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Amazon Fire has a lineup of tablets to suit people with varying needs. Even if you have an Amazon Fire Tablet that’s too old, you can still find some clever uses for it. The Amazon Fire HD 10 is a budget-friendly device that costs $179.99 and lets you watch Prime Video or read whatever e-books suit your fancy. If you have a bit more wiggle room in the financial department, then the Amazon Fire Max 11 will give you a more powerful device for just a bit more, at $229.99.

Of course, it’s entirely possible that you want to buy a safe tablet for your kid instead, which is where Amazon also specializes. Depending on your child’s age, you can either get the Amazon Fire HD 10 Kids or the Amazon Fire HD 10 Kids Pro, which are made for ages 3 to 7 and ages 6 to 12, respectively. These tablets come with a protective kid-friendly case and feature a simplified UI that younger users can easily navigate.

Regardless of which device you purchase, you’ll eventually want to populate it with apps. While the Amazon Appstore isn’t necessarily as robust as the Android Play Store or Apple’s App Store, it still has a decent selection of free, highly reviewed apps that you can download. From free streaming services to fun games that will keep you and your child occupied, these essential apps for your Amazon Fire Tablet provide so much value, but you can get them for free. 

Free ad-supported streaming services, known as FAST services, strike a perfect middle ground between free TV and paid streaming. Pluto TV is no exception, and many say that it’s one of the best free streaming apps for your Amazon device, provided you don’t mind a few ads during your viewing experience. You don’t have to create an account to use this app, although signing up will let you mark channels as your favorites and pause and resume shows across multiple platforms. You can also create a profile specifically for your children if they’re the ones using the Amazon Fire Tablet.

Pluto TV’s lineup of shows, movies, and sports channels can cover a lot of your entertainment needs. There are options on the platform that feature dramatic plots, like “The Walking Dead” and “Survivor”. If you’re in the mood for a few laughs, then the Monty Python collection, “Nathan for You,” or “Key & Peele” might be more up your alley. This streaming service doesn’t skimp out on anime either, letting you watch “Naruto” or “JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure,” two popular shonen properties.

At a glance, a simple app to download stuff doesn’t sound like a big deal. However, there’s a reason why Downloader by AFTV News is recommended to download third-party apps onto your device. It may seem a bit technical at first glance, but the in-app browser, along with special codes to directly download files, makes it easier to use this program.

As long as you’re double-checking that the apps you’re downloading are safe and secure, Downloader can help you populate your Amazon Fire Tablet with the content you want. Just give it permission to install third-party apps, and you’re good to go. If you have to manually update an app that doesn’t do so automatically, you can always add these websites to your favorites so that you don’t have to enter the URL over and over again.

YouTube is one of the most popular video streaming services of all time. It was registered, poetically enough, on Valentine’s Day in 2005, ballooning in popularity to become a platform where no one was restricted from uploading videos. The unprecedented success even took its creators by surprise, as they realized they couldn’t handle the bandwidth requirement to manage so much traffic. It didn’t help that a deluge of copyrighted content loaded by users meant that legal costs were also increasing exponentially. So, around a year and a half after its inception, YouTube was sold to Google, and the rest is history.

As of right now, YouTube is a robust media platform that has expanded under Google’s purview, with the addition of a YouTube Premium subscription to let users avoid ads, along with additional apps like YouTube Music, making this brand far stronger than ever before. The functionality is immense, letting you cast to your TV from your Amazon Fire Tablet, enjoy videos in 4K quality, use voice search for greater convenience, and save content from your favorite creators.

Sonic Forces was originally a 2017 title released for all major platforms. Meanwhile, the game currently marketed as Sonic Forces was called Sonic Forces: Speed Battle, which built upon the endless runner gameplay of Sonic Dash and added multiplayer to the mix. Why this game dropped the Speed Battle moniker and made it infinitely more confusing to discern between the two games is anyone’s guess. But, given Sega’s infamous handling of this franchise, this is far from the worst crime Sonic has been subjected to. 

