Comparison

Idle Acorns vs Magic Research

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

Head to head
About

Idle Acorns

A classic idle clicker game with a charming narrative. Explore diverse environments, gather resources, craft items, and play mini-games. Enjoy a pure, ad-free experience with no in-app purchases or data mining.

Highlights
  • Resource gathering and upgrades
  • Crafting over 24 items
  • Fishing and cooking mini-game
  • Gardening and tree growing
  • Campfire for inviting characters
  • iCloud backup support
  • Game Center integration
Features
Read full description

Inspired by the classics, Idle Acorns is a fun mobile clicker game that features no advertisements, no in-app purchases, and no data-mining. Inspired by the clicker games of the old internet, Idle Acorns brings a fun narrative to the mobile clicker arena but without getting weighed down by advertisements, in-app purchases or data mining. Explore the forest and ocean with Benny the squirrel and enjoy everything from fishing, to gardening. Unlock the campfire to invite new characters, collect resources, and craft items. Featuring 4 mini-games, iCloud backup support, Game Center support, iMessage sticker pack, and more! Like classic Idle games, Idle Acorns respects time travel. Please note that time travel will disable Game Center features. Shake the tree to gather acorns. Purchase upgrades and enlist scavengers to collect acorns while you are away! Sell your acorns, and unlock new areas in the shop. Speak with Benny the squirrel to navigate your adventure. Cast your line, and catch fish in the ocean. Open the map to visit your acres of land, or upgrade your offline collection. Unlock the campfire and invite all new characters. Trade resources and buy recipes to craft over 24 new items. - Forge diamonds and buy upgrades - Go fishing and cook fish - Buy land and grow trees - Unlock the campfire and trade resources - Buy recipes and craft items - 4 Mini-Games - Share resources with friends - Lots of character dialogue - Seasonal events - iCloud backup support - Game Center leaderboards and achievements - iMessage sticker pack IMPORTANT: iPhone SE (2016 First Generation) and iPod touch are not supported.

About

Magic Research

Lead a new magic institution to discover the secrets of magic and achieve fame. Research spells, build your campus, manage staff, and uncover hidden storylines to win the Tournament of Magic. Enjoy a complete game experience with no ads.

Highlights
  • Cast over 100 spells
  • Research magic in various schools
  • Build and manage campus
  • Manage researchers and apprentices
  • Discover hidden features and storylines
  • Retirement bonuses for faster progress
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

In Magic Research, you are the headmaster of a newly-created institution of Magic with one goal: to learn as much as possible about this power and get enough fame to be able to compete, and win, the prestigious competition of schools: the Tournament of Magic. But what will you discover along the way? * Cast over a hundred different spells with various effects * Research magic in various magical schools to discover new, surprising ways to use this power * Accumulate resources and build the school campus * Manage a team of researchers and apprentices to lead your school to fame * Discover tons of hidden new features - when will you unlock the next one? * Find over eight dozen secret storylines with permanent, game-altering effects * Restart the game and make faster progress each time with retirement bonuses * Optimized both for iPhone and iPad * No ads! This is the full, complete game. You can transfer save data from the demo by using the Export / Import Save feature available in both the demo and in the full game.

Screenshots

Idle Acorns4 screens
Magic Research4 screens

Verdict

The call

Idle Acorns and Magic Research both sit at 4.8 stars, but that hides the real split: 95% of Magic Research's written reviews are positive against 60% of Idle Acorns's. Magic Research also leads on update cadence (every 4 days vs every 6 weeks). Idle Acorns's advantage is ratings volume (1.2K vs 188) and price ($1.99 vs $3.99). On rating, ads, in-app purchases and chart position 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

