How to install XAPK, APKS and APKM files on Android

What are split APKs, XAPK, APKS and APKM files?

Split APKs are how Google Play delivers apps that are published as app bundles. According to Google's Android App Bundle documentation, an app bundle is a publishing format, and Google Play uses it to "generate and serve optimized APKs for each device configuration". In practice that means a base APK plus configuration APKs for things like CPU architecture, screen density and language.

A set of split APKs has to travel in a container, and that's where the file extensions come from:

Format	What it holds	Where it usually comes from
.apks	An APK set archive: base, split and sometimes universal APKs; bundletool also adds a table of contents	Google's bundletool (build-apks), and Manifesto's own Extract APK set
.xapk	A ZIP with the base and split APKs, and sometimes .obb expansion files	Third-party download sites
.apkm	A ZIP with the base and split APKs	Third-party download sites
.aab	An Android App Bundle, the publishing format itself, not something a phone installs	App developers; see convert an AAB to an APK on Android

Why won't Android install an XAPK when I tap it?

Android's package installer opens a single .apk. An XAPK, APKS or APKM file is an archive of several APKs, and the app only works when the base APK and the splits it needs go in together. Google's documentation also warns that partial installs of sideloaded apps, meaning installs that miss one or more required split APKs, "fail on all Google-certified devices and devices running Android 10 (API level 29) or higher".

Manifesto installs a set through Android's own PackageInstaller session API. Every selected split is written into one install session and committed together, so you still see and approve the normal Android install prompt. No root is needed.

How to install an XAPK, APKS or APKM file with Manifesto

1. Install Manifesto, the APK editor and file manager for Android, and grant All files access on first launch.
2. In the file manager, find the .xapk, .apks or .apkm file. Long-press it to open its actions.
3. Tap Install. The Install APK set dialog opens with a Splits to install list.
4. Check the list. The counter under it shows how many APKs are selected. Use Select all or Clear to change the selection.
5. Tap Install. If Android asks, allow Manifesto to install unknown apps.
6. Confirm the Android system install prompt.

For a plain .apk, tap the file instead. The APK info sheet opens, and its Install button hands the file to the same installer.

Which splits should I select?

Manifesto preselects splits differently depending on what the container tells it:

• APKS made by bundletool: the archive has a table of contents, so Manifesto matches it against your device (Android version, CPU ABIs, screen density and system languages) with bundletool's ApkMatcher and preselects only the matching splits.
• XAPK and APKM: these have no bundletool table of contents, so every APK in the file starts selected.
• APKS backups from Installed Apps: sets saved with Extract APK set also start with every APK selected, because they hold exactly what was installed on the source device.
• Always keep the base APK. The other splits only add code or resources to it.

If an install fails with everything selected, try again with the base APK plus only the splits for your device's architecture, screen density and language.

What happens to the OBB data in an XAPK?

OBB files in an XAPK are not handled by Manifesto. The installer writes the APKs in the set and ignores any .obb entries, so an app that depends on its expansion data won't have it after the install.

Conversion has a hard stop for the same reason. When an XAPK contains .obb files, the Convert to APK dialog shows "OBB data can't be merged into one APK" and the Convert button stays disabled. Expansion files live outside the APK, so they can't be folded into it. Google's app bundle format doesn't carry them either: its documentation states that "Android App Bundles do not support APK expansion (*.obb) files".

Can I merge a split APK set into one APK instead?

A split set can be merged into one installable APK with Convert to APK, which is useful when you want to share one file or open the app as a project:

1. Long-press the .apks, .xapk or .apkm file and tap Convert to APK.
2. Under APKs to merge, check the base and the splits you want. A universal or standalone APK can only be selected on its own, not combined with splits.
3. Under Signature schemes, keep the default V1, V2 and V3, or add V4 (V4 requires V2 or V3).
4. Tap Convert. The job runs in the background and shows up in Tasks.

The result is saved next to the original as <name>-converted.apk. Manifesto merges the splits with ARSCLib and signs the output with its built-in debug key. That signature differs from the original developer's, so Android won't install it over an existing copy of the app; uninstall the original first, or re-sign with your own key as shown in how to sign an APK on Android.

Limits to know before you start

• Install and convert only: APKS, XAPK and APKM files can be viewed, installed, signed with Sign set and converted, but not rebuilt as sets. To edit an app, convert it to one APK first and use Open as project on that APK, as described in APK projects.
• Device support: Manifesto itself needs Android 8.0 or newer on an arm64 device.
• Browse before installing: View opens the container like a folder, so you can see which splits and OBB files it holds. The archives docs cover what you can do inside.
• Signing a whole set: Sign set re-signs every APK in the container with the debug key or your own keystore. The build and sign docs explain the schemes.

Only install and modify apps you own or are allowed to analyze, and get split sets from sources you trust.