Comparison

Swarm Simulator vs Merge Empire

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Swarm Simulator

Evolve your insect colony from simple larvae to powerful hive minds in this 3D incremental idle clicker game. Conquer territory, sacrifice units for growth, and ascend to unlock new mutations and expand your swarm across the universe.

Highlights
  • Incremental idle clicker gameplay
  • Endless progression and unit evolution
  • Idle mode for offline growth
  • Ascend system with new mutations
  • All-new 3D graphics and units
  • Elixir buffs and Golden Bug bonuses
Features
Read full description

Over 2 MILLION PLAYERS! Swarm Simulator: Evolution brings the strategic, incremental, idle, clicker gameplay of the wildly successful web game into a new 3D world with dozens of new systems and extra features! Evolve your way from lowly larvae and drones to all-powerful hive Overminds and beyond in this idle masterpiece! Conquer territory with fearsome Stingers and Locusts to become a tycoon of unit production. Sacrifice smaller units for the greater good of the colony and Ascend over and over as you build your Swarm toward its ultimate goal of universe spanning conquest! == Swarm Simulator Features == Idle Clicker Gameplay • Endless progression - start with a few lowly units, evolve and hatch your way to unimaginable numbers. • Idle mode - the game will keep progressing whether it's open or not, take a break for a few hours and your Swarm will grow and grow! • Ascend your Swarm to start over on a new world but with powerful new Mutations. Evolution Upgrades • All new 3D graphics and new units, dozens of 3D bugs in a fully 3D world. • Elixirs give short term buffs to your Swarm, use a Rage elixir to capture more territory ... or a Warper elixir to speed up time itself! • Golden Bugs can be captured to give long-term bonuses to your Swarm. • Swarm Lord Invasions, the HFL, Carapace Shards, unlockable skins for your bugs and more! The classic text-based incremental game has been reborn in vibrant 3D. Download Swarm Simulator now and conquer EVERYTHING!

About

Merge Empire

Build and expand a vast empire by merging workers to invent new crafts and progress through different historical eras. Conquer new worlds, from oceans to modern cities, and become a ruler of an overcrowded domain. Enjoy idle gameplay with passive income and engaging challenges.

Highlights
  • Merge and invent new crafts
  • Progress through different eras
  • Conquer new worlds and enemies
  • Idle clicker gameplay with passive income
  • Special heroes and boosters
  • Attack other players
  • Spin Wheel for bonuses
Features
Read full description

Lumberjacks, stonemasons, fishermen, miners and knights. Hire hundreds of workers, merge them and invent new crafts. Make as huge crowd of people as you can. Your village will grow and develop, you’ll become a king of huge, totally overcrowded empire! Move on to new worlds and eras. Conquer oceans and defeat pirates, destroy tanks, trenches, jeeps and aircrafts. Finally make huge money, develop your company’s head quarters and become a master of skyscrapers in the wild modern city. This tiny civilization needs YOU to grow and rule the world. Features: - totally overcrowded empire - different eras (kingdom, pirates, ww2, modern) - simple addictive gameplay: merge and invent - 50+ different units - special heroes and boosters - dragons, Zeppelins and aircrafts - passive income and idle clicker feel - Game Center leaderboards and stickers! - attack other players from Game Center! - lovely Spin Wheel for additional bonuses --- SUBSCRIPTION PRICING AND TERMS VIP MEMBERSHIP offers a weekly subscription, you will have a 3-days FREE trial period, after this period you will be charged $4.99. After buying this subscription you will get 30 gems every day, get 3x coins from every level up bonus (without ad), you'll get 4 free bonuses (spin wheels or player attacks) every day and forced ads will be removed. This is an Auto-renewable subscription. The payment is charged to your account after confirmation. The subscription is renewed unless you turn it off 24 hours before the period ends. Your account will be charged for renewal as well. End of trial and subscription renewal: • This price is for United States customers. Pricing in other countries may vary and actual charges may be converted to your local currency depending on the country of residence. • Payment will also be charged to iTunes account at confirmation of purchase. • Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours prior to the end of the current period. • The account will be charged for renewal within 24 hours prior to the end of the current period and identify the cost of the renewal. • Subscriptions may be managed by the user and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user’s Account Settings after purchase. Any unused portion of the free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when the user purchases a subscription to that publication, where applicable. Canceling trial or subscription: You can turn off the auto-renew for the subscription whenever you want to through iTunes account. Check https://support.apple.com/HT202039. When your current trial/subscription period expires, you will be unsubscribed. The current active subscription period cannot be canceled. After your subscription expires, you will no longer be able to use elements offered in your chosen Subscription Option. If you have any questions or comments, feel free to contact us at hello@digitalmelody.eu Privacy Policy: http://digitalmelody.eu/privacy_policy Terms of use: http://digitalmelody.eu/terms_of_service

