WebMO Premium vs MolAR Augmented Reality
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
WebMO Premium
This app allows users to build and visualize molecules in 3D, access chemical information from external databases, and interact with advanced computational chemistry programs. It's designed for students and faculty needing mobile access to molecular structures and data.
- 3D molecular editor
- VSEPR and molecular mechanics optimization
- Orbital and symmetry visualization
- Chemical data lookup
- Computational chemistry program integration
- Spectra visualization
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WebMO Premium is equivalent in functionality to the free 'WebMO' app in conjunction with the 'WebMO Premium' in-app purchase. This paid version is provided for convienence for volume purchases. WebMO allows users to build and view molecules in 3-D, visualize orbitals and symmetry elements, lookup chemical information and properties from external databases, and access state-of-the-art computational chemistry programs. WebMO is recommended for students and faculty in high school, college, and graduate school who desire mobile access to molecular structures, information, and calculations. WebMO capabilities include: - Build molecules by drawing atoms and bonds in a 3-D molecular editor, or by speaking the name (e.g., “aspirin”) - Optimize structures using VSEPR theory or molecular mechanics - View Huckel molecular orbitals, electron density, and electrostatic potential - View molecular vibrations - View point group and symmetry elements of molecules - Lookup basic molecular information, including IUPAC and common names, stoichiometry, molar mass - Lookup chemical data from PubChem and ChemSpider - Lookup experimental and predicted molecular properties from external databases (NIST, Sigma-Aldrich) - Lookup IR, UV-VIS, NMR, and mass spectra from external databases (NIST, SDBS) - Capture high-resolution molecular images - Save and recall molecular structures locally - Export and import structures via email WebMO is also a front-end to WebMO servers (version 14 and higher): - Supports Gaussian, GAMESS, Molpro, MOPAC, NWChem, ORCA, PQS, PSI, Quantum Espresso, VASP, Q-Chem, and Tinker computational chemistry programs - Submit, monitor, and view calculations - View formatted tabular data extracted from output files, as well as raw output - Visualize geometry, partial charges, dipole moment, normal vibrational modes, molecular orbitals, and NMR/IR/UV-VIS spectra
MolAR Augmented Reality
Explore molecules and proteins in augmented reality. Visualize structures from online databases or draw your own. Scan real-world objects to see their molecular composition.
- Augmented reality molecule visualization
- Visualize PubChem molecules
- Visualize Protein Data Bank proteins
- Draw and visualize chemical structures
- Scan objects to see molecules
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MolAR lets you visualize molecules and proteins through augmented reality (AR). - Augmented reality: Place a molecule or a protein in a real-world surrounding. No marker needed. - Visualize any molecule on PubChem - Visualize any protein in the Protein Data Bank - Draw chemical structures and visualize them in AR - Scan objects such as food and see molecules inside them Created by Sukolsak Sakshuwong, Umberto Raucci, and Hayley Weir from the Martinez Group at Stanford University
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: MolAR Augmented Reality at Free against WebMO Premium's $4.99. MolAR Augmented Reality also leads on rating (4.9 vs 4.0) and update cadence (every 2 months vs every 17 months). WebMO Premium's advantage is iOS requirement (12.0 vs 14.4). On ratings volume, ads, in-app purchases and device support 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
MolAR Augmented Reality is free to download; WebMO Premium costs $4.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
MolAR Augmented Reality holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 4 and 9 respectively.
WebMO Premium ships an update every 17 months, MolAR Augmented Reality every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on August 23, 2026 and September 15, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | WebMO Premium | MolAR Augmented Reality |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $4.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.0 (4 ratings) | 4.9 (9 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 66.7% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 4 | 9 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 17 months | Every 2 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 — better | 14.4 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 12 MB | 179 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | WebMO, LLC | Sukolsak Sakshuwong |
Customer experience
WebMO Premium
MolAR Augmented Reality
In-app purchases
WebMO Premium
No in-app purchases
MolAR Augmented Reality
No in-app purchases
Questions
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Is MolAR Augmented Reality free?
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