# Golly vs Melldows

The clearest difference is price: Golly at Free against Melldows's $1.99. Golly also leads on ratings volume (47 vs 2) and iOS requirement (15.6 vs 26.0). Melldows's advantage is update cadence (every 4 weeks vs every 32 months) and rating (5.0 vs 4.8). On review sentiment, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Golly is free to download; Melldows costs $1.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Melldows holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Golly has 47 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 97% of Golly's written reviews are positive against 100% of Melldows's.

Golly ships an update every 32 months, Melldows every 4 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Golly | Melldows |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | **Free** | $1.99 |
| Rating | [4.8 (47 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/golly/id553184760/reviews) | **[5.0 (2 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/melldows/id6479600368/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **47** | 2 |
| Positive reviews | 96.8% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 32 months | **Every 4 weeks** |
| Monetization | **Free** | Paid |
| Size | 15 MB | 50 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.6** | 26.0 |
| Devices | iPad | **iPhone, iPad** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Andrew Trevorrow](https://appshunter.io/developer/553184763) | [Łukasz Cichecki](https://appshunter.io/developer/1441114138) |

## What reviewers say

### Golly

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/golly/id553184760)

Explore Conway's Game of Life and various cellular automata with this open-source application. It supports diverse universe types, multiple algorithms, and a wide array of cellular automata rules. Users can import patterns, download from online archives, and utilize unlimited undo/redo functionality.

**Highlights:** Supports bounded and unbounded universes, Multiple algorithms including hashlife, Variety of cellular automata types included, Reads multiple file formats (RLE, macrocell, etc.), Extracts patterns and rules from zip files, Downloads patterns and rules from online archives, Unlimited undo/redo

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

**In-app purchases:** none


### Melldows

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/melldows/id6479600368)

Design and color your own miniature world in this relaxing sandbox game. Spread forests, create paths, and add structures in a goal-less, creative experience.

**Highlights:** Creative land design, Goal-less sandbox experience, Forest and path creation, Place tents and ruins, Cozy and carefree gameplay

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Golly free?

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

### Is Melldows free?

Melldows costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Golly or Melldows?

Melldows is rated higher. Golly averages 4.8 out of 5 from 47 ratings, while Melldows averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.

### Do Golly or Melldows have ads?

Neither Golly nor Melldows shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Golly or Melldows?

Golly ships an update every 32 months, and Melldows every 4 weeks. Most recently, Golly was updated on October 23, 2026 and Melldows on October 24, 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.*