Remote Desktop From Your Phone: Android, iPhone or a Browser

Three ways in

Whichever you use, JoyRemote has to be installed on the computer first. Download it for Windows, macOS, Ubuntu or Fedora.

The Android app

Get JoyRemote on Google Play (Android 10 or newer), type the computer's ten-digit number, and connect. Somebody at the computer approves it, unless the computer has been told to remember your phone.

Any phone's browser, at home

On the same Wi-Fi, the computer serves the page itself; nothing goes through us, and nothing is installed on the phone. The address is in the computer's JoyRemote window under Phones and browsers, something like http://192.168.1.40:48781. Type it into the phone's browser.

Any phone's browser, away from home

On joyremote.com, type the computer's ten-digit number and press Connect. The computer asks for a six-digit code it shows under Phones and browsers, and then somebody at the computer approves the connection. The picture goes from the computer to the phone directly whenever the networks allow it.

iPhone: the JoyRemote iPhone app is coming soon. Until then, Safari works through either browser route above.

On the phone

In the browser, a tap moves the pointer and clicks, a long press is a right-click, and the Keyboard button brings up the phone's keyboard for typing into the computer. The page is built for a phone first.

To bring something back to the phone, copy it on the computer, then choose Download in the phone page's menu: text, a file or a folder (zipped) arrives as an ordinary download. The phone cannot browse the computer's files. The person at the computer can turn this off under Phones and browsers.

Who has to say yes

Every phone or browser that asks to connect is approved on the computer's own screen, by whoever is sitting at it, unless that phone has been remembered. From outside your network, a browser that has not been remembered must also give the six-digit code before the computer rings at all, and ten wrong codes in a quarter of an hour make the computer stop answering outside requests for a while. Phone and browser access can be switched off in the computer's settings.

Sessions between the phone and the computer are encrypted. The one exception is the page itself on your own Wi-Fi, which is plain HTTP; the security page says what that means.

What it costs

On your own Wi-Fi: free, for ever, with no time limit.
The Android app over the internet: the phone counts like a computer. It gets 1.5 free hours, then $5 once, paid through Google Play, for as long as we run the service. Not a subscription.
A browser over the internet: the time counts on the computer it connects to, since a browser has nothing of its own to count against. That computer gets 1.5 free hours, then $5 once.
Relay: only when a network refuses a direct connection, as some mobile networks do. 15 minutes free, then $5 for five hours.

The pricing page has the details.

Other ways to reach a computer from a phone

Each of these works; they differ in what they need on the computer, whether you need an account, and what they cost for work.

	Phone apps	Phone browser, nothing installed	Computers it reaches	Account
JoyRemote	Android. iPhone coming soon.	Yes, at home and away	Windows (64-bit, any edition), macOS on Apple silicon, Ubuntu 24.04+, Fedora 44+	None
Chrome Remote Desktop	Android¹; on iPhone Google's help points to the browser²	Yes, at remotedesktop.google.com²	Windows, Mac, Linux (64-bit Debian package)³; touch modes only for Windows¹	Google Account⁴
Microsoft Windows App (Remote Desktop)	Android and iPhone⁵	Not for reaching your own PC⁵	Windows Pro or Enterprise only; Home "isn't compatible"⁶	Not needed for a PC⁵
AnyDesk	Android and iPhone, free for personal use⁷	None found on AnyDesk's current pages	Windows, macOS, Linux (incoming needs Xorg), and more⁸	Not needed⁹
TeamViewer	Android 8+ and iOS 17+; work use needs a license¹⁰¹¹	web.teamviewer.com, on some paid plans¹²	Windows, macOS, many Linux distributions, and more¹⁰	Verified account needed¹³

For work use, AnyDesk and TeamViewer both need a yearly subscription; see JoyRemote vs AnyDesk and JoyRemote vs TeamViewer.

Sharing the phone's own screen

The Android app can also let a computer watch the phone's screen, which helps when somebody is talking you through a setting. It is view only: the computer can look, not tap. Each time, the phone asks you to allow it, and Android asks for its own screen-recording consent.

FAQ

Can I control my computer from my phone for free?

With JoyRemote, yes on your own Wi-Fi: a phone on the same network as the computer is free for ever. Over the internet the JoyRemote phone app gets 1.5 free hours, then $5 once through Google Play.

Do I need to install anything on my phone?

No. Any phone's browser can control a computer running JoyRemote. On the same Wi-Fi the computer serves the page itself; away from home, type the computer's ten-digit number at joyremote.com. The Android app on Google Play is the other way in.

Can I control a Windows Home computer from my phone?

Microsoft's own Remote Desktop needs the computer being reached to run a Pro or Enterprise edition of Windows.⁶ JoyRemote does not depend on the Windows edition: it runs on 64-bit Windows, Home included.

Install JoyRemote on the computer, then open the address it shows under Phones and browsers on your phone. On your own Wi-Fi it is free, with no time limit.

Sources

Vendors' pages, read on 18 October 2026.

Chrome Remote Desktop, Windows, AnyDesk and TeamViewer are trademarks of their owners. JoyRemote is not affiliated with or endorsed by any of them.

Remote desktop from your phone.