Getting Started with Alpaca for Android
Last updated: 2026-10-31
Alpaca for Android phones and tablets
Alpaca helps keep your family safer online on Android. It is designed to filter out adult websites, gambling, scams and dangerous websites, annoying ads and the trackers that follow your family around, and social media when it's time for a break.
Alpaca works quietly across every app and browser on the device at once, so there's nothing to set up app by app. You choose what to keep out with a few taps, and Alpaca takes care of the rest in the background.
What you need
- An Android phone or tablet running Android 10 or later
- An Alpaca account. You create one with your email address when you first open the app.
- A subscription or free trial. New accounts can try Alpaca free for 7 days, and you don't need a card to start the trial.
How it works
- Install Alpaca from Google Play.
- Sign in or create your account with your email address.
- Choose your interface: Basic for a few simple switches, or Expert for every option.
- Turn protection on and tap OK when Android asks for permission.
- Carry on as normal. Alpaca works in the background, across every app.
The setup guide walks through each screen.
Android may say that Alpaca is setting up a "VPN" and show a small key icon at the top of the screen. That's simply the name Android gives this kind of permission. Alpaca uses it only to filter on the device itself: your browsing doesn't go through us, and your IP address doesn't change. Why does my phone show a key icon?
Your family's privacy
Alpaca checks websites right on the device, against a filter list it downloads. We don't receive the websites your family visits, and the statistics you see in the app stay on the device. Filtering keeps working even when the device is offline.
Get Alpaca
Free to download, with a 7-day free trial. See pricing for plans.
Next steps
- Set up Alpaca, screen by screen
- Using Alpaca: choose what to filter, see statistics, add the widget
- What Alpaca can filter: the social networks, AI apps and games you can filter