GetJar

GetJar is a mobile app store founded in Lithuania in 2004 that later became one of the best known independent stores. Its current website, getjar.com, presents a free online games site with instant-play titles, so it no longer looks like an APK store. This page explains both sides.

How GetJar Went From Beta Testing To A Big App Store

Wikipedia says GetJar began as a platform for developers to beta test apps and later started offering free apps. Ilja Laurs was founder and executive chairman and Chris Dury was the founding CEO. Investors included Accel Partners and Tiger Global Management. By early 2015 the page describes more than 849,000 apps.

GetJar Changed Hands In 2014

According to the same source, Eightpoint, which was formerly Spigot Inc., acquired GetJar in 2014. The page also notes that in 2025 GetJar announced a planned platform renewal with a modernized interface and new features. We could not confirm from it whether the old APK catalog is still running.

Keep an eye on signatures. An update to an app you already have must be signed with the same key as the version on your phone, and Android refuses the update if the key differs. If an update fails for no clear reason, treat that as a warning and not as a glitch to push through. Developers also sometimes publish a checksum on their own site, and comparing it with your file takes only a minute.

What The GetJar Home Page Shows Today

When we opened getjar.com, it showed a free online gaming site. The list of what was visible is short:

• Instant-play games that run in the browser with no download.
• Categories such as puzzle, arcade, action, strategy and daily games.
• Coins and leaderboards for rewards and competition.
• A news area, a developers page and seasonal promotions.
• No company or owner named in the content we read.

Where To Get Android Apps If You Remember GetJar

If you visited GetJar years ago for Android apps, do not expect to find the same catalog there now, and be wary of old GetJar APK files shared on other sites. Whatever store you use, the safest way to install apps is still the official store first (Google Play), and a third-party source only when the app is not offered there.

Check that any app you want exists on Google Play or on the developer’s own site first. A very old file from a defunct store may no longer get security updates, and files labeled mod or premium unlocked are a common source of malware.

Leave Google Play Protect switched on. It can scan apps that came from outside the store as well, and it will warn you about files it knows to be harmful. It is not perfect, so it works best together with the other habits here, such as sticking to well known developers and checking that a download’s size is close to the official one.