Install TWRP Without Root And PC | Complete Guide

TWRP, which stands for TeamWin Recovery Project, is a GUI-based custom recovery software. There are dozens of unique benefits of installing custom recovery software such as TWRP on Android, but if I have to summarize everything in one line, I would say it helps you unlock GOD mode.

With the help of TWRP, you can root your Android smartphone, install custom ROMs, sideload system applications, create NANDroid Backups, and do many other things. The best thing, however, is that you don’t even need to root your Android to install TWRP or need a PC.

This article will walk you through installing TWRP without root and PC.

What is TWRP?

TWRP is one of the most popular open-source custom recovery software out there for Android. The best thing about TWRP is that it gives a graphical user interface, making it an ideal choice for developers and regular users who want to tweak their smartphones. This is also one of the reasons TWRP is so much popular compared to other custom recovery software.

People commonly use TWRP to root their smartphones, installing custom ROMs, Kernels, and MODs, but it is not limited to that. It unlocks the GOD mode and allows you to modify anything you want. However, installing TWRP on Android can look like a daunting task, especially for people who are not much familiar with the technology. But in reality, it is not.

Below, we have covered detailed step-by-step guides you can follow to install TWRP on Android.

How to Install TWRP without Root and PC

This is the first and most basic technique you can follow to install TWRP on your Android smartphone. The best thing about this technique is that you can have your smartphone unrooted.

However, the sad part is that this method may not work with most modern devices as modern devices require you to unlock the bootloader first, so you will need a PC. This method works best for Android smartphones powered by MediaTek processors. We recommend you try this method, and if it doesn’t work, try to find a PC to unlock your smartphone’s bootloader, as, after that, you can easily install TWRP recovery.

So, here is how you can install TWRP without PC –

• First, download and install the Kingoroot app or any one-click root application that doesn’t require a PC to root your device.
• Run the application and root your smartphone. (Trust me, your smartphone will be unrooted at the end.)
• Once your device is rooted, download and install Team Win LLC’s Official TWRP App from Google Play Store. You can use this link to visit the direct download page.
• Launch the Official TWRP App.
• It will ask you to accept the terms and conditions. Simply check all of the boxes and tap on the Okay button.
• Official TWRP App will now ask you to grant root access. You have to permit it. (This is why we rooted our smartphone in the second step.)

Now, before flashing TWRP on your smartphone, I recommend you take a backup of your current recovery image. It is necessary because you can revert to your smartphone’s stock recovery if something wrong happens.

For this, you have to follow these simple steps –

• Tap on the Backup Existing Recovery option.
• Tap on the Backup Recovery option.
• Confirm the backup of your current recovery by tapping on Okay.

1. Installing TWRP

Note that this process may take a couple of minutes. So, don’t panic. Once the backup is created, follow these simple steps to continue the process of installing TWRP.

• Again, go back to the Official TWRP App’s homepage.
• Tap on the TWRP Flash option.
• On the next screen, it will ask you to select your device. You have to find your device from the given list and select it.
• Once your device is selected, it will ask you to select the version of TWRP recovery that you want to install. As a thumb rule, we recommend you choose the latest version of TWRP. This will be at the top of the list.
• Once you select the TWRP IMG file, the app will redirect you to the download page in your browser. Just tap on the download link and download the file on your smartphone.
• Upon download completion, head back to the Official TWRP App and tap on the TWRP Flash option again.
• This time, instead of selecting your device, tap on the select a file to flash.
• This will open the file manager on your smartphone. Simply navigate to the folder where you have downloaded the TWRP IMG file and select it.
• After selecting the file, simply select the Flash to Recovery option to initiate the TWRP flashing process.
• Confirm that you want to flash this IMG file by tapping on the Okay button.
• This will initiate the TWRP recovery flashing process. The entire process may take a couple of minutes. So, don’t panic.
• Once the flashing process completes, you will be notified with a message saying, “Flash Completed Successfully.”
• After installing, custom recovery may ask you to mount the system partition. Select the Read Only option if you want to receive OTA updates, and if you want to make changes, such as installing custom ROMs or tweaked tools, select the Read/Write option.

Tap on the Okay button, and boom, you have successfully installed TWRP recovery on your smartphone with a PC.

2. Unroot your Smartphone

But wait, I said you would have your smartphone unrooted after the entire process, but your smartphone is still rooted. What to do now?

Well, for that, you have to follow these simple steps –

• First of all, uninstall the KingoUser app from your smartphone. Note that you must uninstall the KingoUser app, not the KingoRoot app.
• After that, download and install the SuperSU APK file. You can use this link to visit the download page.
• Launch the SuperSU app. It may ask you to grant root permissions. Simply allow it.
• After that, tap on the Continue option followed by the Normal option. The entire process may take a couple of minutes.
• Once the process completes, uninstall the KingoRoot app from your smartphone and restart your smartphone.
• This will change you from KingoRoot to SuperSU.
• Now, open SuperSU.
• Tap on Settings and scroll down to the last. There, you will see the Fully Unroot My Device option.

Select it, and your device is now successfully unrooted, and you have also installed TWRP recovery on it. While this is a simple and risk-free method, you need to understand that it will only work for some specific devices. Therefore, you will require a PC if you wish to install TWRP on almost any smartphone.

Below, we have shared a step-by-step guide that you can follow to install TWRP on Android using a PC.

How to install TWRP Recovery without rooting your Android with a PC

In case the guide above doesn’t work for you, and you need a better and more reliable solution, you can follow these steps to install TWRP recovery on your smartphone.

