Comparison

VoteMapper Election Simulator vs Election Explorer

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

Head to head
About

VoteMapper Election Simulator

Explore and simulate U.S. electoral outcomes with this interactive tool. Customize state results, analyze historical trends, and strategize your path to victory in elections, including the 2026 midterms. It's an engaging way to learn about the election system.

Highlights
  • 2026 Midterm election simulation
  • Customizable electoral scenarios
  • Historical election data analysis
  • Interactive Electoral College strategy
  • Educational tool for civics
Features
Read full description

Call every race yourself. Watch the majority move. Build the 2026 map you actually believe in. VoteMapper is a hands-on election simulator for all your devices. Start from the consensus forecast, change your mind about the races you think the models have wrong, and see exactly what has to happen for either party to take Congress. THE 2026 MIDTERMS • All 100 Senate races, with current candidates and a chamber count that updates with every call you make. • All 435 House districts. Tap a state on the House map and it opens to that state's real congressional districts, drawn from official 2026 boundaries, including the states that redrew their maps this year. • Start from the consensus forecast, or from a blank map, and build the outcome from scratch. THE ROAD TO 270 • The Electoral College map that started it all. Assign states, split Maine and Nebraska by district, and watch the electoral vote total move. • Replay every presidential election since 1788. All 60 maps carry the real electoral roster and nominees, reconciled against the National Archives. Load any of them, rewrite the result, reset to history in one tap, and compare one election against another to see how the map and the math have shifted over more than two centuries. SEAL A FORECAST BEFORE ELECTION NIGHT • Lock in as many calls as you like, one race or all of them, until 6am ET on Election Day. Get a shareable certificate with a public verification link. • Your calls are scored against real results as races are called, so there is a record of who saw it coming. • Each call gets a reveal card with your running record, then an election-night recap and a season scorecard to share. ELECTION NIGHT, ON YOUR HOME SCREEN • Widgets for an Election Day countdown, your Senate or House map, a live Election Night seat count against the majority line, and a scorecard of how your calls are doing. • A My Forecast button for Control Center and the Lock Screen. SAVE, COMPARE, SYNC • Name a scenario and come back to it. Saved maps remember their year and their third-party candidates. • iCloud sync keeps your maps in step across all your devices. • Maps and historical data work offline. A connection is only needed to pull updated race data and published results. BUILT TO BE READ • A scoreboard with a balance bar that shows the majority at a glance, rating badges and race rows you can scan in a second, and a legend on every map. • VoiceOver reads every state's rating and the call you have made on it, on every map. FREE, AND PRO The 2026 midterms, the Electoral College map, forecasts, certificates and every widget, the three most recent presidential elections and five saved scenarios are free, with no ads. VoteMapper Pro adds every election back to 1788, unlimited saved scenarios, iCloud sync, your own map in the My Map widget, your score in the Scorecard widget and the full race-by-race election-night breakdown: $3.99 a month, $29.99 a year with a 7-day free trial, or $49.99 once for life. Family Sharing included. WHO IT IS FOR People who follow elections closely enough to disagree with the forecasts. Students and teachers working through how 435 districts and 100 Senate seats add up to control of Congress. Anyone who would rather do the math than be handed the answer. VoteMapper ships with a consensus forecast as a starting point and then gets out of the way. Every call is yours, and you can throw the starting point out entirely. It is a tool for thinking with, not a news feed. Race ratings and candidate data are updated through Election Day, and results are published as races are called. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://www.scatteredlabsapps.com/privacy-policy

About

Election Explorer

Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Call the 2026 midterms yourself. Pick a winner in every Senate and Governor race, flip House seats state by state, then build your own road to 270. UNOFFICIAL APP. Election Explorer is an independent educational app. It does not represent any government entity, and it is not affiliated with any government, election authority, political party or campaign. Official sources are listed at the end of this description and inside the app under Settings > Sources & Disclaimer. 2026 MIDTERM MAPS The midterms are November 3, 2026. • Senate: all 100 seats, with the 35 on the ballot marked and their candidates listed. • House: every state's delegation, with +/- seat steppers and the districts to watch. • Governors: all 36 races with the candidates on the ballot. • Running totals: the Senate, House and Road to 270 bars update with every pick. RACES TO WATCH The closest Senate, Governor and House contests in one list, toss-ups first. Each one shows its candidates and a rating from Solid to Toss-Up. Race ratings and candidate lists are compiled by the developer from public reporting. They are editorial estimates, not government data and not predictions. ROAD TO 270 Build any presidential map, state by state. Maine and Nebraska split their electoral votes by congressional district, and so does the app. Name your own candidates and share your map. THE ELECTION TIME MACHINE Browse every presidential election from 1789 to 2024 with the electoral vote count of its time, and put the results from 1960 onward on the map. LEARN AS YOU GO • How the Electoral College works and how seats are assigned. • Fun facts: tied elections, faithless electors and the candidates who defied the odds. • A hands-on way to teach how U.S. government and elections work. ONE PURCHASE, EVERY SCREEN Election Explorer runs on iPhone, iPad and Mac with a single purchase. No account, no ads and no tracking. It works offline, and your picks stay on your device. OFFICIAL SOURCES Voting and election information: USA.gov, https://www.usa.gov/voting-and-elections Election administration and voter resources: U.S. Election Assistance Commission, https://www.eac.gov Federal candidates and official election results: Federal Election Commission, https://www.fec.gov Senators, party breakdown and terms: U.S. Senate, https://www.senate.gov Representatives and state delegations: U.S. House of Representatives, https://www.house.gov Electoral votes and historical results: National Archives, https://www.archives.gov/electoral-college Population and apportionment: U.S. Census Bureau, https://www.census.gov DISCLAIMER Election Explorer is not an official government app and does not represent any government entity. Nothing in it is an official election result, an official ballot or official voting guidance. For how to register, where to vote and certified results, use the official sources above.

Screenshots

VoteMapper Election Simulator4 screens
Election Explorer4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: VoteMapper Election Simulator at Free against Election Explorer's $2.99. VoteMapper Election Simulator also leads on update cadence (every 3 days vs every 2 months). Election Explorer's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 3) and chart position (#4 vs unranked). On ads, device support and iOS requirement 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

VoteMapper Election Simulator is free to download; Election Explorer costs $2.99 up front. VoteMapper Election Simulator sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Election Explorer asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

VoteMapper Election Simulator ships an update every 3 days, Election Explorer every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 8, 2026 and October 21, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
VoteMapper Election Simulator versus Election Explorer: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterVoteMapper Election SimulatorElection Explorer
PriceFree — better$2.99
Rating5.0 (11 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings11 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 3 days — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
Best chart rank—#4 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac, Vision Pro — betteriPhone, iPad, Mac
Requires iOS18.017.6 — better
Further details — not scored
Size24 MB13 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperScattered LabsCarlton Payne III

In-app purchases

3 purchases

VoteMapper Election Simulator

Subscriptions2
  • VoteMapper - Monthly$3.991 Month
  • VoteMapper - Annual$29.991 Year
One-time1
  • VoteMapper - Lifetime Sub$79.99
None

Election Explorer

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is VoteMapper Election Simulator free?
VoteMapper Election Simulator is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Election Explorer free?
Election Explorer costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do VoteMapper Election Simulator or Election Explorer have ads?
Neither VoteMapper Election Simulator nor Election Explorer shows ads.
Which is updated more often, VoteMapper Election Simulator or Election Explorer?
VoteMapper Election Simulator ships an update every 3 days, and Election Explorer every 2 months. Most recently, VoteMapper Election Simulator was updated on October 8, 2026 and Election Explorer on October 21, 2026.

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