Comparison

Molecules vs Elementium

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

Elementium

Access comprehensive information on every element of the periodic table. Explore detailed data, visualize trends, and utilize a built-in solubility calculator. Perfect for students and professionals needing quick, accurate chemical data.

Highlights
  • Detailed element information
  • Interactive periodic table
  • Dynamic filtering and trend visualization
  • Solubility calculator
  • Element image library
  • Bohr model visualizations
  • Home screen widgets
Features
Read full description

The premiere periodic table app for iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV. Quickly reference any element and all the information you need. Search for elements by on classification, phase, orbital, mass, or number. Dynamic filters help you understand periodic trends, like electronegativity, at a glance. Dive even deeper to get standard, frequently-used data points such as mass, electronegativity, radius, radioactivity, electron configuration, and more. LEARN Each element prominently features: • Symbol, name, and number • Atomic mass • Electronegativity • Electron configuration • Atomic radius • Melting and boiling points • Year of discovery • State at STP • Radioactivity Elements are also accompanied by discussions on its uses, discovery, and more. You can quickly find more information and publications about each element via links to Wikipedia, Science Direct®, and the American Chemical Society®. EXPLORE The periodic table is laid out in a clear, concise manner that adapts to the size of your screen. No more squinting at blurry images of the periodic table from web searches. Beautiful color-coding helps you quickly distinguish element classifications, phases at STP, electronegativity, and atomic radius. Trends and filtering help students who are learning chemistry to visualize patterns. SOLUBILITY CALCUALTOR A built in solubility calculator* answers all your, "is this soluble in that", questions. Just specify a solvent and a solute to check their compatibility. A solubility lookup table is also available for cross-referencing multiple combinations. VISUALIZATIONS See beautiful depictions of elements from raw to processed, and in other forms. The extensive library of images help you understand what your lab samples should look like, or may be helpful to students learning about chemistry.* SEARCH Search for elements by name, symbol, mass, or number from within Elementium™ or via Spotlight. Results are shown directly on the periodic table. Need faster access to element information? Search directly from Spotlight on the lock screen or home screen of your device. BOHR MODELS Animated Bohr models for each element help visualize how electrons are oriented around the nucleus.* WRITE & REPORT Academics and students writing reports and using data frequently in the classroom or the lab can simply tap on an aspect of an element to export its information.* HOME SCREEN WIDGETS Add the Periodic Table widget to your home screen for quick and easy reference to the Periodic Table. Or, try out the "random element" widget which is useful for students. ADDITIONAL NICE THINGS • Custom app icons • Set temperature and atomic radius to your preferred units • Search Spotlight for elements • Thoughtfully developed with accessibility in mind • A subscription is totally optional • No account required • Privacy focused (no tracking, no data collection) ------- ION Subscription Notice Subscription prices vary by duration and may vary by location. Subscriptions will be charged to your credit card through your iTunes account. Your subscription will automatically renew unless canceled within 24-hours before the end of the current period. You can cancel anytime with your iTunes account settings. Manage your subscriptions in Account Settings after purchase. Privacy Policy: https://spencer-software.com/elementium/privacy Terms of Service: https://spencer-software.com/elementium/tos ------- *Requires in-app purchase. Elementium™ is a trademark of Samuel Spencer.

Screenshots

Molecules4 screens
Elementium4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Elementium at 4.6 against Molecules's 3.6. Elementium also leads on update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months) and review sentiment (75% vs 65%). Molecules's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 9). 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. Elementium sells 9 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Molecules asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Elementium holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 3.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 166 and 576 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 65% of Molecules's written reviews are positive against 75% of Elementium's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Molecules ships an update every 2 months, Elementium every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 29, 2026 and October 12, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Molecules versus Elementium: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMoleculesElementium
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.6 (166 ratings)4.6 (576 ratings) — better
Positive reviews65.5% of reviews75.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings166576 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, Apple TV — better
Requires iOS16.0 — better16.1
Further details — not scored
Size3 MB752 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSunset Lake SoftwareSamuel Spencer

Customer experience

Molecules

All ratings166 ratings
Positive62.7%
Neutral12.0%
Negative25.3%
Written reviews388 reviews
Positive65.5%
Neutral18.6%
Negative16.0%

Elementium

All ratings576 ratings
Positive91.5%
Neutral3.3%
Negative5.2%
Written reviews32 reviews
Positive75.0%
Neutral6.3%
Negative18.8%

User reviews

Molecules

From 166 App Store ratings

What we love

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

Room to improve

  • 🐛 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.)

Elementium

From 576 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 User-friendly and intuitive interface
  • 📚 Comprehensive element information and data
  • 🎨 Beautiful, clean, and visually appealing design
  • 🔗 Helpful Wikipedia and external resource links
  • 📖 Excellent for educational purposes and studying

Room to improve

  • 💰 Expensive subscription model for premium features
  • 🔐 Paywall blocking key features and element images
  • 📺 Intrusive ads and purchase prompts on startup
  • 🎨 Poor color contrast on metalloid background text
  • 📱 Crashes on older devices (iPhone 6G iPod Touch, iPhone XS Max)

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

Elementium

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • App crashes on startup and when tapping elements
  • Crashes on older iOS devices and iPod Touch
  • Molar mass not visible in iPhone landscape orientation
  • Intrusive purchase prompt that's difficult to dismiss
  • Rating request spam appearing too early in user experience

Requested features

5 requests
  • Element images and visual representations
  • One-time purchase option instead of subscription
  • Zoom out to view entire periodic table at once
  • Better display of molar mass on iPhone in landscape mode
  • More detailed information and content

In-app purchases

None

Molecules

No in-app purchases

9 purchases

Elementium

Subscriptions4
  • ION, 1 month1 Month trial$1.991 Month
  • ION, 3 Months3 Days trial$3.993 Months
  • ION, 6 months$5.996 Months
Show 1 more
  • ION, 1 year$9.991 Year
One-time5
  • Export Data$0.99
  • Bohr Models$1.99
  • Advanced Sorting$2.99
Show 2 more
  • Visual Elements$3.99
  • Advanced Tools$4.99

Questions

Is Molecules free?
Molecules is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Elementium free?
Elementium is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Molecules or Elementium?
Elementium is rated higher. Molecules averages 3.6 out of 5 from 166 ratings, while Elementium averages 4.6 from 576 ratings.
Do Molecules or Elementium have ads?
Neither Molecules nor Elementium shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Molecules or Elementium?
Molecules ships an update every 2 months, and Elementium every 3 weeks. Most recently, Molecules was updated on September 29, 2026 and Elementium on October 12, 2026.

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