• Make sure you have created a full backup of your smartphone. This ensures you won’t lose any data during the TWRP installation process.
• Now, head over to your PC and install Android SDK tools. You can use this link to visit the direct download page.
• Once the download completes, extract the ZIP file to any of your desired folders on your computer.
• Now, visit TWRP’s official website. You can use this link.
• Select your smartphone manufacturer and then select your phone model.
• After that, download the latest TWRP Recovery IMG file for your smartphone on your PC.
• Now, on your Android smartphone, open Settings > About > tap on the Build Number seven to eight times to unlock Developer mode.
• After that, go to Developer Options and enable USB Debugging.
• Again, scroll down in the Developer Options and enable the OEM Unlock option. Depending on security, it may ask you to enter your device’s password.
• Connect your smartphone to your PC via a USB Type-C or MicroUSB cable.
• After connecting, your smartphone will ask whether you want to allow USB Debugging. Click on the “Always allow from this computer” option and tap on the “OK” button.
• Now, go to the folder where you extracted the Android SDK Tools ZIP file and move the TWRP IMG file to this folder.
• After that, right-click on the folder space and open the Command Prompt.

From here, the TWRP IMG flashing process starts –

• In the command window, type the adb devices command and hit enter.
• It will show you the list of connected devices. Here, you must type the adb reboot bootloader command and hit enter to reboot your smartphone into bootloader/fastboot mode.
• After that, enter the fastboot flash recovery twrp-3.1X-XXX.img and hit enter. Here, you need to replace the “twrp-3.1X-XXX.img” with the name of the TWRP IMG file you downloaded.
• Once the flashing process completes, enter the fastboot reboot command and hit enter.

That’s it. You have successfully installed TWRP custom recovery on your Android smartphone without rooting your Android device.

Note that the booting process into the recovery mode varies from manufacturer to manufacturer, but most commonly, it triggers using the combination of volume rockers with the power button.

Bonus Method – How to install TWRP Custom Recovery without rooting your Android and PC

In the majority of scenarios, I will recommend you follow the guides above.

However, if your smartphone’s bootloader is unlocked and you have an additional rooted Android smartphone with Magisk installed, you can install TWRP on your smartphone. In addition to that, you will also need an OTG adapter and USB cable.

So, here is how you can install TWRP without root and PC with the help of a rooted smartphone –

• First of all, launch Magisk Manager on your rooted smartphone and search for adb in the search tab.
• Select the ADB & Fastboot for the Android NDK module and install it.
• Once the installation is completed successfully, reboot your smartphone to activate the module.
• Now, download the TWRP Recovery IMG for your smartphone and copy the file on both Android smartphones. Moreover, you can rename it to TWRP.img or anything else to make it easier for you to locate it.
• Now, download and install Termux App from Google Play Store. You can use this link to visit the direct download page.
• Enable the USB debugging mode on the smartphone you want to flash TWRP recovery.
• Connect both smartphones using OTG and USB cables.
• It will ask you to allow USB Debugging for this smartphone. Simply allow it.
• Now, launch the Termux App on your rooted Android smartphone.

From here, the TWRP flashing process starts –

• Type the su command on the Termux terminal. It is for getting SuperSU access.
• A pop-up will appear asking you to grant Superuser Access. Simply allow it.
• After that, type the adb devices command. It will show you whether your target device is connected.
• Upon confirmation, type the adb reboot bootloader command. This will boot your smartphone into the Fastboot mode.
• Now, locate the folder where you copied your TWRP Recovery IMG file. If it is in the download folder, you must type the following commands – cd /sdcard/Download. You have to change the path depending on where the file is stored.
• Now, we have to flash the TWRP Recovery IMG file. For this, type fastboot flash recovery TWRP.img. Here, you must replace the name TWRP.img with the name you changed for the recovery file.
• This will initiate the flashing process, which may take a maximum of a few minutes.
• Once the process is completed, type fastboot reboot recovery to boot into TWRP recovery.

That’s it. This is how you can install TWRP without root and PC. 

Disclaimer – After first boot to custom recovery, it will ask you to mount the system partition. If you want to keep receiving OTA updates, you have to select the Read Only option. However, that will prevent you from making root-level changes such as installing custom ROMs, tweaked tools, and more.

To make such changes, you must select the Read/Write option. But again, this will prevent you from receiving OTA updates.

How to boot into TWRP Recovery Mode on Android

The traditional way to enter the recovery mode on Android is by pressing and holding the power button and the volume down button for a couple of seconds. 

This works the majority of the time, but in case it isn’t working for you, you can follow these simple steps to boot into TWRP recovery mode –

• First of all, download and install the Recovery Reboot application from Google Play Store. You can use this link to visit the direct download page.
• Launch the app and accept the terms & conditions.
• To enter the TWRP recovery mode, tap on the Recovery option followed by Yes to confirm.
• For the first time, the app will ask for Superuser permission. Simply allow it and proceed further.

That’s it. This is how you can easily boot into TWRP recovery mode on Android smartphones.

Closing Comments

There you have it – a detailed guide covering how to install TWRP recovery on an Android smartphone without root or PC.

Installing TWRP recovery on Android without a PC isn’t recommended and isn’t possible. However, if your device supports rooting via one-click root applications such as KingoRoot, you can install TWRP without a PC and later unroot your smartphone. This way, you will have TWRP installed, while in the end, your smartphone will not be rooted.

However, this method will only work on a handful of devices. Therefore, the best way to install TWRP on Android is by using a PC because you have to unlock the bootloader, which is impossible without a PC.