Comparison

Molecules vs Molecular Models

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

Head to head
About

Molecules

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
Read full description

Molecules is an application for viewing three-dimensional renderings of molecules and manipulating them using your fingers. You can rotate the molecules by moving your finger across the display, zoom in or out by using two-finger pinch gestures, or pan the molecule by moving two fingers across the screen at once. These structures can be viewed in both ball-and-stick and spacefilling visualization modes. Molecules can be stored on your handheld device for later viewing and are loaded via a standard document-based file browser. Custom molecular structures can be downloaded to the application via file sharing or iCloud, and obtained via sources like the RCSB Protein Data Bank (http://www.rcsb.org/pdb), an international repository of biological molecules and their 3-D structures, or NCBI's PubChem (http://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov), a public database of compounds. For more details, please visit our website. Molecules is a BSD-licensed open source project.

About

Molecular Models

Features
Read full description

Molecular Models - 3D Explore the world of molecules in stunning 3D!. Molecular Models - 3D helps you visualize and understand molecular structures interactively. Whether you're a student, teacher, or science enthusiast, this app makes chemistry come alive with beautiful 3D renderings. Rotate, zoom, and explore atoms, bonds, and molecular geometry with intuitive gestures. Instantly search for molecules like Water (H₂O), Hydrogen Sulfide (H₂S), Hydrogen Peroxide (H₂O₂), Carbon Dioxide (CO₂) and more - all displayed in spatial their arrangements.

Screenshots

Molecules4 screens
Molecular Models4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Molecules at none against Molecular Models's 1. Molecular Models's advantage is update cadence (every 9 days vs every 2 months). 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Molecular Models sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Molecules asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Molecules ships an update every 2 months, Molecular Models every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on August 5, 2026 and September 21, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Molecules versus Molecular Models: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMoleculesMolecular Models
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.6 (166 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews65.5% of reviews—
Number of ratings166 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 9 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS16.015.6 — better
Further details — not scored
Size3 MB11 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSunset Lake SoftwareKrishna Raj Salim

Bugs and requests

Molecules

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • 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

5 requests
  • 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

Molecular Models

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Molecules

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Molecular Models

One-time1
  • FullVersion$1.99

Questions

Is Molecules free?
Molecules is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Molecular Models free?
Molecular Models is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Molecules or Molecular Models have ads?
Neither Molecules nor Molecular Models shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Molecules or Molecular Models?
Molecules ships an update every 2 months, and Molecular Models every 9 days. Most recently, Molecules was updated on August 5, 2026 and Molecular Models on September 21, 2026.

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