Install apps on TV
Can You Install APK Files on a Samsung, LG or Roku TV?
No. You cannot install an APK on a Samsung, LG or Roku TV, and the same goes for Hisense VIDAA TVs. APK files are Android apps, and these TVs do not run Android: Samsung uses Tizen, LG uses webOS, Roku TVs use Roku OS and Hisense uses VIDAA. No USB trick, developer mode or "APK converter" changes that. What does work: plug a cheap Android TV or Google TV stick into the TV's HDMI port and sideload onto that, or, if you only want to play photos and videos from your phone, cast them over DLNA.
On this page
"How to install APK on Samsung TV" and "can I install APK on Roku TV" are some of the most searched sideloading questions, and many pages answering them are wrong or pure spam. This guide gives the honest answer, shows how to check which system your TV runs, and lists the routes that really get an app or a video onto that screen.
Why APK files can't install on these TVs
An APK is a package for Android. It contains code written for Android's app runtime and libraries. A TV can only install it if the TV's operating system is Android (Android TV, Google TV) or built on Android (Amazon's Fire OS). Other smart TV systems have their own, incompatible app formats and stores:
- Samsung: Tizen. Apps come from the Samsung Smart Hub store. Samsung's developer mode lets developers load Tizen apps they built themselves, not Android APKs.
- LG: webOS. Apps come from the LG Content Store. LG's Developer Mode app is likewise for webOS apps, not APKs.
- Roku TV (TCL, Hisense, onn and others sold as "Roku TV"): Roku OS runs Roku channels only.
- Hisense VIDAA: VIDAA has its own store. Hisense models that run Google TV are a different story and can install APKs.
Copying an APK to a USB stick and plugging it in does nothing on these TVs: the file browser either hides the file or says it is not supported.
Which TVs can install APK files?
| TV system | Install APK? | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Android TV, Google TV (Sony, TCL, Xiaomi, Philips, Hisense Google TV models) | Yes | Install APK on Android TV |
| Fire TV with Fire OS (Fire TV Stick 4K Max, 4K Plus, Cube, Fire TV smart TVs) | Yes | Sideload a Fire TV Stick |
| Fire TV with Vega OS (Fire TV Stick 4K Select, new Fire TV Stick HD) | No | Amazon Appstore only |
| Samsung (Tizen) | No | Add an Android TV stick, or cast media |
| LG (webOS) | No | Add an Android TV stick, or cast media |
| Roku TV, Roku sticks | No | Add an Android TV stick, or cast media |
| Hisense VIDAA | No | Add an Android TV stick, or cast media |
How to check what system your TV runs
- Samsung: Settings › Support › About This TV. Every current Samsung smart TV runs Tizen.
- LG: Settings › General › About This TV shows the webOS TV version.
- Roku: a purple home screen and Roku remote; Settings › System › About shows the Roku OS version.
- Hisense: a VIDAA logo at start-up means VIDAA; a Google TV logo and "For you" tab means you can sideload.
- TCL: sold with Roku, Google TV, Android TV or Fire TV. See install APK on TCL TV to tell them apart.
What works instead
1. Add an Android TV or Google TV stick
This is the real answer if you want Android apps on a Samsung, LG or Roku TV. A Google TV streamer or stick (Chromecast with Google TV, Google TV Streamer, Xiaomi Mi TV Stick, onn and others) or a Fire OS Fire TV Stick plugs into any HDMI port and brings its own operating system. You then sideload onto the stick, not the TV, with any method in our Google TV APK guide. If you are buying a stick to sideload, avoid Vega OS Fire TV models.
2. Check the TV's own app store
Many popular apps have native Tizen, webOS and Roku versions, for example YouTube, Netflix and Plex. If the app you want is there, install it from the TV's store: it will be built for the remote and update itself.
3. Cast photos, videos and music over DLNA
If you only want to play your own photos, videos or music on the TV, you do not need to install anything on it. Samsung, LG, Hisense and many other smart TVs can play files sent over DLNA, a local-network standard; on Roku this goes through its media player channel. SATV on your phone finds the TV and casts the file, so the TV plays it at full quality. Our guide to what replaced Samsung Smart View covers Samsung's own casting options.
4. Screen mirroring, for everything else
Samsung, LG, Roku and Hisense TVs support screen mirroring from Android phones (Miracast, under names like Smart View or Screen Share). It shows your phone's screen on the TV, which works for apps that have no TV version, though streaming apps often show a black screen because of copy protection. If it will not connect, see screen mirroring not working.
Can I send files to a Samsung or LG TV?
You can play them, but not store them the way an Android TV does. Casting over DLNA streams the file from your phone while you watch. To keep files on the TV side, the Android stick route works: send files to Android TV explains how.
Beware of "APK for Samsung TV" downloads
Sites offering an "APK installer for Samsung TV", a "Tizen APK converter" or a modified firmware that runs Android apps are not to be trusted. There is no supported way to do it, and those downloads are a common source of malware and broken TVs. If a page promises it, it is wrong.
Questions people ask
Can you install APK on a Samsung smart TV?
No. Samsung TVs run Tizen, not Android, so APK files cannot install, from USB or any other way. Use an Android TV stick in the HDMI port, or cast media over DLNA.
How do I install an APK on a Samsung TV from USB?
You can't. The TV's file browser cannot open APK files because Tizen has no Android runtime. The same file works on an Android TV stick plugged into the TV.
Can I install APK on a Roku TV?
No. Roku OS only runs Roku channels. TCL and Hisense Roku TVs are the same. Plug in a Google TV stick if you need Android apps.
Can you sideload apps on an LG TV?
Not Android apps. webOS Developer Mode only loads webOS apps that developers build themselves. For APKs, add an Android TV or Google TV device.
Can I install APK on a Hisense TV?
Only on Hisense models that run Google TV or Android TV. VIDAA models cannot install APKs.
Can I send an APK to a Samsung TV with SATV?
No app can install an APK on Tizen. SATV can cast photos, video and music to a Samsung TV over DLNA, and install apps on an Android TV or Fire TV stick plugged into it.