# Grow Animals vs Alchemy DIY

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Alchemy DIY at none against Grow Animals's 2. Alchemy DIY also leads on update cadence (every 4 days vs every 3 weeks) and rating (4.9 vs 4.7). Grow Animals's advantage is ratings volume (45K vs 8.9K). On price, review sentiment, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Grow Animals sells 2 one-off in-app purchases. Alchemy DIY asks for nothing beyond the download.

Alchemy DIY holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Grow Animals has 45K ratings behind it against 8.9K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 62% of Grow Animals's written reviews are positive against 67% of Alchemy DIY's.

Grow Animals ships an update every 3 weeks, Alchemy DIY every 4 days. Both last shipped on November 10, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Grow Animals | Alchemy DIY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.7 (45K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/grow-animals/id1577130124/reviews) | **[4.9 (8.9K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/alchemy-diy-magic-lab/id6451245111/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **45K** | 8.9K |
| Positive reviews | 61.8% of reviews | **67.4% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | **Every 4 days** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Ad-supported** |
| Size | 334 MB | 175 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | **13.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 12+ | 9+ |
| Developer | [Lion Studios](https://appshunter.io/developer/1362220666) | [9UP COMPANY LIMITED](https://appshunter.io/developer/1846108017) |

## What reviewers say

### Grow Animals

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/grow-animals/id1577130124)

Design and raise your dream pet by combining traits like cute, smart, strong, and lovable. Witness their evolution from a single cell to a fully grown creature, and even merge animals to discover new breeds. Decorate their habitat and care for them.

**Highlights:** Create dozens of unique animals, Experiment with trait combinations, Witness animal evolution, Decorate pet habitats, Pamper and play with pets, Merge animals to discover new breeds

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

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Remove Ads | $2.99 | one-time |
| All In One Bundle | $4.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🤩 Cute and fun animals
- 🤗 Relaxing and enjoyable gameplay
- 🤓 Educational animal facts
- 👍 Great for kids and adults

**What reviewers complain about**

- 😡 Too many ads and ad breaks
- 🤖 Lack of freedom to create own animals
- 🤯 Repetitive and limiting gameplay
- 🤔 Misleading advertising

**Reported bugs**

- Animals disappearing after merging
- Freezing and crashing issues
- Incorrect animal spawning
- Progress reset problems

**Requested features**

- Allow users to create their own unique animals
- Reduce the number of ads and ad breaks
- Add more content and gameplay variety
- Fix bugs and glitches


### Alchemy DIY

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/alchemy-diy-magic-lab/id6451245111)

Combine various emoticons and icons to create unique new ones. Swipe, swap, and match to discover intriguing combinations across categories like smileys, animals, and cuisine. Save and share your creations with friends and family.

**Highlights:** Combine and match icons, Create new unique icons, Save and share creations, Over 1,000 different icons, No time limit

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

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🤩 Fun and entertaining
- 👍 Engaging and creative gameplay
- 💎 Unique emoji mixing mechanics
- 🎨 Wide variety of emojis to create

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🤬 Too many ads interrupting gameplay
- 🐛 Occasional crashes and bugs
- 🔋 High battery consumption
- 🤔 Lack of clear instructions or tutorials

**Reported bugs**

- Progress not saving properly
- Glitches when trying to mix certain emojis
- Ads sometimes prevent returning to the game

**Requested features**

- Add option to disable ads
- Improve saving and progress tracking
- Expand emoji library with more options
- Provide more customization and personalization


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Grow Animals free?

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

### Is Alchemy DIY free?

Alchemy DIY is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Grow Animals or Alchemy DIY?

Alchemy DIY is rated higher. Grow Animals averages 4.7 out of 5 from 45K ratings, while Alchemy DIY averages 4.9 from 8.9K ratings.

### Do Grow Animals or Alchemy DIY have ads?

Both Grow Animals and Alchemy DIY show ads.

### Which is updated more often, Grow Animals or Alchemy DIY?

Grow Animals ships an update every 3 weeks, and Alchemy DIY every 4 days. Most recently, Grow Animals was updated on November 10, 2026 and Alchemy DIY on November 10, 2026.

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