Best Commodore 64 Emulators in 2026
Updated
In short: Breadbin466 is ranked #1 of 30 as of 4 October 2026, ahead of C64 Forever and VICE. The best-ranked option with a free plan is C64 Forever.
If you want to run Commodore 64 software, an emulator’s formats, features and platform support are useful points of comparison. The ranked entries open with VICE, Breadbin466 and C64 Forever. Check which C64 variants each emulates and which disk and tape formats it lists; a built-in debugger or bundled software library may also matter for your use. Netplay support and supported platforms help distinguish setups, while free-plan availability and paid-from pricing add licensing context. Compare those published details with the device and features you need.
30 Commodore 64 emulators ranked on what their makers publish — plans and prices, free tiers, platforms and the facts on their own pages.
30ranked
6free plans on this page
4 Oct 2026last checked
Commodore 64 Emulators, ranked on how quickly a newcomer can get going. 7 of the 25 on this page can be tried for free.
- 1 Breadbin466Free plan
- Free to practise on: yes
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: yes
- Runs where you work: yes
- 2 C64 ForeverFree plan
- Free to practise on: yes
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: yes
- Runs where you work: not on record
- 3 VICEFree plan
- Free to practise on: yes
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: yes
- Runs where you work: yes
- 4 BuddiFree plan
- Free to practise on: yes
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: yes
- Runs where you work: yes
- 5 Power64
- Free to practise on: not on record
- Free trial: yes
- Well documented: yes
- Runs where you work: not on record
- 6 VirtualC64Free plan
- Free to practise on: yes
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: yes
- Runs where you work: not on record
- 7 FrodoFree plan
- Free to practise on: yes
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: yes
- Runs where you work: yes
- 8 Z64K
- Free to practise on: not on record
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: yes
- Runs where you work: yes
- 9 CCS64
- Free to practise on: not on record
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: yes
- Runs where you work: not on record
- 10 emudore
- Free to practise on: not on record
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: yes
- Runs where you work: yes
- 11 Viciious
- Free to practise on: not on record
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: yes
- Runs where you work: not on record
- 12 minimal64
- Free to practise on: not on record
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: yes
- Runs where you work: not on record
- 13 C64 by ChronoCoders
- Free to practise on: not on record
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: not on record
- Runs where you work: not on record
- 14 Emu64
- Free to practise on: not on record
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: not on record
- Runs where you work: not on record
- 15 POKE64
- Free to practise on: not on record
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: not on record
- Runs where you work: not on record
- 16 TRX64
- Free to practise on: not on record
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: not on record
- Runs where you work: yes
- 17 Zinc64
- Free to practise on: not on record
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: not on record
- Runs where you work: not on record
- 18 Atari 5200DS
- Free to practise on: not on record
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: not on record
- Runs where you work: not on record
- 19 ViceSharp
- Free to practise on: not on record
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: not on record
- Runs where you work: not on record
- 20 C64net
- Free to practise on: not on record
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: not on record
- Runs where you work: not on record
- 21 Hoxs64
- Free to practise on: not on record
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: not on record
- Runs where you work: not on record