Sonic Forces is a fun multiplayer game that sports a novel take on the endless runner genre. Players can compete against other players all over the globe, running, jumping, and attacking enemies to try and stay in the lead. They can also set up traps to impede the opposition. Keep in mind that the game still suffers from the slower progression curve that plagues most mobile games and tries to goad players into paying for needless microtransactions. Playing the same few stages over and over again with a limited roster of characters can be grating, but people who are willing to deal with these shortcomings will love what Sonic Forces brings to the table.

Spotify Music has become a dominant player in the music streaming market. The free Spotify plan is pretty robust and will let you listen to nearly any track under the sun, provided you’re willing to deal with limited skips and listen to some ads from time to time. Along with this, you can skip six tracks every hour, enjoy 160kbps audio quality, and can create up to 15 playlists. One thing to note is that the free Spotify plan now lets you enjoy on-demand playback, something that was missing before.

With a helpful music recommendation algorithm, the Spotify app can be a useful addition to an audiophile’s Amazon Fire Tablet. The app’s rich catalog of music, podcasts, and audiobooks offers a lot of variety for different users. It also has social features, including the iconic Spotify Wrapped that everyone loves posting on their stories.

Twitch is a livestreaming app that houses some of the most popular content creators on the internet. There’s a reason why this major brand caught Amazon’s interest, with the company paying close to a billion dollars to acquire it. The app’s design is streamlined and people can enjoy its content for hours on end for free, and its stats are quite impressive.

In 2025, Twitch had more than 240 million unique monthly visitors, with users watching close to 17 billion hours of content in total. The app itself has been downloaded over a 100 million times, and the United States has the biggest audience for Twitch, with one out of every four users living in this country. With these statistics, it’s easy to see why Twitch is so appealing to advertisers, which is why this service can run for free without any problems.

Ever since Frogger made it clear that people love helping animals to cross busy streets, several other titles have added their unique spin to the concept. Video games have become so complex that most people won’t even bother with such simplistic gameplay loops on their home consoles. However, mobile gaming isn’t hampered by such restrictions. This is why Crossy Road has become such a major hit, doing justice to Frogger’s legacy.

While you can initially only control a chicken, you can eventually unlock over 300 unique characters and help them cross tricky roads. There are more than 28 creative worlds in the game that bump up the difficulty bit by bit. It’s also an endless runner, meaning that you can get hopelessly addicted as you try to top your high score and help your favorite blocky animal cross as many dangerous locations as possible. This simple yet engaging video game design is what has helped Crossy Road attract around 250 million players all over the globe.

Anyone who’s crammed before an exam is likely familiar with Khan Academy, with videos helping out students who missed out on a lecture or need a refresher. However, it’s not just university students who can benefit from Khan Academy. This organization has ensured that both adults and children can get the guidance they need to enhance their knowledge and become smarter. The Khan Academy Kids app personifies this for younger users.

Khan Academy Kids is tailor-made for ages 2 to 8, and there’s no subscription to speak of. With this app, you can improve your child’s reading, writing, math, and life skills. The appealing design also helps, with five cute anthropomorphic animals, including Kodi Bear, ensuring that your child will be both visually and mentally stimulated during the learning process.

There was a time when Temple Run was the go-to endless runner app, but this seat has been comfortably taken by Subway Surfers. You control one of several graffiti artists who have to run away from a cop and his dogs, dodging obstacles and collecting coins along the way. The way in which Subway Surfers has become an enduring part of mainstream pop culture is fascinating. You may have seen videos on TikTok or Instagram that pair the content in question with gameplay footage of Subway Surfers. The aim is to capture the attention of people who find it hard to focus on content that’s longer than a few seconds.

However, this doesn’t stop Subway Surfers from being oh-so-tantalizingly fun to play. Sure, the mobile game trappings are more than prevalent here, but using all the coins you’ve collected fairly to unlock new characters and cosmetics is still a lot of fun. It also ensures that runs don’t become too stale after a point.

Space enthusiasts who want to satisfy their interstellar cravings will love what NASA has done with their proprietary app. People can watch live footage of current NASA experiments, letting them witness historical space missions and the like, as this organization explores the vast reaches of space. This is achieved courtesy of the expansive NASA+ streaming service that lets you access this content at no cost.

