Want to mirror your phone to your car screen or cast your display to Android Auto? This guide covers the best tools for streaming video, opening browsers, and viewing custom apps without rooting your device.
Whether you use a USB connection or a wireless setup, these screen-mirroring apps can turn your car display into a second screen for your phone.
Android Auto normally limits video apps such as YouTube and Netflix for safety reasons. A screen-mirroring app takes what is on your mobile display and projects it to your Android Auto screen, allowing your car display to show compatible apps while parked.
Screen mirroring is different from ordinary Android Auto app support: it shares the phone's display rather than requiring every app to be approved by Google.
Choose the tool that best fits your phone, head unit, and preferred controls.
The top choice for Android Auto screen mirroring. Instead of only showing your phone screen, it adds a touch-friendly app launcher to your car display.
Why use it: Great touch response, smooth playback, and custom app menus.
Install Screen2AutoA clean, open-source screen-mirroring tool for a straightforward phone-to-car experience without extra launcher clutter.
Why use it: Simple layout, automatic aspect-ratio adjustment, and open-source updates.
Compare Screen2Auto and ScreenOnAutoA good option when smooth video playback is the priority. KoalaMirror uses high frame-rate stability to minimize video stuttering.
Why use it: Stable playback and smooth frame pacing.
Limitation: It offers fewer custom touch-control options on some car head units.
For more details, refer to our guide comparing Screen2Auto and KoalaMirror.
A lightweight fallback for mirroring to car screens on older phones.
Why use it: Easy setup with broad phone-model support.
Limitation: Video quality is capped and touch response can lag slightly.
One of the earliest tools for mirroring a phone screen to Android Auto. Newer apps have largely replaced it.
Why use it: A classic open-source project.
Limitation: It is archived and often requires root for full touch controls.
Read the Screen2Auto vs. AA Mirror comparison| Application | Core mechanism | Android support | Root? | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Screen2Auto | Custom launcher abstraction with MediaProjection & touch hooks | Android 8.0+ | No | GitHub: Screen2Auto |
| ScreenOnAuto | Direct full-screen casting with MediaProjection and aspect-ratio adjustment | Android 7.0–14+ | No | GitHub: slzn/ScreenOnAuto-releases |
| KoalaMirror | Low-latency stream buffer processing optimized for frame pacing | Android 8.0+ | No | GitHub: KoalaMirror |
| MirrorMobile | Basic frame casting for legacy system architectures | Android 6.0–11 | Partial | GitHub: MirrorMobile |
| AA Mirror | Legacy surface projection framework | Android 5.0–9 | Yes | Archived open-source project |
Download AAStore or AAAD. These tools are required for sideloading screen-mirroring apps and help your phone install custom car apps.
Open AAStore or AAAD, choose Screen2Auto, and install it. Select “Install Anyway” if your phone shows a Play Protect popup.
Open Screen2Auto on your phone and grant Accessibility, Display Over Other Apps, and Notification permissions so display casting and touch feedback can work.
Open Android Auto settings, scroll to the version number, tap it 10 times to unlock Developer Settings, then open those settings and check Unknown Sources.
Need more detail? Follow the full Screen2Auto installation guide.
Older phones and head units may have supported MirrorLink, including some Samsung, Pixel, and OnePlus models. Modern Android versions have phased out official MirrorLink support, however, and MirrorLink services are discontinued on newer phones.
If you are trying to use an older MirrorLink setup, we recommend modern Android Auto screen-sharing tools such as Screen2Auto or ScreenOnAuto instead.
Video apps use DRM protection to prevent screen capture. Audio may play through the car speakers, but video stays black. An external hardware Android AI Box is usually the most reliable solution.
Yes. If the car stereo runs Android, you can use a screen-mirroring adapter or an iPhone-compatible alternative to display your iPhone on the car screen.
No. Watching video content while driving is dangerous and may be illegal. Only mirror your phone when safely parked or for passenger enjoyment.
Install the necessary helper and configure your phone for full Android Auto screen mirroring.
Get Screen2Auto