RetroChecker vs Retro Joy
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
RetroChecker
This app helps retro video game collectors track their collections. It provides extensive game data, including value, descriptions, and release history, along with media like box art and videos. Manage your inventory, find games, and assess collection values with this comprehensive tool.
- Extensive game database (75,000+ games, 160 platforms)
- Value, description, and release history data
- Access to game videos, box arts, and manuals
- Search and browse by platform, genre, date, value
- Collection and inventory management
- Offline price charting data
- RetroLens for collection valuation
Read full descriptionHide full description
RetroChecker is the ultimate app for retro video game collectors! With our extensive database of over 75,000 games across 160 platforms, you'll have all the information you need about the value, description, and release history of your favorite retro games. Plus, with access to over 25,000 in-game videos, box arts, screenshots, and game manuals, you'll be able to explore the world of retro games like never before. Our versatile tool makes it easy to search for games, browse by platform, genre, release date, or value tier, and access YouTube videos with just a tap. You can even manage your own collection or inventory, bookmark games you're looking for, and access price charting data even when offline. RetroChecker is world-ready, with support for seven currencies and integration with eBay and Amazon. And with our RetroLens feature, you can quickly assess the value of a game collection at yard sales or flea markets. Plus, you can easily create a copy of your data or move it to another device. We take your privacy seriously and do not collect any of your data. We also do not use any tracking technologies, and our app uses Google Cloud Vision only for image recognition. Check out our privacy policy for more details. We put our hearts into creating RetroChecker, and we hope you'll love it too. Please don't hesitate to give us feedback and let us know how we can improve. Price data via pricecharting.com Image Recognition (Premium feature) via Google Cloud Vision Additional content (game descriptions, release history, additional images) via mobygames.com
Retro Joy
Track your progress and discover achievements for classic video games. Organize your favorite titles into custom collections and connect with a community of retro gaming enthusiasts. It's the perfect companion for reliving gaming history.
- Track RetroAchievements.org progress
- View achievements, friends, and games
- Collect and organize favorite games
- Create custom game collections
- Connect with the RetroAchievements community
Read full descriptionHide full description
Retro Joy is your ideal companion app for RetroAchievements.org With Retro Joy, your RetroAchievement.org achievements, friends, and games are brought straight to your device. You can even collect your favorite games in your library and organize them into collections, exclusive to Retro Joy. If you are new to the RetroAchievements.org community, joining is as simple as downloading the app, creating an account, and logging in. The rest you can pick up along the way with pointers in the app, and the support of the community on RetroAchievements.org.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Retro Joy at none against RetroChecker's 1. Retro Joy also leads on review sentiment (82% vs 63%). RetroChecker's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 2 months) and rating (4.4 vs 4.1). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement 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
Both are free to download. RetroChecker sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Retro Joy asks for nothing beyond the download.
RetroChecker holds the better App Store score, 4.4 against 4.1. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 60 and 13 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 63% of RetroChecker's written reviews are positive against 82% of Retro Joy's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
RetroChecker ships an update weekly, Retro Joy every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 20, 2026 and September 17, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | RetroChecker | Retro Joy |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.4 (60 ratings) — better | 4.1 (13 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 62.5% of reviews | 81.8% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 60 — better | 13 |
| Update frequency | Weekly — better | Every 2 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 1.5 GB | 48 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Emanuel Schleussinger | Clayton Sulby |
Customer experience
RetroChecker
Retro Joy
In-app purchases
RetroChecker
- RetroLens - 200 uses$0.99
Retro Joy
No in-app purchases
