Remote access to a desktop is one of the most niche power-user features out there. However, it is perfectly doable on an Android device. There are two basic ways to do it. Users can remote into their Android device from a computer. We covered that functionality in our best screen mirroring apps for Android list. This list focuses more on accessing your desktop computer from your Android device. There are a bunch of apps that boast remote access as a feature. However, only some of them are actually good. Here are the best remote desktop apps for Android!

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AnyDesk is a serviceable option in the remote desktop space on Android. It works like any other remote desktop app. You connect your phone to your computer and then use your computer from your. AnyDesk is designed as a lightweight remote assistance and home office tool appropriate for large or small companies. It’s intended to be useful for software vendors or app developers looking for a way to solve customer or client problems remotely.

AnyDesk

Price: Free / $79-$229 per year

AnyDesk is a serviceable option in the remote desktop space on Android. It works like any other remote desktop app. You connect your phone to your computer and then use your computer from your phone. It worked pretty well in our testing and it uses a simple UI. There weren’t any real issues with it. The app is free for personal use. The prices we listed are for commercial use mostly. It definitely has its flaws, but we also put apps in lists for a reason. Give it a try and see if you like it. Worst case, you don’t and have four other options. VNC Viewer and this app competed for the fifth slot on this list so it’s right up there as well.

Chrome Remote Desktop

Price: Free

Chrome Remote Desktop is one of the most popular remote desktop apps. Users install the app from the Chrome Web Store on their computer and then this app from Google Play. From there, follow the installation instructions and you should be able to connect. The app worked most of the time in our testing. It’s quicker and simpler than many of the other options, including TeamViewer. However, it’s also been two years since Chrome Remote Desktop saw an update as of the writing of this article. We recommend trying this one first, but don’t be shocked if it’s not a flawless performance.

Microsoft Remote Desktop

Price: Free

Microsoft Remote Desktop is arguably Chrome Remote Desktop’s biggest free competitor. It works about the same way. You simply enable remote access on your Windows PC and install this app on your phone. The two should let your devices connect to one another. The positive part is you not needing a Google Chrome installation for this one to work on Windows devices. The bad news is the performance is about the same so you’re not really getting a better product. In any case, it’s a solid option and a good free alternative to Chrome Remote Desktop.

Splashtop Personal Remote PC

Price: Free / $5 per month / $16.99 per year

Splashtop is a less popular, but still fairly successful remote desktop app. It works like the others with dual apps on your computer and Android device. You can access anything on your computer from your phone on your local network. You can add access from anywhere for $5 per month or $16.99 per year. This lets you access your device on any network, including any WiFi network or mobile data. The app also lets you access your webcam to check up on your home without too much trouble. It worked as well as Chrome and Microsoft did in our testing.

TeamViewer

Price: Free for personal use

TeamViewer is kind of the obvious choice for remote desktop apps. It gives remote access to your computer from your Android device. It’s a little bit more complicated of a setup, but it works just as well as one would expect. It also includes features like file transfers in both directions, encryption, and real-time sound and HD video transmission. There are features included for helping, say, a friend or coworker. However, it works perfectly fine for just goofing around on your computer as well. The app is entirely free for personal use. Those who use it for business need a subscription.

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If we missed any great remote desktop apps for Android, tell us about them in the comments! You can also click here to check out our latest Android app and game lists!

• 1Pie Menu
• 4Settings
• 6Troubleshooting

AnyDesk for Android
Required Android: outgoing connections 4.4 or higher, incoming connections 5.0 or higher
Remote Control: 7 or higher
AnyDesk on Google Play

Note: The license can be assigned with a Custom Client, which is also needed for the address book.

Warning: As of Android 10 and depending on the smartphone provider, 8 and 9, users will get an Android security prompt regarding casting when connecting to the Android device. For most, this message is unskippable and requires the end user to manually accept the prompt before the connecting user is able to establish the session.

Setup and ID	The ID is created on the initial startup and remains valid until you remove the application.
Auto Discovery	Devices using AnyDesk are automatically displayed. See: Discovery
Unattended Access	Unattended access is also available for Android Setup the unattended password in the security settings.

Pie Menu

During the session, a pie menu indicated by the AnyDesk logo provides the session settings.
Double-tap the button to move it on the screen.Hold on a Pie Menu Item to get the tooltip.

The Settings Menu consists of:

1. Settings
2. Select Input Type
3. Choose Monitor
4. Actions
5. Close session

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Settings

Settings from the Pie Menu override the settings taken care of from the Main Menu
and are valid for the current session ID.

Choose Remote Monitor

Choose which display to view when remote device has multiple monitors.

Actions Menu

Actions menu indicated by lightening offers functions to be triggered on the remote device:

1. Take a screenshot
2. Upload file to clipboard on remote device.
3. Download file from clipboard of remote device.
4. Request elevation (UAC in Windows)
5. Send Ctrl + Alt + Del (SAS)
6. VPN
7. Privacy

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Close Session

Tap the session Menu This will close the connection.

