Comparison

Zen Pinball vs Visual Pinball

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

Head to head
About

Zen Pinball

Experience exciting digital pinball action with a vast collection of original and licensed tables. Enjoy realistic physics, detailed 3D models, and competitive multiplayer modes. New tables are released regularly to keep the fun going.

Highlights
  • Licensed entertainment tables (Marvel, Star Wars, etc.)
  • Original table designs
  • Realistic 3D models and ball physics
  • Worldwide leaderboards and friend challenges
  • Table achievements
  • Hot Seat multiplayer mode
Features
Read full description

Zen Pinball features hit tables based on some of the biggest brands in entertainment, including Marvel Comics, Star Wars, ALIEN, The Walking Dead and more, Zen Pinball is your go-to place for all of your pinball cravings. From Zen Studios, the pioneers of the digital pinball space, Zen Pinball is your destination for exciting digital pinball action! Featuring both original tables and exclusive ones based on some of the hottest brands in entertainment, detailed 3D models, the most advanced ball physics available, rich social features, and hot seat multiplayer, Zen Pinball for iOS devices continues the rich pinball tradition established by Zen Studios, the definitive leader in pinball videogames. Zen Pinball sets a new standard for realistic ball physics and graphical detail in pinball video games employing cutting-edge visuals, challenging tables, true-to-life ball and table physics and combines them with innovative features not found in any other pinball game. Your Pinball Destination Zen Pinball features dozens of tables, both original designs created by our development team, as well as many based on some of the hottest entertainment properties around. Fill out your collection today! Free Sorcerer’s Lair Table! The Zen Pinball app comes with the beloved Sorcerer's Lair table completely free! Download the app for instant access to one of our most exciting tables. Hottest Brands in Entertainment Featuring hit tables based on some of the biggest brands in entertainment, including Marvel Comics, Star Wars, ALIEN, The Walking Dead and more, Zen Pinball is your go-to place for all of your pinball cravings. New Tables Released Regularly! Zen Pinball’s roster of exciting tables is frequently updated, so be sure to check the table menu for the latest and greatest from Zen Studios! Many Great Features! - Worldwide leaderboards and friend challenges - Table achievements - Rule sheets for each table, providing tips and tricks to help you boost your score - Pass the game around to friends as you compete for the top pinball wizard in Hot Seat multiplayer mode. Be sure to visit us at blog.zenstudios.com for more information on Zen Pinball and other games in the Zen Studios lineup. Additionally, follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/zen_studios or Like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/zenstudios. Watch trailers for our upcoming projects on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/user/ZenStudiosGames.

About

Visual Pinball

Experience the full virtual pinball simulator with realistic physics, lighting, and sound. This open-source app offers a redesigned interface, enhanced table management, and the complete desktop experience for mobile devices. Enjoy a vast library of tables without ads or in-app purchases.

Highlights
  • Realistic physics, lighting, and sound
  • Redesigned interface with Liquid Glass
  • Full in-game menu for graphics and controls
  • Support for various backglass and display types
  • Easy table import and management
  • Optimized memory usage
Features
Read full description

The official Visual Pinball app. Built by volunteers since 2000 and open source since 2010, Visual Pinball is the simulator the virtual pinball community has been playing for over two decades. More than 70 people have contributed to it, and this app runs the same engine as the desktop version, so every table plays with the physics, lighting and sound its creator intended. No ads. No in-app purchases. No tracking. Made by volunteers. Two years of work from the Visual Pinball volunteers, in one update. Thank you for your patience, and for playing! A FRESH NEW LOOK • Redesigned for iOS 26 with Liquid Glass • Favorites and recently played tables at the top of your list • Search, sorting and three tile sizes • Light, Dark or System appearance • New loading screen that shows progress THE FULL DESKTOP EXPERIENCE • The complete Visual Pinball in-game menu for graphics, sound, controls and table options • Remap every button on keyboards and game controllers • Save settings for every table, or just the one you're playing MORE TABLES, LOOKING BETTER • Show the backglass and score display (DMD, alphanumeric or reels) on screen, right where you want them • Support for PUP packs, FlexDMD, B2S backglasses, video playback and VNI colorizations • All the latest physics and rendering improvements from the desktop version • Much lower memory use: textures are compressed on first load, then cached EASIER TABLE MANAGEMENT • Import .zip files, along with .vpx and .vpxz • Share any table as a single .vpxz file • The web file manager can now upload whole folders, extract archives, edit scripts and settings, and show the log live AND MORE • Many stability and memory fixes This version requires iOS 26.6 or later.

