# Idle Nuns Tycoon vs Pathogen

The clearest difference is ads: Pathogen at none against Idle Nuns Tycoon's shown. Pathogen also leads on update cadence (weekly vs fortnightly). On price, in-app purchases, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Idle Nuns Tycoon sells 18 one-off in-app purchases and Pathogen sells 5 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Idle Nuns Tycoon ships an update fortnightly, Pathogen weekly. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Idle Nuns Tycoon | Pathogen |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.8 (953 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/idle-nuns-tycoon/id6747325865/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **953** | — |
| Positive reviews | 73.7% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | **Weekly** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Size | 606 MB | 176 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 15.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | [SAMZU LIMITED](https://appshunter.io/developer/1820834040) | [Sebastien Girod](https://appshunter.io/developer/1472154080) |

## What reviewers say

### Idle Nuns Tycoon

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/idle-nuns-tycoon/id6747325865)

Manage a snowy monastery, providing shelter and services to refugees and nobles. Expand your sanctuary, upgrade facilities, and recruit devoted staff to build a thriving religious empire. Enjoy idle progress even when offline.

**Highlights:** Build and expand monastery facilities, Manage resources like food and firewood, Recruit and train nuns and priests, Serve refugees and wealthy nobles, Idle progress and offline rewards, Upgrade and customize buildings

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (18)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 138 Golds | $0.99 | one-time |
| Star PackageⅠ | $0.99 | one-time |
| Star PackageⅡ | $1.99 | one-time |
| Brew Piggy Bank | $1.99 | one-time |
| Star PackageⅢ | $2.99 | one-time |
| Brewing Start | $2.99 | one-time |
| Scene2 Package | $2.99 | one-time |
| Star PackageⅣ | $2.99 | one-time |
| Starter Package | $2.99 | one-time |
| Piggy Bank | $2.99 | one-time |
| Brew Master | $5.99 | one-time |
| 890 Golds | $5.99 | one-time |
| Growth Fund | $5.99 | one-time |
| Spin Deluxe Pass | $9.99 | one-time |
| The Abbot | $9.99 | one-time |
| 1680 Golds | $9.99 | one-time |
| No Ads | $14.99 | one-time |
| VIP Package | $19.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Fun and unique gameplay
- 👍 Nicely paced, idle and easy to play
- 👍 Good music and goals
- 👍 Cool app

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Daily quests don't reset, always show completed
- 💰 Lots of paid things, character locked behind paid rewards
- 💰 Forced to purchase rewards with in-game currency
- 🔚 Content ends fast, collection items stop spawning
- 🐛 Lots of bugs need to be addressed

**Reported bugs**

- Daily quests don't reset
- Collection items stop spawning

**Requested features**

- Dark mode option
- More content and areas to explore


### Pathogen

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pathogen-outbreak-lab/id6819624335)

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

**In-app purchases (5)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Parasite Family | $2.99 | one-time |
| Prion Family | $2.99 | one-time |
| Bio-synthetic Family | $2.99 | one-time |
| Worm Family | $2.99 | one-time |
| All Families | $7.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Idle Nuns Tycoon free?

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

### Is Pathogen free?

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

### Do Idle Nuns Tycoon or Pathogen have ads?

Idle Nuns Tycoon shows ads; Pathogen does not.

### Which is updated more often, Idle Nuns Tycoon or Pathogen?

Idle Nuns Tycoon ships an update fortnightly, and Pathogen weekly. Most recently, Idle Nuns Tycoon was updated on November 3, 2026 and Pathogen on October 25, 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.*