambodiaNigeriaNew ZealandPakistanThailandAlbaniaDominican RepublicGreeceLithuaniaQatarCyprusEstoniaEgyptCroatiaIsraelIranSri LankaPeruSerbiaTrinidad and TobagoZambiaBangladeshChileColombiaCubaEcuadorHondurasJordanLuxembourgLatviaMyanmarNorwayRéunionSaudi ArabiaSeychellesEl SalvadorUzbekistanVenezuelaVanuatu
FAQ
How is ARAs different from BlueStacks?
The main difference is the experience. ARAs is an experimental Android research environment built specifically for Apple silicon, with no heavy emulator dashboard or x86 translation. Android opens in a clean, resizable Mac window. It is not focused only on games: ARAs also supports everyday and social apps that use features such as the camera, microphone, speakers, and video calls.
How is ARAs different from the Android Studio emulator?
Android Studio's emulator is primarily a development and debugging tool. ARAs is designed more like iPhone Mirroring for Android, with native trackpad gestures, keyboard and mouse input, Retina scaling, rotation, clipboard support, drag-and-drop installation, camera, microphone, notifications, and background idle mode.
Is ARAs only designed for games?
No. Games are useful for testing graphics and input performance, but ARAs is also designed for social apps, communication, productivity, research, and everyday Android use on a Mac.
What Android apps work with ARAs?
ARAs is designed for up to 98% app compatibility. It runs ARM64 Android apps that do not depend on unsupported device-specific hardware or incompatible native components. Compatibility can still vary by app and version.