After all press for Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk possibly getting it together in the octagon, the only analog we’re likely to see is Twitter versus Meta’s new darling Threads. The platform received 70 million signups in its first few days and it shows no signs of slowing down. The only problem is that it is mobile only at the moment. You can view individual posts in a browser, but you can’t post or read your entire feed.
Personally, my relationship with the bluebird has taken a major turn for the past few months, so I decided to give Threads a try. The best way I can describe it is that it’s like rerolling a new character class into a game after you’ve already gone through the endgame content. You know, kind of refreshing.
Threads is still lagging as it is mobile locked for Android and iOS devices so I can’t really use it on anything other than my phone and tablet. But if you’re using Windows 11, there’s a quick way around that limitation using the Windows Subsystem for Android.
It all depends on the Amazon Appstore activating the ability to sideload Android APKs with a few toggles. So this guide isn’t just for Threads, but more for a… meta guide to most android apps that have available APKs. (I hope you see what I did there.)
Before we start
- Have Windows 11 installed.
- Have the latest Windows updates installed.
- Make sure Microsoft supports Amazon Appstore in your country or region. (Look here.)
Install Amazon Appstore/Windows Subsystem for Android
- Open the Microsoft Store and search for Amazon app store. Click to install or To get to start the download.
- This will take you through a three-step installation process – just follow through. It will ask for permission to make changes to some utilities – allow them and you’ll soon be prompted to restart your computer.
- When it comes back from the reboot, your PC will automatically start installing it Windows Subsystem for Android. Once that’s done, you’ll be prompted with a login screen for the Amazon Appstore. (You don’t need to log in.)
- You will now be able to find Windows Subsystem for Android in your start menu. Open it and select Advanced settings on the left and then enable the Developer mode slider to the right.
Download the Threads APK
There are multiple options for downloading APKs for Android apps, but not knowing where you’re going can land you in some unsavory corners of the internet. One of the safest in my experience is APKMirror.
- Grab the Threads apk using the APKMirror link here.
- By default this will be in your To download folder.
Install WSATools
While there are several options for apps that allow Android APKs to be installed once the Windows subsystem for Android is installed, WSATools is one of the simplest and most straightforward, and it’s another pick-me-up from the Microsoft Store.
- Open the Microsoft Store and search for WSATools. Install it.
Install wires
All the pieces are in place, let’s go!
- WSATools is now available in your Start menu. Open it.
- Click Install an APK. This will tell you that the ADB is missing the first time you run it. Click to install and select or create a folder to install it in. Personally, I just made C:\ADB simple. (You never have to do this again.)
- Once that’s done, you’ll get another prompt to find your file. Go to your Downloads folder and select our freshly downloaded Threads APK.
- Click to install when it shows the Threads icon and information.
- Permission may be requested for this ADB debugging. If yes, click yes.
If this doesn’t work, or it says it can’t access the WSA, just reboot your machine to try again.
And that’s it! Threads should now be available in your Start menu, so if you’re at your desk at work or on your game rig taking a break between runs, you can access Threads on your Windows 11 PC with the same ease as Microsoft’s Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram Windows apps. Have fun rinsing! (Is that what we call it?)