Along with this, you can hear informative podcasts on the NASA app and check out various fascinating photos, which can be rated by users. For those who want to listen to content, the Third Rock Radio station broadcasts otherworldly tunes and covers info about space and NASA’s endeavors. This is engaging for younger individuals who want to learn about NASA’s endeavors without being bogged down by endless technical know-how.

The current media landscape can makes it tough to find a news channel that provides unbiased, round-the-clock coverage without clickbait-y headlines and pop culture news. It’s hard to say with total confidence that news channels like Al Jazeera will provide you with the no-nonsense news you need. However, several users have recommended this organization as a good outlet to consume news from all over the world.

It helps that the Al Jazeera app has great reviews on the Amazon Appstore. So, it’s clear that users are more than satisfied with the news they consume on this platform. The app is designed for following developing stories that have captured your interest or tuning into the 24/7 news feed to stay abreast of current world events.

Video conferencing became a must to handle meetings and organize workforces during the pandemic. By all accounts, Skype should’ve knocked it out of the park and become the go-to for video conferencing. However, Microsoft failed to capitalize on the growing need for a robust, professional platform. Instead of building on the core video conferencing functionality, Skype loaded its service with unnecessary features. This gave Zoom a golden opportunity to overtake Skype, which was accomplished with great aplomb.

The app has a simple interface, customizable video layouts, and seamless integration with third-party apps. It also offers non-intrusive ways to react to a speaker with emojis or raise a hand to ask questions without disrupting a presentation. So, Zoom quickly became the video conferencing app of choice for companies all over the globe. AI solutions have also been introduced, giving you a summary of a meeting to take concise notes, quickly draft emails, and translate multiple languages. Zoom also has paid subscriptions that appeal to organizations that want to make their meetings easier to engage with.

An ad-free app that uses data from the National Weather Service (NOAA) and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), NWS NOW is useful for people who want a replacement for televised forecasts. Don’t worry about your data being compromised by this app. NWS NOW guarantees that no tracking protocols are in place.

The features of this app are quite robust and make it clear why users have given high-rated reviews on the Amazon Appstore. It provides current weather conditions across multiple locations. It also provides weather alerts that keep you up to date on any possible hazards and lets you peruse weekly weather forecasts based on available data. NOAA’s Next Generation Weather Radar, also known as NEXRAD, is so detailed that it genuinely feels like a portable weather channel installed on your Amazon Fire Tablet.

Very few creators can boast about their app becoming an overnight sensation. However, that was the case with Instagram. It was technically started as a photo-sharing app called Burbn. But the subsequent redesign and launch of Instagram on Apple’s App Store on October 6, 2010, was so immensely successful that it amassed a user base of 25,000 people in a single day. Fast forward three months, and the app already had one million downloads.

Suffice it to say, Facebook wasted no time in investing in this app just one and a half years after its launch, acquiring it for $1 billion and improving on a winning formula that has led to the rise of influencer culture. The current iteration of Instagram is available on pretty much every platform (including the Amazon Appstore). It lets you upload photos, interact with other accounts, scroll through Instagram reels, DM your friends, and follow your favorite celebrities and content creators.

Speaking of image-sharing platforms, Pinterest is another app that can be added to your Amazon Fire Tablet. Paul Sciarra, Evan Sharp, and Ben Silbermann launched this app in 2010, and it amassed enough interest for Rakuten to invest $100 million in it just two years later. Sponsored pins became a thing in January 2015 and helped improve this app’s appeal for advertisers, which helped Pinterest go public on April 18, 2019.

Users can find unique home decor ideas and visually appealing recipes on the platform and save them for later. While it may technically be a social media platform, the app’s focus on pinning images and finding inspiration sets it apart from its competition. It helps that Pinterest is very stringent about its censorship and safety control policies, something that other social media platforms have struggled with.

Only apps that can be downloaded for free from the Amazon Appstore have been considered here. Following this, apps with a score of 4.2 stars or more from thousands of reviews have been deemed worthy of a mention. Priority has been given to those that are universally popular, give helpful information to kids and adults alike, provide an additional degree of functionality to your Amazon Fire Tablet, and enhance the entertainment value of your device.