Comparison

Algodoo vs Fractal Dive

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

Head to head
About

Algodoo

Design and experiment with realistic 2D physics simulations. Build intricate machines, create virtual science experiments, and explore cause and effect. Share your creations and discover those of others in a vibrant community.

Highlights
  • Create objects with shapes or free-hand drawing
  • Combine components for intricate machines
  • Choose and customize materials
  • Simulate physics with gravity and aerodynamics
  • Explore ideas through trial and error
  • Build animations, contraptions, and experiments
  • Access community-created scenes
Read full description

Bring your ideas to life with realistic physics in Algodoo. This creative and educational app lets you design two-dimensional scenes where objects move according to the laws of physics. See cause and effect in action and refine your builds to perfection. Algodoo is a virtual 2D construction set to enjoy the creative thrill of building fun scenes and machines. You’ll never run out of parts. You can go deeper and analyse the motion and learn about mechanical devices. Once you master the tools and principles, you can build sandbox games or mesmerising, complex simulations. • Use basic 2D geometrical shapes or the free-hand drawing tool to create objects. • Combine components like axles, springs, motors, ropes, and lasers to create intricate machines. • Choose from various materials—steel, wood, rubber, water, and helium—and customise at will. • Press “Simulate” to bring your scene to life, moving under the forces of gravity, aerodynamics, buoyancy, and more. • Use trial and error to explore ideas and perfect your inventions. • Express your imagination with vibrant colors, shapes, and textures. Looking to build animations, contraptions, marble races, moving structures, chain reactions, or virtual science experiments? With Algodoo, the possibilities for invention, creativity, and exploration are endless. With the Quick Tour and tutorial videos, you can easily learn Algodoo’s basic tools and principles. It's not just for fun— the scientific foundation of Algodoo makes it a great teaching and learning aid for exploring physics concepts, operating principles of machines, and even construction. Discover the creativity of others and get inspired for your next build by visiting the Algobox library. Access thousands of scenes created by the Algodoo community and share your own creations by signing up for an Algobox account. Algodoo offers endless fun for users of all ages. Download the app now and start building, and search for #Algodoo on YouTube or social media to explore videos showcasing imaginative creations from our global community.

About

Fractal Dive

Features
Read full description

Pinch into a shape that never ends. Or press Dive, lean back, and let the app find its own way down — past a cell, past an atom, past anything that has a name. Free. No ads, no account, no subscription. PRESS DIVE No idea where to look? Press Dive. The app finds the richest part of the shape by itself and travels there, for minutes if you like, deeper all the while. No two dives end up in the same place. PINCH, AND KEEP PINCHING A fractal is one simple rule, repeated without end. The result is a shape that never runs out: the closer you look, the more there is. Fractal Dive lets you see that for yourself — and keeps computing where other apps give up. Nearly every fractal app stalls around a thousand trillion times magnification. That is no coincidence: it is exactly where the precision of ordinary computer numbers runs out, and the picture breaks into blocks. Fractal Dive works differently. One orbit is computed on the processor using numbers of arbitrary length; the graphics chip then computes only the differences from it. Tested to four times ten to the power 331 — a magnification with 331 zeros — and there is still no bottom in sight. MADE TO LOOK AT Nine color schemes, from quiet silver to full rainbow — three free, all nine in Pro — and three ways to color: by step count, by distance to the edge, or by an orbit's closest approach. The coloring reweighs itself at every depth, so a deep zoom never turns into one flat wash. Save or share any picture, and send any place on as a link: whoever opens it lands exactly there. THREE FAMILIES The classic Mandelbrot set, the same rule with a third power, and a mirrored variant with sharp points instead of bulbs. All three go equally deep. NO MATH REQUIRED Twelve named places with a one-line explanation each, so you start somewhere beautiful straight away. Along the way the app tells you how small you are looking: like a magnifying glass, like a microscope, smaller than a cell, smaller than an atom — and further still. ON ALL YOUR DEVICES The same app on iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple TV, and on Apple Vision Pro. On the Mac with keyboard, scroll wheel and trackpad, on the TV with the Siri Remote. A widget on your Home Screen, Lock Screen and in StandBy shows a different picture every half hour. PRO, IF YOU WANT IT The app is free, and endless zooming stays free, Dive included. A single one-time purchase unlocks Pro: pictures in 4K and 8K, sharp enough for a wallpaper or a print; your dive as a video, rendered sharp afterwards in 1080p or 4K; every color scheme and coloring style; your own saved places, with a name and a thumbnail; ambient mode, diving from place to place by itself; and two more shapes, the Burning Ship and the Julia set of any place. No subscription. Buy once for iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple TV together, Family Sharing included. HONEST No account, no ads, no subscription. Fractal Dive collects nothing about you; its only contact with the internet is the App Store, for the Pro purchase.

Screenshots

Fractal Dive4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Fractal Dive at Free against Algodoo's $7.99. Fractal Dive also leads on update cadence (every 9 days vs monthly) and device support (4 vs 1). Algodoo's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 17.0). On 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

Fractal Dive is free to download; Algodoo costs $7.99 up front. Fractal Dive sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Algodoo asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Algodoo ships an update monthly, Fractal Dive every 9 days. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Algodoo versus Fractal Dive: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterAlgodooFractal Dive
Price$7.99Free — better
Rating3.8 (1.2K ratings) — better—
Positive reviews58.7% of reviews—
Number of ratings1.2K — better—
Update frequencyMonthlyEvery 9 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPadiPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV — better
Requires iOS12.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size29 MB3 MB
Age rating9+4+
DeveloperAlgoryx Simulation ABRonald Kuiper

Bugs and requests

Algodoo

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Scenes resetting to tutorial
  • Textures and images not loading properly
  • Crashes when trying to import images
  • Buttons and controls not working as expected

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add text and scripting options on mobile
  • Improve mobile UI and controls
  • Implement more features from PC version
  • Fix issues with account bans and deletions

Fractal Dive

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Algodoo

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Fractal Dive

One-time1
  • Fractal Dive Pro$1.99

Questions

Is Algodoo free?
Algodoo costs $7.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Fractal Dive free?
Fractal Dive is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Algodoo or Fractal Dive have ads?
Neither Algodoo nor Fractal Dive shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Algodoo or Fractal Dive?
Algodoo ships an update monthly, and Fractal Dive every 9 days. Most recently, Algodoo was updated on October 24, 2026 and Fractal Dive on October 24, 2026.

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