# Mini Metro vs THE MACHINE

The clearest difference is price: THE MACHINE at Free against Mini Metro's $3.99. THE MACHINE also leads on update cadence (daily vs every 2 months). Mini Metro's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and ratings volume (31K vs 1). On rating, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

THE MACHINE is free to download; Mini Metro costs $3.99 up front. THE MACHINE sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Mini Metro asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.9 for Mini Metro against 5.0 for THE MACHINE. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Mini Metro has 31K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

Mini Metro ships an update every 2 months, THE MACHINE daily. The most recent releases landed on October 15, 2026 and September 29, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Mini Metro | THE MACHINE |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $3.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | [4.9 (31K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mini-metro/id837860959/reviews) | **[5.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-machine-assembly/id6808324017/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **31K** | 1 |
| Positive reviews | 88.8% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Daily** |
| Monetization | Paid | **Free with in-app purchases** |
| Best chart rank | **#14** | — |
| Size | 179 MB | 12 MB |
| Requires iOS | **12.0** | 16.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Dinosaur Polo Club](https://appshunter.io/developer/1119391227) | [IAN FABIAN FAGERSTROM](https://appshunter.io/developer/6808324019) |

## What reviewers say

### Mini Metro

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mini-metro/id837860959)

**Currently charting:** #14 Top Paid · Simulation, #15 Top Paid · Strategy, #35 Top Paid · Games, #53 Top Paid (US App Store)

Design and manage a subway system for a growing city. Draw lines, start trains, and adapt your network as new stations open. Strategically use limited resources to keep the city moving and achieve the highest score.

**Highlights:** Design subway maps, Draw lines between stations, Manage train routes, Adapt to random city growth, Utilize limited resources, Over two dozen real-world cities, Variety of upgrades

**Features:** iMessage stickers, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Simple and relaxing gameplay
- 🎨 Beautiful minimalist design
- ⏱️ Addictive and time-killing
- 🌐 Wide variety of cities to play
- 💰 Good value for money

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Trains skipping stations
- 🤯 Overwhelming difficulty at times
- 🔍 Lack of clear instructions
- 🔀 Difficulty removing/rerouting lines
- 🕰️ No ability to save progress

**Reported bugs**

- Leaderboard issues with daily challenges
- Crashes and compatibility problems on certain devices
- Unexpected behavior when trains skip stations

**Requested features**

- Undo/redo functionality
- Ability to create branching lines
- More detailed statistics and analytics
- Additional game modes (e.g. career, scenarios)
- Integration with real-world transit data


### THE MACHINE

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-machine-assembly/id6808324017)

Engage with a mechanical puzzle box focused on experimentation and understanding cause and effect. Install and reorder parts to observe signal flow and solve objectives. Discover new hardware and deeper systems as the machine awakens.

**Highlights:** Mechanical puzzle box gameplay, Experimentation and cause/effect mechanics, 34 unique mechanism families, Stateful, order-sensitive puzzles, Tuning and Fusion systems, Offline play, Single optional purchase for full content

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| THE MACHINE | $4.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Mini Metro free?

Mini Metro costs $3.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is THE MACHINE free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Mini Metro or THE MACHINE?

THE MACHINE is rated higher. Mini Metro averages 4.9 out of 5 from 31K ratings, while THE MACHINE averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.

### Do Mini Metro or THE MACHINE have ads?

Neither Mini Metro nor THE MACHINE shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Mini Metro or THE MACHINE?

Mini Metro ships an update every 2 months, and THE MACHINE daily. Most recently, Mini Metro was updated on October 15, 2026 and THE MACHINE on September 29, 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.*