Question 1

Is it safe to open an APK here?

Accepted Answer

Yes. The file is only read, never installed or run, and it stays on your device. That makes this a safer first look than installing it to find out. It is not a virus scan: a harmful app can look ordinary from the outside, so for an APK you do not trust, read its permissions and signer here, and use a scanner too.

Question 2

How can I tell whether an APK is the real app?

Accepted Answer

By its signature. Android only installs an update signed with the same key as the app already installed, and every key has a fingerprint, shown here as SHA-256. If the fingerprint matches the one the developer publishes, or the one on a copy you got from Google Play or F-Droid, it was signed by the same developer. The package name alone proves nothing: anyone can reuse it.

Question 3

What are .xapk and .apks files?

Accepted Answer

Bundles of APKs. Apps on Google Play are often split into a base APK and extra ones for each screen density, language and processor, and download sites pack them together as .xapk (APKPure), .apks (SAI and bundletool) or .apkm (APKMirror). This page lists the APKs inside and reads the base one; installing a bundle needs an installer app that handles splits.

Question 4

Can it open an .aab file?

Accepted Answer

Not yet. An Android App Bundle (.aab) is what developers upload to Google Play, which builds the APKs from it; its manifest is stored in another format. The page says so when you open one.

Question 5

Is my APK uploaded?

Accepted Answer

No. The file is read by this browser tab on your own device, and nothing is sent anywhere.

Free APK viewer: see what is inside an Android app online