This solution would be best if you want to buy an app for a friend, cousin, or nephew rather than an immediate family member. It doesn't quite have the surprise factor or the feel of a gift that buying through Family Library would, but it doesn't have the drawbacks of ineligible apps and shared payment info. Movies, books, music, YouTube Premium and YouTube TV subscriptions, and other non-hardware purchases from Google Play are eligible, so you can share almost all of your digital purchases! Method 2: Send Google Pay Money via GmailĪn easier one-off way to buy someone an app is to just give them the money to purchase it. The great thing about Google Play Family Library is it works for more than just apps and games. Open the side navigation menu (hamburger icon in the top-left), then scroll down and choose 'Account.' From there, choose 'Family,' then tap 'Sign up for Family Library.' If you're on a computer, you can do this from Google's website. The main problem is that members of your Google Play Family will have access to your payment method, meaning they'll be able to buy apps and other Google Play items using your credit card in the future.īut if that's okay with you, start by opening the Play Store app on your Android phone. You'll need to add the recipient to your Google Play Family Library, which is ideal for actual families, but not a perfect solution if you're gifting an app to a friend. There's a drawback to this method, however. In essence, you'll buy the app using your own account, then the recipient will be able to download the app as if they paid for it.

The best way to buy an Android app for somebody else is to add it to your Google Play Family Library.

Jump to a section: Family Library method | Google Pay method | gift card method Method 1: Add the App to Your Family Library Depending on who you're buying for, one of these methods will work best for you. You can either buy them a Google Play gift card, send them money over Gmail with Google Pay, or add them to your Google Play Family library, then simply buy the app from your own account. None are perfectly ideal, but I'll outline a few different methods that let you buy an app for someone else. The Google Play Store doesn't have such functionality, but there are still a few workarounds to accomplish the same goal: gifting an app to an Android user. The iTunes App Store makes it easy to buy an app or game on someone else's behalf, and it's a great way to send an iPhone user a thoughtful gift.

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