Recommended Paid Android Emulators

[Vardalis]

I figured I'd ask this one since I'm new to Android emulation and have been (slowly) setting up my Retroid Pocket 5. I know most emulators, like Retroarch, are free, but are there any paid apps which end up being better than their free counterparts? Any that offer key or better features?

 

[Nelson2001 Nelson2001]

Any Robert Broglia Emulators aka the .emu Family.

 

[Scotty Scotty]

Robert Broglia's ".emu" series are pretty good (Although, if you don't feel like paying, they're all available on his Github page).

 

[Tortuga]

Honestly, none
90% of paid emulators for mobiles are scam
You better be careful if you plan to spend money on those

 

[Vardalis]

Honestly, none
90% of paid emulators for mobiles are scam
You better be careful if you plan to spend money on those

Oh yeah, I'm well aware quite a lot aren't worth anything. I do remember (in the past) some being recommended though, like Drastic.

 

[otogirisou]

Drastic

this and ppsspp gold

 

[nobitakun]

Wait, wait. Pay for an emulator? do you know the difference between paying this and paying somebody for a copy of a movie in DVD? nothing.

Are you really being serious asking for a paid emulator? I need to ask twice because I am still thinking I misunderstood this :O

 

[Boo Man]

paying for shit defeats the purpose of emulation
absolutely no need to pay for anything
even the best frontends are free

 

[wakata]

The best emulators are open source, so everyone can help

Post automatically merged: Oct 13, 2025

Are you having problems with Retroarch? Which emulator performance made you think about "paid ver"? Maybe we could help you with settings(ง ื▿ ื)ว

 

[Turbo Kid]

Paying is really just a way to support the developers so feel free to do so if you find an emulator you really like, but that being said there are free options for every type of android emulator.

 

[Vardalis]

Wait, wait. Pay for an emulator? do you know the difference between paying this and paying somebody for a copy of a movie in DVD? nothing.

Are you really being serious asking for a paid emulator? I need to ask twice because I am still thinking I misunderstood this :O

I was asking, but I guess my knowledge of the Android emulation landscape appears to be outdated.

The best emulators are open source, so everyone can help

Post automatically merged: Oct 13, 2025

Are you having problems with Retroarch? Which emulator performance made you think about "paid ver"? Maybe we could help you with settings(ง ื▿ ื)ว

No, Retroarch is fine. It was more a query of if anything was better for the platform but judging by the responses I'm operating on old information.

 

[nobitakun]

I was asking, but I guess my knowledge of the Android emulation landscape appears to be outdated.


No, Retroarch is fine. It was more a query of if anything was better for the platform but judging by the responses I'm operating on old information.

Actually, it's not only you. Many people think paid stuff is better than free one. It depends, sometimes yes, sometimes no, but I am talking about regular software. Something like an emulator, that its nature is to do something "questionable" at best, paid options can't be right.

Emulators saved us and, why not, the retro gaming industry. Companies don't want to admit it, but if they are releasing so many re-releases and retro stuff is because, thanks to emulation, they became trendy / famous / mainstream. If emulators didn't exist, retroconsoles and digital retro games from the owners themselves would have sold way less than they sell now. And those companies are the ones that go after people afterwards, so they are literally being used for free.

That's why I do not want to pay for an emulator. People doing that are contributing to keep everything afloat, and that's very good, but they do it because they want, like the people who hack consoles. They deserve respect and support, but money should come from companies to hire them, not from people. It's not something you can do business because there is legal stuff involved.

 

[MajesticSiN]

The best ones are free with like a donate link if you want to give them cash.

 

[moonbits]

I payed for redream but I rarely use it lol

 

[ThatOneLum ThatOneLum]

I always found Classic boy the best "premium" emulator. But it's biggest selling point is it's ease of use for newbies tbh.

 

[Heinzu]

I bought a few emulators from the Google Play Store. But nowadays there's really no reason to pay for something like that because you can download the full version for free everywhere.

 

[Max]

I've personally used several paid emulators, and the only ones that can surpass RetroArch or Lemuroid are My Boy and My Old Boy, and I only say this because of the easy configuration of on-screen controls.
Note that you can also do that in RetroArch, but it will take a little more work.
The performance of the first two is equal to or even better than paid emulators

 

[blahbleh]

epsxe

 

[Ikagura Ikagura]

Honestly, none
90% of paid emulators for mobiles are scam
You better be careful if you plan to spend money on those

Agreed.

Also isn't it straight up illegal to sell emulation?

I mean emulators are legal per se but selling them could be potentially risky, right?

 

[Kamako]

No, Retroarch is fine. It was more a query of if anything was better for the platform but judging by the responses I'm operating on old information.

Just a reminder that the version of RetroArch available to download on the Play Store is majorly outdated and won't work for most games.

You should download the app directly from the RetroArch site (RetroArch rules btw :P)

 

[thumbsdown]

Retroarch has its problems, but that's the most versatile thing available currently I guess.

 

[DaveTheMan]

You should not pay to get and use an Emulator

Post automatically merged: Nov 9, 2025

I payed for redream but I rarely use it lol

I paid when it 1st came out but since the the Flycast Core on Retroarch has gone past it and it's easier to use