- 22 jsc64
- Free to practise on: not on record
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: not on record
- Runs where you work: not on record
- 23 simple-emu-c64
- Free to practise on: not on record
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: not on record
- Runs where you work: not on record
- 24 BMC64
- Free to practise on: not on record
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: not on record
- Runs where you work: not on record
- 25 C64.emu
- Free to practise on: not on record
- Free trial: not on record
- Well documented: not on record
- Runs where you work: not on record
Compare all 25 in a table
| # | Platform | Score | Free plan | From | Free plan | Paid from | Supported platforms | Disk and tape formats |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Breadbin466 | 7.2 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | macOS, Windows, Linux | D64, G64, NIB, NBZ, D7Z |
| 2 | C64 Forever | 7.2 | Free plan | Free | Yes | 19.95 one-time | Windows | RP9, D64, T64, C64 and other disk, tape and cartridge formats |
| 3 | VICE | 7.2 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | — | — |
| 4 | Buddi | 7.0 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | — | — |
| 5 | Power64 | 7.0 | No | — | No | 30 one-time | macOS; Classic Mac OS | D64, X64, G41, D71, D81, ZipCoded, T64, TAP, Lynx |
| 6 | VirtualC64 | 7.0 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | macOS | D64, T64, PRG, P00, G64, TAP, CRT |
| 7 | Frodo | 6.9 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | Windows, macOS, Linux/Unix | D64, G64, T64, TAP, X64, LYNX |
| 8 | Z64K | 6.6 | No | — | Yes | — | Windows, macOS and Linux via Java runtime | D64, D71, G64, G71, IMD and CRT |
| 9 | CCS64 | 6.4 | No | — | Yes | — | Windows, DOS, Linux, Unix | PRG, P00, T64, TAP, D64, G41, G64, CRT |
| 10 | emudore | 6.4 | No | — | — | — | Linux, Windows, macOS, web | PRG |
| 11 | Viciious | 6.4 | No | — | Yes | — | Web browser; Node.js terminal | .t64, .d64, .tap, .prg, .sid, .json snapshots |
| 12 | minimal64 | 6.2 | No | — | — | — | web | PRG; CRT; Standard 8KB cartridges; Standard 16KB cartridges; Ocean Type 1; C64GS; Magic Desk |
| 13 | C64 by ChronoCoders | 5.9 | No | — | Yes | — | Linux x86-64; Windows x86-64 (MSYS2 MinGW64) | D64 disk images |
| 14 | Emu64 | 5.9 | No | — | — | — | Windows, Linux | D64, G64, CRT, TAP, T64, PRG |
| 15 | POKE64 | 5.9 | No | — | — | — | iPadOS | D64, D71, D81, G64, PRG, CRT, TAP, T64 |
| 16 | TRX64 | 5.9 | No | — | — | — | Windows, macOS, Linux | D64, G64, CRT, REU, VSF |
| 17 | Zinc64 | 5.9 | No | — | Yes | — | Linux, Windows | BIN, CRT, P00, PRG, TAP |
| 18 | Atari 5200DS | 5.8 | No | — | Yes | — | Nintendo DS, Nintendo DSi, Nintendo DSi XL, Nintendo DSi LL | D64 disk images; CRT cartridge images; PRG program images |
| 19 | ViceSharp | 5.8 | No | — | Yes | — | Windows | D64, G64, T64, TAP |
| 20 | C64net | 5.7 | No | — | Yes | — | Windows | D64 |
| 21 | Hoxs64 | 5.7 | No | — | Yes | — | Windows 7/10/11 | D64, G64, P64, FDI, TAP, PRG, P00, T64, CRT |
| 22 | jsc64 | 5.7 | No | — | Yes | — | web browser (Firefox, Chrome, Safari) | — |
| 23 | simple-emu-c64 | 5.7 | No | — | Yes | — | Windows, macOS, Linux | D64, read-only |
| 24 | BMC64 | 5.6 | No | — | Yes | — | Raspberry Pi Zero, Raspberry Pi Zero 2W, Raspberry Pi 2, Raspberry Pi 3 | .D1M, .D2M, .D4M, .DHD, .D64, .PRG |
| 25 | C64.emu | 5.6 | No | — | No | — | Android | .bin, .crt, .d64, .g64, .p64, .x64, .t64, .tap, ZIP, RAR, 7Z |
Is your platform on this list?
Numbered spots on this list can be sponsored, and a sponsored row is labelled as paid.
Questions about this list
Which Commodore 64 emulator is ranked first on The Geeks Club?
Breadbin466 is ranked #1 of 30 with a score of 7.2. C64 Forever is second and VICE third.
How many of these have a free plan?
6 of the 25 on this page publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.
How is this list ranked?
Ranked on how quickly a newcomer can get going: documentation depth, a free tier or trial, and the platforms it runs on.
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