Screenshots

Zen Pinball4 screens
Visual Pinball3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Visual Pinball at none against Zen Pinball's 10. Visual Pinball also leads on update cadence (fortnightly vs every 2 months) and review sentiment (79% vs 66%). Zen Pinball's advantage is ratings volume (1.4K vs 74) and device support (4 vs 2). On price, rating and ads 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. Zen Pinball sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. Visual Pinball asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.2 for Zen Pinball against 4.3 for Visual Pinball. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Zen Pinball has 1.4K ratings behind it against 74, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 66% of Zen Pinball's written reviews are positive against 79% of Visual Pinball's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Zen Pinball ships an update every 2 months, Visual Pinball fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Zen Pinball versus Visual Pinball: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterZen PinballVisual Pinball
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.2 (1.4K ratings)4.3 (74 ratings) — better
Positive reviews65.9% of reviews78.6% of reviews — better
Number of ratings1.4K — better74
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsFortnightly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS7.0 — better26.6
Further details — not scored
Size73 MB134 MB
Age rating9+9+
DeveloperZEN StudiosJason Millard

Customer experience

Zen Pinball

All ratings1,376 ratings
Positive78.2%
Neutral6.9%
Negative14.9%
Written reviews399 reviews
Positive65.9%
Neutral8.5%
Negative25.6%

Visual Pinball

All ratings74 ratings
Positive81.1%
Neutral6.8%
Negative12.2%
Written reviews56 reviews
Positive78.6%
Neutral12.5%
Negative8.9%

User reviews

Zen Pinball

From 1.4K App Store ratings

What we love

  • ⭐ Excellent pinball experience
  • 🎨 Stunning graphics and animations
  • 🎢 Variety of creative and challenging tables
  • 💰 Fair pricing for in-app purchases
  • ⏱️ Smooth and responsive gameplay

Room to improve

  • 🔌 Lack of controller support
  • 📱 Compatibility issues with newer devices
  • 🔍 Difficulty navigating and finding tables
  • 🔁 Inability to restore previously purchased tables

Visual Pinball

From 74 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Awesome way to play virtual pinball on the go
  • 👍 Super easy to set up with minimal file prep time
  • 👍 Insane that I can play favorite pins on just my phone
  • 👍 Fantastic portable implementation of VPX
  • 👍 Fun and exciting to archive the history of pinball

Room to improve

  • 🔧 More ability to adjust table settings needed
  • 🔧 Struggling to manage camera angle
  • 🔧 No fullscreen on iPad, plunger and outlanes cropped
  • 🔧 Some tables don't work or have issues

Bugs and requests

Zen Pinball

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Frequent crashes and freezes
  • Issues with table downloads and purchases
  • Unresponsive controls and flipper issues

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add more free or demo tables
  • Implement controller support
  • Improve table organization and browsing
  • Allow cross-platform table transfers

Visual Pinball

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Tables don't load for some users
  • Certain complex/intensive tables error out or run at low FPS

Requested features

6 requests
  • List of most played tables
  • Ability to reposition DMD
  • Option to skip startup checks for some tables
  • Ability to edit table scripts on the app
  • Direct link to table depository
Show 1 more
  • iPad version with more screen space

In-app purchases

10 purchases

Zen Pinball

One-time10
  • Excalibur Table$0.99
  • Epic Quest Table$0.99
  • Tesla Table$0.99
Show 7 more
  • Captain America Table$1.99
  • Wolverine Table$1.99
  • Marvel's The Avengers Table$1.99
  • The Walking Dead Table$1.99
  • Portal ® Pinball Table$1.99
  • Boba Fett Table$1.99
  • Star Wars: Episode V Table$1.99
None

Visual Pinball

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Zen Pinball free?
Zen Pinball is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Visual Pinball free?
Visual Pinball is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Zen Pinball or Visual Pinball?
Visual Pinball is rated higher. Zen Pinball averages 4.2 out of 5 from 1.4K ratings, while Visual Pinball averages 4.3 from 74 ratings.
Do Zen Pinball or Visual Pinball have ads?
Neither Zen Pinball nor Visual Pinball shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Zen Pinball or Visual Pinball?
Zen Pinball ships an update every 2 months, and Visual Pinball fortnightly. Most recently, Zen Pinball was updated on October 29, 2026 and Visual Pinball on October 30, 2026.

Other comparisons