Idle Acorns costs $1.99 and Magic Research $3.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Idle Acorns against 4.7 for Magic Research. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Idle Acorns has 1.2K ratings behind it against 188, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 60% of Idle Acorns's written reviews are positive against 95% of Magic Research's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Idle Acorns ships an update every 6 weeks, Magic Research every 4 days. Both last shipped on September 22, 2026.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Idle Acorns versus Magic Research: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterIdle AcornsMagic Research
Price$1.99 — better$3.99
Rating4.8 (1.2K ratings) — better4.7 (188 ratings)
Positive reviews60.2% of reviews95.1% of reviews — better
Number of ratings1.2K — better188
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeksEvery 4 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterPaid
Best chart rank#98 — better#126
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS13.1 — better15.6
Further details — not scored
Size149 MB25 MB
Age rating4+12+
Developeraleros.io LLCMatias Ezequiel Colotto

Customer experience

Idle Acorns

All ratings1,216 ratings
Positive94.9%
Neutral1.5%
Negative3.6%
Written reviews108 reviews
Positive60.2%
Neutral10.2%
Negative29.6%

Magic Research

All ratings188 ratings
Positive93.6%
Neutral1.6%
Negative4.8%
Written reviews61 reviews
Positive95.1%
Neutral0.0%
Negative4.9%

User reviews

Idle Acorns

From 1.2K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Charming and relaxing
  • 👍 No ads or in-app purchases
  • 🎨 Pleasant aesthetics
  • 🕹️ Satisfying gameplay loop
  • 💰 Good value for money

Room to improve

  • ⏱️ Slow progression and pacing
  • 🔍 Unclear mechanics and lack of explanation
  • 🐛 Bugs and glitches
  • 🔌 Limited offline progress
  • 🔢 Inconsistent upgrade costs

Magic Research

From 188 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Great idle/incremental game
  • 💡 Deep and complex systems
  • 🚀 Well-paced progression
  • 💰 Worth the price
  • ✨ No ads or microtransactions

Room to improve

  • 🐛 UI layout issues
  • 🐌 Can be grindy
  • 🔋 High battery consumption
  • 🐛 Text running off page/scrolling issues
  • 🐛 Wood resource bug

Bugs and requests

Idle Acorns

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Tree disappearing issue
  • Bat not recognizing feather purchases
  • Zoom and UI issues on certain devices
  • Negative acorn balance after time manipulation

Requested features

5 requests
  • Dark mode option
  • More late-game content
  • Improved UI and navigation
  • Better explanation of game mechanics
  • Increased offline progress

Magic Research

Reported bugs

8 issues
  • On new iPhones, switching away and back causes UI unresponsiveness
  • Text running off the page, preventing interaction with buttons
  • Wood resource counting backwards
  • Becoming stunned for a full minute, unable to act
  • Bosses running away from fights
Show 3 more
  • Exploration difficulty jump
  • UI layout issues on iPad Pro (long scrolling panels, cut-off inventory views, difficult spell favorite scrolling, useless event panel)
  • Text pages not scrolling, making discoveries unreadable

Requested features

12 requests
  • Add background music
  • Add Chinese language support
  • Make monsters pixelated
  • Adjustable times for apprentice auto-casting
  • Display monstium collection counter during exploration
Show 7 more
  • Allow apprentices to auto-craft potions
  • Make the game accessible to the blind
  • Add a way to start further into dungeons
  • Automate crafting
  • Improve quality of crafted items (armor, weapons)
  • Add a 'Magic Smithing' school
  • Allow players to avoid or cure silence effects

In-app purchases

None

Idle Acorns

No in-app purchases

None

Magic Research

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Idle Acorns free?
Idle Acorns costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Magic Research free?
Magic Research costs $3.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Idle Acorns or Magic Research?
Idle Acorns is rated higher. Idle Acorns averages 4.8 out of 5 from 1.2K ratings, while Magic Research averages 4.7 from 188 ratings.
Do Idle Acorns or Magic Research have ads?
Neither Idle Acorns nor Magic Research shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Idle Acorns or Magic Research?
Idle Acorns ships an update every 6 weeks, and Magic Research every 4 days. Most recently, Idle Acorns was updated on September 22, 2026 and Magic Research on September 22, 2026.
Which is more popular, Idle Acorns or Magic Research?
Idle Acorns currently peaks at #98 in the App Store charts, and Magic Research at #126. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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