Change Input Type

Open Menu and swipe to the Input Tile From top:

1. Special keyboard like F1, Windows-Key, Tab, etc.
2. open keyboard (Keyboard which you have installed on your Android device)

Items below are the three Input methods

1. Mouse mode - (default for Android to Desktop) emulates a mouse.
2. Touchpad mode - control your remote device like a touchpad with swipes.
3. Touch to Touch mode - (default for Android to Android)
4. Translate mouse input to touch input - default settings to enable mouse to touch translation.

Gestures:

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Mouse and Touchpad mode:

• One-finger swipe moves the mouse
• Two-finger swipe zooms the image.
• Three-finger swipe scrolls

• Single tap for left mouse-click
• Hold for right-mouse-click
• Three-finger tap for middle-click

Android Hotkeys

To invoke a command, open the keyboard settings in a session or hold the keys ctrl+alt+shift at the same time and press one of the following keys:

Anydesk Like App For Android

Key	Function
F5/Home/Pos1	Android Home
F6/Backspace	Android Back
F7	Volume Down
F8	Volume Up
F9/Escape	Android Power
F10	Android Menu
End	Android DPAD Center

Main Menu and Settings

Open the main menu by swiping from the left on the start-screen
or by tapping the three-stripe button on the top left.

• Address Book - If a licensed custom client is used
• Session Recordings
• Settings
• Tutorial
• Help (support.anydesk.com)
• About AnyDesk
• Quit AnyDesk

Settings

The Settings on Android are based on the Settings of AnyDesk on Windows.
For usability, available options are tailored for Android.

General	Choose an alias and if it should be displayed instead of the ID.
Security	Set interactive access, unattended access, Two-Factor authentication, standard permissions, discovery behavior and Settings protection by device password or biometric authentication.
Privacy	Choose username and image.
Input	Automatic Keyboard: Choose if keyboard appears when text input field is tapped. Choose Touch Mode: Mouse or Touchpad
Display	Choose whether to show remote cursor Quality: Download catalina for vmware. original balanced best reaction time
Audio	Choose whether microphone is transmitted. Choose whether audio from remote client will be transmitted.
Connection	Connection Settings to setup Proxy and connection behavior. See Connection.
Recording	Choose to record session at startup record incoming sessions record outgoing sessions

Using AnyDesk with managed Profiles (Work Profile)

Steps to make the plugin AD1 ready for AnyDesk connections to a managed profile (Order is important)

1. Make sure the plugin is installed in main profile and in managed profile.
2. Make sure the plugin is activated in the accessibility settings.
3. Open the plugin inside the main profile. Click on the overflow button and configure the plugin.

• If that does not work, try it from the managed profile. You might need to allow cross profile communication in your MDM solution.
  • The relevant filter is: action='com.anydesk.adcontrol.ad1.CONFIGURE' category='android.intent.category.DEFAULT'
  • Code example: filter = new IntentFilter(); filter.addAction('com.anydesk.adcontrol.ad1.CONFIGURE'); filter.addCategory(Intent.CATEGORY_DEFAULT); int flags = DevicePolicyManager.FLAG_MANAGED_CAN_ACCESS_PARENT | DevicePolicyManager.FLAG_PARENT_CAN_ACCESS_MANAGED; devicePolicyManager.addCrossProfileIntentFilter(getComponentName(context), filter, flags);

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Mobile Device Management

Anydesk Like Application

As of version 6.1.10 the AnyDesk Android app can be integrated with Microsoft Intune.

This is currently only available for the standard AnyDesk client, which can then be customized on the Microsoft Intune Web-UI.

On the Microsoft Intune Web-UI all available options are displayed, including short descriptions of how they work and what they do.

For more specific information on how to do this, click here.

Troubleshooting

Plugin can´t be activated

Due to changes by some vendors on Android, a restart of the Android device may be required for the control plugin to be functional.

Android TV Plugin

Warning: Please note that the usage of this workaround is without warranty from AnyDesk, and can harm and even violate the warranty of your device.

In the event that the vendor for Android/Fire TV device has disabled the Accessibility settings, the control plugin for AnyDesk cannot be activated.
AnyDesk can then be used for Remote View only. A possible workaround is to use the adb shell.
The plugin can be enabled using the following command:
adb shell settings put secure enabled_accessibility_services com.anydesk.adcontrol.ad1/com.anydesk.adcontrol.AccService
More information about adb can be found at the official adb documentation.

Screenrecording Dialog (Android 10+)

Starting with Android 10 and newer, Android forces to accept a Dialog for Screen recording.A workaround to bypass the request is the following adb shell command:
regular version: adb shell appops set com.anydesk.anydeskandroid PROJECT_MEDIA allow
custom client: adb shell appops set com.anydesk.anydeskandroid.custom PROJECT_MEDIA allow

Send Support Information

Send trace files on error or after crash:

• Open the sidebar
• Switch to 'About AnyDesk'
• Choose Send Support Information