Screenshots

Swarm Simulator4 screens
Merge Empire4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Merge Empire at none against Swarm Simulator's shown. Merge Empire also leads on iOS requirement (10.0 vs 12.0). Swarm Simulator's advantage is review sentiment (78% vs 50%). On price, rating, ratings volume and update cadence there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Swarm Simulator sells 11 one-off in-app purchases and Merge Empire sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Swarm Simulator against 4.6 for Merge Empire. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2.7K and 3.7K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 78% of Swarm Simulator's written reviews are positive against 50% of Merge Empire's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Swarm Simulator ships an update every 9 days, Merge Empire every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 29, 2026 and September 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Swarm Simulator versus Merge Empire: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSwarm SimulatorMerge Empire
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (2.7K ratings) — better4.6 (3.7K ratings)
Positive reviews78.3% of reviews — better50.0% of reviews
Number of ratings2.7K3.7K — better
Update frequencyEvery 9 days — betterEvery 2 weeks
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS12.010.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size158 MB219 MB
Age rating4+9+
DeveloperIron Horse Games LLCDigital Melody

Customer experience

Swarm Simulator

All ratings2,719 ratings
Positive93.3%
Neutral3.0%
Negative3.7%
Written reviews175 reviews
Positive78.3%
Neutral5.1%
Negative16.6%

Merge Empire

All ratings3,667 ratings
Positive90.7%
Neutral4.6%
Negative4.7%
Written reviews112 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral14.3%
Negative35.7%

User reviews

Swarm Simulator

From 2.7K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Fun and addictive gameplay
  • 🚀 Smooth and responsive
  • 💡 Unique incremental mechanics
  • 🔒 Minimal ads, not intrusive

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Bugs and glitches in recent updates
  • 🔋 High battery consumption
  • 💰 Expensive in-app purchases

Merge Empire

From 3.7K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Fast gameplay
  • 👍 Engaging merging mechanics
  • 💡 Unique game concept

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Bugs and glitches
  • 🔋 High ad frequency
  • 💰 Expensive VIP subscription
  • 🕰️ Short game length

Bugs and requests

Swarm Simulator

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Crashes on launch
  • Stuck on loading screen
  • Incorrect display of resources and upgrades
  • Issues with cloud save functionality

Requested features

4 requests
  • More content and updates
  • Offline mode
  • Customization options
  • Improved progression and endgame

Merge Empire

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Incorrect reward amounts
  • Merging issues
  • Leaderboard display problems
  • Freezing and performance issues

Requested features

4 requests
  • More levels and content
  • Improved leaderboard functionality
  • Mute button for audio
  • Prestige or progression system

In-app purchases

11 purchases

Swarm Simulator

One-time11
  • Pouch of Crystals$4.99
  • Elixir Mega Pack$4.99
  • Swarm Supporter Pack$9.99
Show 8 more
  • Bag of Crystals$9.99
  • Crystalline King Pack$9.99
  • Arcane Amplifier Pack$9.99
  • Super Shards Pack$9.99
  • Challenge Crusher Pack$9.99
  • Barrel of Crystals$19.99
  • Elixir Ultra Pack$24.99
  • Storehouse of Crystals$49.99
5 purchases

Merge Empire

Subscriptions1
  • Merge Empire VIP Membership3 Days trial$4.997 Days
One-time4
  • 20 Diamonds$0.99
  • 50 Diamonds$1.99
  • 100 Diamonds$2.99
Show 1 more
  • 1000 Diamonds$9.99

Questions

Is Swarm Simulator free?
Swarm Simulator is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Merge Empire free?
Merge Empire is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Swarm Simulator or Merge Empire?
Swarm Simulator is rated higher. Swarm Simulator averages 4.7 out of 5 from 2.7K ratings, while Merge Empire averages 4.6 from 3.7K ratings.
Do Swarm Simulator or Merge Empire have ads?
Swarm Simulator shows ads; Merge Empire does not.
Which is updated more often, Swarm Simulator or Merge Empire?
Swarm Simulator ships an update every 9 days, and Merge Empire every 2 weeks. Most recently, Swarm Simulator was updated on September 29, 2026 and Merge Empire on September 5, 2026.

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