# Mars Race vs Mars

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Mars Race at 100% against Mars's 66%. Mars Race also leads on rating (4.5 vs 4.1) and iOS requirement (11.0 vs 15.0). Mars's advantage is update cadence (every 2 months vs every 6 months) and ratings volume (26 vs 2). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Mars Race sells 5 one-off in-app purchases and Mars sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Mars Race holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.1. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Mars has 26 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 100% of Mars Race's written reviews are positive against 66% of Mars's.

Mars Race ships an update every 6 months, Mars every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 3, 2026 and October 22, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Mars Race | Mars |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.5 (2 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mars-race/id1296888245/reviews)** | [4.1 (26 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mars-the-arrival/id1458927524/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | 2 | **26** |
| Positive reviews | **100.0% of reviews** | 65.6% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 6 months | **Every 2 months** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 249 MB | 2.6 GB |
| Requires iOS | **11.0** | 15.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [aGame Company](https://appshunter.io/developer/765929434) | [Stefan Nyul](https://appshunter.io/developer/1458927523) |

## What reviewers say

### Mars Race

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mars-race/id1296888245)

Build a Martian city by harvesting solar power and extracting water. Expand your territory by constructing drones to visit and compete with other players for resources, while defending your own colony.

**Highlights:** Martian city building, Resource harvesting (solar power, water), Drone construction for exploration and combat, Player versus player resource battles, Territory occupation on Mars

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (5)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Few | $3.99 | one-time |
| Pile | $9.99 | one-time |
| Bag | $18.99 | one-time |
| Box | $48.99 | one-time |
| Vault | $94.99 | one-time |


### Mars

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mars-the-arrival/id1458927524)

Engage in a scientific simulation of establishing a Mars colony. Manage a small group of settlers, research technologies, and build a thriving settlement from a single module. Compete with other human-controlled colonies for success on the Red Planet.

**Highlights:** Scientific Mars settlement simulation, Research and development of technologies, Exploration of the Red Planet, Building and managing specialized structures, Managing settler types and life cycles, 3D view of settlement and Mars surface, Offline playability

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Logistics contract | $0.99 | one-time |
| MAA Gold Membership | $1.99 | one-time |
| Sponsors contract | $2.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Mars Race free?

Mars Race is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Mars free?

Mars is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Mars Race or Mars?

Mars Race is rated higher. Mars Race averages 4.5 out of 5 from 2 ratings, while Mars averages 4.1 from 26 ratings.

### Do Mars Race or Mars have ads?

Both Mars Race and Mars show ads.

### Which is updated more often, Mars Race or Mars?

Mars Race ships an update every 6 months, and Mars every 2 months. Most recently, Mars Race was updated on October 3, 2026 and Mars on October 22, 2026.

---

*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*