Tap OChem vs Unreal Chemist
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Tap OChem
Visualize complex organic chemistry reactions and concepts with animated explanations. This app covers a wide range of undergraduate organic chemistry topics, aiding in exam preparation and understanding of molecular behavior.
- Animated organic chemistry reactions
- Detailed concept explanations
- Electron pushing diagrams
- Full-color text descriptions
- MCAT, PCAT, OAT, DAT prep
- Regular content updates
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"Awesome" writes a reviewer! More reviewers comments! "I have used it for all of my exams so far and it is extraordinarily helpful." "This is the best investment that you can make to visualize the reactions. There are a ton of them and they are AWESOME!!!!!" Another reviewer writes “Covers all of the major topics and the videos help me visualize the details of the molecules and reactions”…“Could almost replace a whole textbook.” While we never claim to cover an entire organic chemistry class, with content added in each update (major free updates each year since publishing ten years ago!), Tap OChem is the app that delivers! The reactions and concepts included are many from the one year sequence of undergraduate organic chemistry that is offered at all major colleges and universities. Students have told us that this app was essential in their preparation for the MCAT. Whether you are currently in the one year sequence of classes or reviewing for the MCAT, or PCAT, OAT, and DAT, this app will help! Designed by two award winning chemists with over 48 years of combined experience teaching at major universities, Tap OChem makes organic chemistry reaction come to life for each included reaction or concept. The following animations are currently included: Substitution reactions (20 animations), Elimination reactions (11 animations), Alkene Chemistry (15 animations), Free Radical Chemistry (4 animations), Alkyne Chemistry (7 animations), Epoxide chemistry (4 animations), Benzene chemistry (10 animations), Diene Chemistry (8 animations), Carbonyl Chemistry (8 animations), Major concepts (62+ animations), and Molecules in Motion (35+ animations). The Concepts section includes valence bond theory, molecular orbital theory, electrostatic potential maps, radical spin density maps, alkene stability, dienes and stability, conformational analysis of alkanes and cyclohexane, etc. We've just started adding information on intermolecular interactions and plan on more spectroscopic topics! One animation on dipole/dipole attraction was added. Two animations, one focused on the introduction to IR spectroscopy are included. We are developing and updating more animations for future updates! Each animation has an accompanying text that drills down to the main facts of each reaction or concept. These are in FULL COLOR! They are short, handy, descriptions with important information regarding each reaction or concept. In the case of reaction animations, the concise scrollable text descriptions include electron pushing. We will continue to update the app with future releases. Tap OChem is native to both iPhones and iPads! In addition to the animations being very sharp on your iPhone and iPad, they are of excellent quality when projected (iPhone 4S and iPhone 6s, 6s Plus, 7, 7 Plus, 8, 8 Plus, X, 11, 12, and later, iPad 2 and later, using appropriate adapters) in a classroom. For the iPhone 6s and later; and iPad Air 1 and 2 and later, an appropriate adapter is needed like Lightning Digital AV Adapter (this is an HDMI adapter), or a USB C to HDMI adapter, or a Lightning to VGA Adapter. Please visit www.tapochem.com for further information.
Unreal Chemist
Explore a virtual chemistry lab on your phone. Mix chemicals, observe reactions, and conduct over 750 unique simulations with more than 150 available substances. Adjust variables like temperature and concentration to understand chemical principles.
- Mix chemicals for reactions
- Burn salts for colorful flames
- Heat elements for color emission
- Adjust reactant concentration and quantity
- Regulate reaction temperature
- Control time flow (slow/fast forward)
- Monitor pH changes with indicators
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Chemistry experiments on your smartphones. You can Mix chemicals to see how they react, Burn salts to colorful flames and Heat elements to see what colors it emits There are 150 plus chemicals available to experiment with and more than 750 unique experiment simulations. Key Highlights - Adjusting the concentration and quantity of the reactants. - Regulate the temperature of the reaction. - Modify temperatures in precipitation reactions and see the effect of temperatures on solubility. - Slow down / Fast forward time. - Check the PH and PH change in a reaction, using Indicators. - Ignite flammable gases formed during reaction. Disclaimer Some reactions you will be doing in Unreal Chemist are extremely dangerous and may cause serious injury if conducted in real word. Even though most of the reactions are accurate to the real world, some reactions may be theoretical since physical verification of some reactions are not completed as of now.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Unreal Chemist at Free against Tap OChem's $4.99. Unreal Chemist also leads on update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 3 months) and iOS requirement (11.0 vs 13.2). Tap OChem's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and ads (none vs shown). On ratings volume and device support 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
Unreal Chemist is free to download; Tap OChem costs $4.99 up front. Unreal Chemist sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Tap OChem asks for nothing beyond the download.
Tap OChem holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 39 and 68 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 92% of Tap OChem's written reviews are positive against 73% of Unreal Chemist's.
Tap OChem ships an update every 3 months, Unreal Chemist every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Tap OChem | Unreal Chemist |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $4.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.7 (39 ratings) — better | 4.5 (68 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 91.7% of reviews — better | 73.4% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 39 | 68 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Every 2 weeks — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Paid | Free with in-app purchases — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 13.2 | 11.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 3.5 GB | 342 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Tap OChem, LLC | ZipoApps |
Customer experience
Tap OChem
Unreal Chemist
Bugs and requests
Tap OChem
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
Unreal Chemist
Reported bugs
17 issues- Sulfuric acid not dissolving with salts
- Heating solution during titration
- Watch ad for premium session not working
- Mixing game not always working intuitively
- Buttons on iPhone blocked by camera
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- Some metal flame colors don't match description
- Program sometimes locks up
- Music setting resets after closing program
- Some reactions don't show the full formula
- App crashes on opening
- App gets stuck on the home page
- App kicks the user out
- App opens to a blank grey or white screen
- App won't open
- App crashes when it takes too long to open
- Free version has only 2 reactions
- Interface is buggy (e.g., clicking play sends to home page)
Requested features
32 requests- Add more elements (e.g., Mn, H, O, Cl, F, Pb)
- Add more acids (e.g., Chloroauric acid, Vanadic acid, Perrhenic acid)
- Add more bases and solvents (e.g., styrofoam, polystyrene, ethanol, acetone)
- Add gases (e.g., Chlorine, Fluorine, Hydrogen, Oxygen)
- Option to specify amounts of chemicals to add
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- Kid version with simplified instructions
- Add crafting or new science game modes
- Add more glassware and scientific equipment
- Reintroduce feature to see compound information
- Add challenges or daily missions
- Add ability to use previously made chemicals for new reactions
- Add definitions for elements and reactions
- Add a story or background context
- Add more reactions and compounds
- Add liquid elements (e.g., liquid oxygen, hydrogen)
- Add more bases
- Add more solvents
- Add styrofoam/polystyrene
- Add more elements
- Add more acids
- Add more bases
- Add more solvents
- Add more glassware
- Add more scientific equipment
- Add more reactions
- Add more compounds
- Add more elements
- Add more reactions
- Add more compounds
- Add more elements
- Add more reactions
- Add more compounds
In-app purchases
Tap OChem
No in-app purchases
Unreal Chemist
- Premium Version$5.99
Questions
Is Tap OChem free?
Is Unreal Chemist free?
Which has better reviews, Tap OChem or Unreal Chemist?
Do Tap OChem or Unreal Chemist have ads?
Which is updated more often, Tap OChem or Unreal Chemist?
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