Best mGBA Alternatives in 2026
Updated
20 platforms from game console emulators ranked against mGBA on the same published basis.
- 1mGBA vs RetroArch
- 2mGBA vs Azahar
- 3mGBA vs bsnes
- 4mGBA vs DuckStation
- 5mGBA vs DeSmuME
- 6mGBA vs Panda3DS
- 7mGBA vs PPSSPP
- 8mGBA vs VisualBoyAdvance-M
- 9mGBA vs Emulicious
- 10mGBA vs melonDS
- 11mGBA vs BlastEm
- 12mGBA vs Dolphin
- 13mGBA vs Play!
- 14mGBA vs Snes9x
- 15mGBA vs xemu
- 16mGBA vs ares
- 17mGBA vs PCSX2
- 18mGBA vs RPCS3
- 19mGBA vs Flycast
- 20mGBA vs OpenEmu
mGBA alternatives compared
| # | Platform | Score | Free plan | From | Runs on |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | RetroArch | 7.4 | Free plan | Free | Android, iOS, Linux, Mac, Web, Windows |
| 2 | Azahar | 7.3 | Free plan | Free | Android, iOS, Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 3 | bsnes | 7.3 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 4 | DuckStation | 7.3 | Free plan | Free | Android, Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 5 | DeSmuME | 7.2 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 6 | Panda3DS | 7.2 | Free plan | Free | Android, Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 7 | PPSSPP | 7.2 | Free plan | Free | Android, iOS, Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 8 | VisualBoyAdvance-M | 7.2 | Free plan | Free | Android, Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 9 | Emulicious | 7.1 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 10 | melonDS | 7.1 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 11 | BlastEm | 7.0 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac, Web, Windows |
| 12 | Dolphin | 7.0 | Free plan | Free | Android, Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 13 | Play! | 7.0 | No | — | Android, iOS, Linux, Mac, Web, Windows |
| 14 | Snes9x | 7.0 | Free plan | Free | Android, Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 15 | xemu | 7.0 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 16 | ares | 6.9 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 17 | PCSX2 | 6.9 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 18 | RPCS3 | 6.9 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 19 | Flycast | 6.8 | No | — | Android, Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 20 | OpenEmu | 6.7 | Free plan | Free | Mac |
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Questions about mGBA alternatives
What is the best alternative to mGBA?
RetroArch, number 1 in game console emulators with a score of 7.4 out of 10. The others here: Azahar, bsnes, DuckStation and 16 more.
What is the best free alternative to mGBA?
RetroArch is the best-ranked alternative with a free plan. 18 of the 20 alternatives here publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.
How are these alternatives ranked?
Ranked on how quickly a newcomer can get going: documentation depth, a free tier or trial, and the platforms it runs on.