# Design A Train vs Toy Train 3D

The clearest difference is price: Toy Train 3D at Free against Design A Train's $1.99. Design A Train's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (8.0 vs 12.0). On rating, review sentiment, ratings volume and update cadence there is nothing between them.

Toy Train 3D is free to download; Design A Train costs $1.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.4 for Design A Train against 4.5 for Toy Train 3D. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 25 and 10 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 71% of Design A Train's written reviews are positive against 75% of Toy Train 3D's.

Design A Train ships an update every 2 months, Toy Train 3D every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on August 25, 2026 and September 8, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Design A Train | Toy Train 3D |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $1.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | [4.4 (25 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/design-a-train/id461796192/reviews) | **[4.5 (10 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/toy-train-3d/id1035152127/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **25** | 10 |
| Positive reviews | 71.4% of reviews | **75.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Every 6 weeks** |
| Monetization | **Free** | Ad-supported |
| Size | 35 MB | 28 MB |
| Requires iOS | **8.0** | 12.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Playtend Apps LLP](https://appshunter.io/developer/320166203) | [Kouichi Hayashi](https://appshunter.io/developer/1809037541) |

## What reviewers say

### Design A Train

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/design-a-train/id461796192)

Design and color your own trains with a variety of tools and stickers. Once complete, you can save, share, print, or integrate your creations into other train-themed games.

**Highlights:** Customize train cars and engines, Easy one-touch coloring, Add and reposition stickers, Assemble and rearrange full trains, Export to other train games, Save, share, and print creations

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


### Toy Train 3D

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/toy-train-3d/id1035152127)

Experience the joy of operating a miniature railway with this model railroad simulator. Design and build your own unique train layouts to bring your railway dreams to life.

**Highlights:** Model railroad simulation, Train operation gameplay, Customizable layout creation, Realistic toy train experience, Intuitive design tools

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

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Design A Train free?

Design A Train costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Toy Train 3D free?

Toy Train 3D is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Design A Train or Toy Train 3D?

Toy Train 3D is rated higher. Design A Train averages 4.4 out of 5 from 25 ratings, while Toy Train 3D averages 4.5 from 10 ratings.

### Do Design A Train or Toy Train 3D have ads?

Toy Train 3D shows ads; Design A Train does not.

### Which is updated more often, Design A Train or Toy Train 3D?

Design A Train ships an update every 2 months, and Toy Train 3D every 6 weeks. Most recently, Design A Train was updated on August 25, 2026 and Toy Train 3D on September 8, 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.*