Software Alternatives & Reviews

EmulationStation VS Recalbox

Compare EmulationStation VS Recalbox and see what are their differences

EmulationStation logo EmulationStation

a graphical emulator front-end

Recalbox logo Recalbox

Retrogaming open source operating system for Raspberry Pi, Odroid and PC.
  • EmulationStation Landing page
    Landing page //
    2018-10-20
  • Recalbox Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-16

EmulationStation videos

Playing Classic Games with EmulationStation & RetroArch

Recalbox videos

Recalbox 6.0 DragonBlaze Has Been Released - Quick Overview

More videos:

  • Review - Recalbox 6.0 DragonBlaze 32gb Raspberry Pi Build! 7,000+ Games Overview!
  • Review - All New Recalbox Quick Look New Ui New Theme New Settings

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to EmulationStation and Recalbox)
Gaming
73 73%
27% 27
Emulators
71 71%
29% 29
Gaming Tools
69 69%
31% 31
Online Games
69 69%
31% 31

User comments

Share your experience with using EmulationStation and Recalbox. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, EmulationStation seems to be a lot more popular than Recalbox. While we know about 13 links to EmulationStation, we've tracked only 1 mention of Recalbox. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

EmulationStation mentions (13)

  • Anyone using a launcher?
    In my opinion the ideal situation would be a backend that any developer could build a frontend to that would suit their approach. For example there are many Retroarch frontends like Highscore, EmulationStation, etc. These all suit the needs for what some person may want. Source: about 1 year ago
  • SteamDeck Windows 11 Guide - Installed Win 11 on the SteamDeck and don't know what to do next? This is for you.
    Replacement for the epic EmuDeck. It utilises EmulationStation. Source: over 1 year ago
  • Is there a user interface that will load all roms from NES up through GameCube?
    I use EmulationStation on a lot of devices. It would cover what you're looking for. Other frontends I like are RetroArch and Daijisho. Source: over 1 year ago
  • Gifting an old pc to my handicapped grandson.
    If you want to piece meal and customize it RetroArch and Emulation Station is the way to go. Also have a robust wiki. Source: over 1 year ago
  • First ever “setup” im very poor
    Helpful link https://emulationstation.org/. Source: over 1 year ago
View more

Recalbox mentions (1)

  • What kind of Apps do you want to see on Telos?
    Bonus points if you make this compatible with emulators... recalbox.com and other distros focused on emulators would probably love a way to keep a global score of the best players across all games ever made. Source: over 2 years ago

What are some alternatives?

When comparing EmulationStation and Recalbox, you can also consider the following products

RetroArch - RetroArch is a frontend for emulators, game engines and media players.

Batocera.linux - Batocera.linux is an open-source and completely free retro-gaming distribution that can be copied to a USB stick or an SD card with the aim of turning any computer/nano computer into a gaming console during a game or permanently.

LaunchBox - LaunchBox is a portable, box-art-based games database and launcher for DOSBox, emulators, arcade cabinets, and PC Games. Download it free!

RetroBat - RETROBAT RetroBat is a software distribution designed for emulation and to be the easiest way to enjoy your game collection on your Windows computer.

Playnite - Source code generated using layoutit.com

Lakka - Lakka is the official Linux distribution of RetroArch and the libretro ecosystem.