# Molecules vs iMolview Lite

The clearest difference is review sentiment: iMolview Lite at 100% against Molecules's 65%. iMolview Lite also leads on rating (4.0 vs 3.6) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 16.0). Molecules's advantage is update cadence (every 2 months vs every 9 months) and ratings volume (166 vs 5). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

iMolview Lite holds the better App Store score, 4.0 against 3.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Molecules has 166 ratings behind it against 5, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 65% of Molecules's written reviews are positive against 100% of iMolview Lite's.

Molecules ships an update every 2 months, iMolview Lite every 9 months. The most recent releases landed on September 29, 2026 and September 22, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Molecules | iMolview Lite |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [3.6 (166 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/molecules/id284943090/reviews) | **[4.0 (5 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/imolview-lite/id543731121/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **166** | 5 |
| Positive reviews | 65.5% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 2 months** | Every 9 months |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 3 MB | 54 MB |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | **12.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Sunset Lake Software](https://appshunter.io/developer/284943093) | [Molsoft](https://appshunter.io/developer/431002309) |

## What reviewers say

### Molecules

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/molecules/id284943090)

Explore and interact with 3D molecular models on your device. Rotate, zoom, and pan structures using intuitive touch gestures. Visualize molecules in different modes and load custom structures from various sources.

**Highlights:** 3D molecule rendering, Finger-based manipulation (rotate, zoom, pan), Ball-and-stick visualization, Spacefilling visualization, Load custom molecular structures, File sharing and iCloud import

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Fast and responsive
- 👍 Useful for visualizing molecules
- 👍 Great for teaching chemistry
- 👍 Excellent for biochemistry students

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Crashes when downloading new molecules
- 🐛 Compatibility issues with newer iOS devices
- 🐛 Limited functionality, missing key features
- 🔍 Difficult to find common molecules
- 💡 Needs more view options (ribbon, surface, etc.)

**Reported bugs**

- Crashes when switching between views
- Molecules disappear after reopening the app
- Search function is unreliable and limited
- Compatibility issues with newer iOS versions

**Requested features**

- Add ability to build and edit molecules
- Implement a color key for atom types
- Include more basic molecules (H2O, CO2, etc.)
- Allow sorting/organizing downloaded molecules
- Integrate with databases like PubChem and RCSB


### iMolview Lite

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/imolview-lite/id543731121)

Explore 3D models of biological molecules like proteins and DNA from public databases. Visualize and customize molecular structures with various representations and coloring schemes. Analyze interactions and view your own structure files.

**Highlights:** 3D protein and DNA structure viewing, Drug molecule visualization, Customizable molecular representations, Individual atom/residue selection and coloring, Interaction analysis, Import custom structure files

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

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Molecules free?

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

### Is iMolview Lite free?

iMolview Lite is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Molecules or iMolview Lite?

iMolview Lite is rated higher. Molecules averages 3.6 out of 5 from 166 ratings, while iMolview Lite averages 4.0 from 5 ratings.

### Do Molecules or iMolview Lite have ads?

Neither Molecules nor iMolview Lite shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Molecules or iMolview Lite?

Molecules ships an update every 2 months, and iMolview Lite every 9 months. Most recently, Molecules was updated on September 29, 2026 and iMolview Lite on September 22, 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.*