Notes 
Zapstore is an open-source Android app store built on Nostr. Developers publish releases directly, and each one is signed with the developer’s Nostr key, so the app can check that the APK you install matches what the developer published and refuse it when the hashes do not match. You choose which catalogs and developers to trust, and you can tip a developer in bitcoin over Lightning straight from an app’s page.
Reviewed by Marco Wollank
Zapstore
zapstore.dev 1 rating so far*
Rate Zapstore: No account needed
Threat level
Hardened
A hardened pick. Worth the effort once you have chosen to shrink your footprint on purpose. Enough for most people. Threat levels
Our take
Zapstore’s best idea is that trust follows people, not a gatekeeper: there is no central review queue deciding what gets listed, and every release carries a signature you can trace back to its author. That suits apps that ship their own builds but never made it into F-Droid. The honest catch is that a permissionless store puts more of the judgment on you, since anyone can publish, and the catalog is smaller than F-Droid or Aurora Store. Pick it if you already use Nostr or want to follow specific developers directly; if you want a curated catalog with a single review policy, start with F-Droid or Accrescent.
GitHub at a glance
zapstore/zapstore MIT androidapkappappstoregrapheneoslightninglightning-networknostrobtainiumpermissionlessplaystoresha256social-graphweboftrust
Stars
696
Forks
37
6 watching
Last commit
2d ago
healthy
Latest release
1.1.3
2d ago, 28 total
Updated daily from the GitHub API. Star tracking since Oct 22, 2026.
Website at a glance
zapstore.dev
C- score 45
Basic website security headers
Graded by Mozilla HTTP Observatory, tested today
Inspect this site yourself
Measures the security configuration of the tool's own website, not the privacy of the product itself. A strong tool can still score low here.
Zapstore alternatives
F-Droid Catalog and installer for free and open-source Android apps, no Google account required.
Obtainium Installs and auto-updates Android apps directly from their upstream release sources.
Aurora Store Open-source Google Play client that lets you download apps anonymously without a Google account.
Accrescent Security-focused Android app store with signing key pinning and signed repository metadata.
Zapstore license, in plain English
MIT Permissive
Do almost anything: use, change, and ship it, even inside closed-source products. The only condition is keeping the copyright notice.
Permits
- Commercial use
- Modification
- Distribution
- Private use
Requires
- License and copyright notice
Does not provide
- Liability cover
- Warranty
Why it matters: Permissive licensing lets anyone reuse this, including inside closed products. That is freedom to build on, but no guarantee that downstream copies stay open.
Plain-language summary of the project's license, not legal advice. Read the full text for the exact terms.
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