It's possible to install Android as a virtual machine on Windows 10. Here's how to install Android on a PC step by step.

Instructions in this article apply to installing Android x86 on Windows 10, Windows 8, and Windows 7.

How to Install Android on Windows 10 With VirtualBox

To install Android as a VM on Windows with Oracle Virtualbox:

Download VirtualBox for Windows and install it on your computer. Download Android x86 for Windows. You must choose between the 32-bit or 64-bit version. Check the Windows Control Panel to tell if you're running a 32-bit or 64-bit system. Open VirtualBox and select New in the top taskbar. Give your virtual machine a name, choose Linux as the type, choose Other Linux (64-bit) or Other Linux (32-bit) for the version, then select Next. Choose how much RAM you want to assign to the virtual machine and select Next. The recommended minimum is 1GB. The amount of memory you set aside is only used while the virtual machine is running. Choose Create a virtual hard disk now and select Create. Choose VDI and select Next. Choose Dynamically allocated or Fixed size and select Next. Fixed size is the better option since PCs generally have more disk space than memory and processing power. Choose how much space you wish to set aside for your virtual hard drive and select Create. The amount of space you allocate for Android determines how much room you have to install applications, so the more you can spare the better. Select Start in the VirtualBox taskbar. This is the point where you need to choose the Android x86 ISO file you downloaded earlier. Select the folder next to the Empty field. Select Add. Choose your Android disk image and select Open. Select Choose. Select Start. When the Android live boot screen appears, select Install Android-x86 to harddisk. Select Create/Modify partitions, then select OK. Select No when asked if you want to use GPT. Select New. Select Primary. Leave the size as the default and press Enter on your keyboard. Select Bootable. Select Write. Enter Yes to create the partition. Select Quit when the partition has been created. Select sda1 as the partition to install. Select ext4 as the file type. Select Yes to format the drive. Select Yes when asked whether to install the GRUB bootloader. Choose whether or not you want to install the directory as read-write. Select Devices > Optical Drives > Remove disk from the VirtualBox toolbar. Select Reboot and OK. When the Android boot menu appears, select the first option to reach the Android setup screen.

Setting up Android on Windows

You'll then be moved to Android set up screens. They should look familiar if you have an Android smartphone or tablet. You will be prompted to sign in to your Google account or create a new one.