# Planetary Idle vs Elemental Sands

The clearest difference is rating: Planetary Idle at 4.8 against Elemental Sands's 4.2. Planetary Idle also leads on update cadence (weekly vs every 3 weeks). Elemental Sands's advantage is iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17). On price, review sentiment, ratings volume and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Planetary Idle sells 3 one-off in-app purchases and Elemental Sands sells 31 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Planetary Idle holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.2. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 77 and 68 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 50% of Planetary Idle's written reviews are positive against 44% of Elemental Sands's.

Planetary Idle ships an update weekly, Elemental Sands every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 1, 2026 and October 17, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Planetary Idle | Elemental Sands |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.8 (77 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/planetary-idle/id6450142774/reviews)** | [4.2 (68 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/elemental-sands/id6474100439/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **77** | 68 |
| Positive reviews | **50.0% of reviews** | 44.1% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Weekly** | Every 3 weeks |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 112 MB | 215 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17 | **15.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Roberto Frias Nerio](https://appshunter.io/developer/1692039143) | [TapTide Interactive](https://appshunter.io/developer/1711698136) |

## What reviewers say

### Planetary Idle

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/planetary-idle/id6450142774)

Explore planets with a retro sci-fi idle theme. Hire scientists for passive income, tap for boosts, and research expeditions for discoveries. Prestige to reset with permanent upgrades and unlock perks with rare QBits.

**Highlights:** Hire Scientists for passive income, Tap to boost active income, Research expeditions for discoveries, Prestige system with permanent upgrades, Earn QBits for powerful perks, Offline progress for 6 hours

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

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Booster Pack | $0.99 | one-time |
| Research Pack | $2.99 | one-time |
| Quantum Pack | $6.99 | one-time |


### Elemental Sands

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/elemental-sands/id6474100439)

Build and automate a magical business empire in a fantasy world. Harness elemental powers to boost production and profits, collect rare items, and expand your reach to become a legendary CEO. This idle clicker game blends strategy with enchanting visuals.

**Highlights:** Build and automate business empire, Harness elemental power for production, Collect magical items and abilities, Increase company valuation and profits, Explore a fantasy world, Strategic management gameplay

**In-app purchases (31)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 24 Gold | $0.99 | one-time |
| Study Bundle | $2.99 | one-time |
| Enduring Study Bundle | $2.99 | one-time |
| Volatile Study Bundle | $2.99 | one-time |
| Scorching Study Bundle | $2.99 | one-time |
| The Water Pack | $4.99 | one-time |
| High Tide Event Pass | $4.99 | one-time |
| Energy Surge Event Pass | $4.99 | one-time |
| The Vitality Pack | $4.99 | one-time |
| Lifeblood Event Pass | $4.99 | one-time |
| Auto Buy | $4.99 | one-time |
| The Strength Pack | $4.99 | one-time |
| Heavy Hitters Event Pass | $4.99 | one-time |
| The Nature Pack | $4.99 | one-time |
| Wild Growth Event Pass | $4.99 | one-time |
| The Electric Pack | $4.99 | one-time |
| No Ads Boost | $4.99 | one-time |
| 135 Gold | $4.99 | one-time |
| 310 Gold | $9.99 | one-time |
| Research Bundle | $12.99 | one-time |
| Volatile Research Bundle | $12.99 | one-time |
| Enduring Research Bundle | $14.99 | one-time |
| Scorching Research Bundle | $14.99 | one-time |
| Volatile Proficiency Bundle | $24.99 | one-time |
| 740 Gold | $24.99 | one-time |
| Enduring Proficiency Bundle | $29.99 | one-time |
| Scorching Proficiency Bundle | $29.99 | one-time |
| Mastery Bundle | $49.99 | one-time |
| Scorching Mastery Bundle | $49.99 | one-time |
| Volatile Mastery Bundle | $49.99 | one-time |
| 5200 Gold | $99.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- ✨ Refreshing free-to-play model
- 🎶 Excellent soundtrack
- 👍 Unique currency system
- 👍 Enjoyable idle gameplay
- 👍 Good aesthetic and art style

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐢 Drastic slowdown in progression
- 📉 Slow early game progression
- 📉 Progression feels stagnant
- 📉 Lack of rewarding progression
- 📉 Very slow and lacking features

**Reported bugs**

- Progress lost twice due to account issues
- App fails to load (tuning transmission frequencies)
- Updates bricked progress
- New patch reset sand capacity and spawn rate
- Game is locked with question marks on start

**Requested features**

- Convert excess sand to vials offline
- Increase level cap
- More content and end goals
- Formal suggestion channel (Discord)
- More mechanics in future updates


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Planetary Idle free?

Planetary Idle is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Elemental Sands free?

Elemental Sands is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Planetary Idle or Elemental Sands?

Planetary Idle is rated higher. Planetary Idle averages 4.8 out of 5 from 77 ratings, while Elemental Sands averages 4.2 from 68 ratings.

### Do Planetary Idle or Elemental Sands have ads?

Both Planetary Idle and Elemental Sands show ads.

### Which is updated more often, Planetary Idle or Elemental Sands?

Planetary Idle ships an update weekly, and Elemental Sands every 3 weeks. Most recently, Planetary Idle was updated on October 1, 2026 and Elemental Sands on October 17, 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.*