15 best Android Auto apps to get the most out of it

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There are a variety of apps to customize the experience and you really can do almost anything you want with it except watch videos. Obviously, Google Assistant needs mentioned here since it works with the microphones in your car to deliver content while you drive but you need it to use Android Auto anyway. Thus, we didn’t list it below. We can help you customize your experience with the best Android Auto apps for Android!

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Audible and Overdrive

Price: Free / Varies

Audibe and OverDrive are two of the most popular audiobook services out there. Both of them have Android Auto support as well. They work basically the same way. You can purchase audiobooks and listen to them in your car. It works great for commutes or road trips and it’s a fun alternative to music for those who want something a little less intense. Audible also has a subscription service for those who would rather go that route than purchase individual books. OverDrive is a good alternative to Audible if you don’t want that.

iHeartRadio

Price: Free / $9.99 per month

iHeartRadio is one of the best Internet radio apps and it has excellent Android Auto support. You can find a bunch of regular music stations along with actual radio stations. You can always use your car radio for regular radio stations, but iHeartRadio helps keep everything within Android Auto for people who want to do it that way. The service is entirely free with ads or there’s an optional subscription for those who want more stuff. We’re especially big fans of iHeartRadio during the holiday season because its Christmas station is excellent. It’s still great during the other 11 months of the year too.

MediaMonkey or Poweramp

Price: Free / Up to $2.49

MediaMonkey is a local music player. There are a bunch of great local music players for Android Auto. We even have a list linked up below the opening paragraph for it. However, we quite like MediaMonkey. The app itself is simple and customizable and there isn’t a bunch of extra nonsense to get in the way. The Android Auto experience is similarly simple and effective. It’s easy to get to playlists you made or access music from your library. Pulsar and Poweramp are also excellent options, but MediaMonkey also has a desktop app so you can keep your local library all under one roof.

Facebook Messenger or Telegram

Price: Free

Facebook Messenger and Telegram are two very different apps. The first is (along with WhatsApp) the world’s most popular messenger service and there is a good chance your friends and family have it or use it regularly. Telegram, by contrast, is a privacy messenger app with encryption and other privacy features. Both of them work with Android Auto and are arguably the two best apps that do. We recommend Facebook Messenger for those who just want to keep in touch and Telegram to those who want some extra privacy. 

Pandora

Price: Free / $4.99-$9.99 per month

Pandora was in cars before Android Auto existed and it’s still one of the best Android Auto apps for music. It has a large supply of music stations and you can create your own with music that you like. Pandora also has a music-on-demand service for $9.99 per month that competes with services like Google Play Music and Spotify. It’s an excellent all-in-one solution for Internet radio and music you actually like. The $4.99 per month subscription adds some features for the radio side of things if you don’t want the on-demand stuff.

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Podcast Addict or Doggcatcher

Price: Free / $3.99 for Podcast Addict, $2.99 for Doggcatcher

Podcast Addict and Doggcatcher are two excellent podcast apps and both have Android Auto support. Podcast Addict has a functional UI and it works very much like Pocket Casts did before its redesign. Doggcatcher is a bit more flashy but works more or less the same way. Both podcast players have single-price premium versions, access to tons of podcasts, and support for both video and audio podcasts. Podcast Addict also supports YouTube and Twitch subscriptions, audiobooks, RSS feeds, and SoundCloud, making it the more powerful option overall. You can’t go wrong either way.

Pulse SMS

Price: Free / $0.99 per month / $5.99 per year / $10.99 once

Pulse SMS is, honestly, our favorite SMS app on Android. It works on computers, tablets, mobile devices, and Android Auto. Thus, you can get your texts almost everywhere. The app itself is configurable and you can respond to messages in Android Auto. Textra is a fan favorite and it’s also a great SMS app with Android Auto support. However, Pulse SMS has more features and is available across more platforms. If you want an all-in-one great (if somewhat expensive) SMS experience, Pulse SMS is where it’s at. Textra is a good simple option if you just want that.

Spotify

Price: Free / $9.99 per month

Spotify is the most popular music streaming service in the world and it works great with Android Auto. It works well with voice commands and you can access your playlists at the drop of a hat. Most people already know what Spotify can do and why it’s great. Google Play Music is another great option and works flawlessly with voice commands and such. However, its future is uncertain thanks to YouTube Music. Some other decent music streaming options include Deezer and Amazon Music.

Waze and Google Maps

Price: Free

Waze and Google Maps are about the only two navigation apps that work with Android Auto. Both are also by Google. Google Maps is the obvious choice because it has a ton of features and it’s the default option. However, you can go with Waze as well if you want something a little different. Both apps respond to voice inputs on Android Auto and both help you navigate to your destination. There isn’t much else to say really.

All these other Android Auto apps

Price: Free / Varies

Google has a whole Google Play Store page for Android Auto apps. You can find all kinds of hidden gems on this page, including individual radio station apps, various messaging apps like Skype, news sites, podcast apps, and all kinds of other content. All of these apps should have Android Auto support and those looking for the diamond in the rough apps should find them on this page. Hit the button and prepare to browse through stuff Google says has Android Auto support. Unfortunately, we couldn’t try all of these before writing the article because there are dozens of them. However, the ones we tried did work and all of the Android Auto apps on this list are also on the linked page.