It depends on your usecase. We need more detail regarding what application (gui/cui/open source/proprietary/custom) you are trying to use

• Check if the application you want to use exists as snap/flatpak/appimage.
• If it exists, install the application as per their standard operating mechansim
• Once used, just remove them. Your original system libs are untouched

If the application doesn’t exist in those platforms, it’s a different story. You might need to use distrobox or docker. Don’t use nix because it’s overkill for what you want to do.