Is it possible to download iPhone apps without an actual iPhone? Surprisingly, yes! You can use emulators to run iOS apps on your PC. Whether you want to play Apple Arcade or test OS-specific apps as a developer, you’ll find them useful. However, not all platforms are reliable or safe. Save yourself the hassle—here are the best options to bring the Apple experience to your computer.
Best iOS Emulators for PC
1. SauceLabs
Price: 1-hour free testing and later you must upgrade to any subscription plan. Paid accounts start from $49 per month per user for the Live Testing plan.
SauceLabs is a leading mobile app testing and distribution platform. You can access it as a web app on any popular web browser. Therefore, you often save some time which you would otherwise invest in configuring the tool on the PC. Its straightforward interface is also easy to navigate.
This iOS emulator is intended for Manual testing, Automated testing, and Visual testing. So, it allows you to choose from a range of iOS devices to begin your tests. Beyond that, it allows you to create a library of iPhone or iPad apps for testing purposes. Apps can be uploaded directly from your PC as IPA files, mimicking the sideloading process on an actual iOS device. Additionally, you can import test projects from cloud repositories containing iOS apps.
If you only wish to play iOS games or use apps exclusively available on the App Store you can utilize these app testing features. However, the UX is not as extensive as an Android emulator. You’re restricted to mouse-based navigation on SauceLabs. You can, however, use other useful features in this virtual iOS emulator, like Set GPS Location, Camera Upload, Biometric Authentication, VoiceOver, Audio, and Performance Mode.
| Pros | Cons |
| No upfront payments are needed; you can try, and buy later if you like. | No full-screen option for an immersive iOS experience. |
| Credit card less free trial. | Doesn’t support external game controllers out of the box. |
| Easy-to-use interface suitable for first-time users with no early experience of app testing. | There aren’t any app libraries in this iOS emulator. |
| Initiates virtual iPhones and iPads really fast. | Doesn’t support iPods. |
| Minimum lag when navigating on the virtual device. | The free trial is only for 1 hour. |
2. Appetize
Price: You can try it out if it suits your requirements by signing up for a 30-minute free trial allowing up to two active virtual iOS devices. If you like it, you can buy a paid plan. Paid subscriptions start from $59/month.
Appetize is another web-based mobile app testing and live preview platform. And since it’s a web app, you simply need to sign up with a work or personal email to create a free account. Afterward, you can upload your own apps from a PC or Mac and test those in a fully web-based iOS emulator. It’s also a no-code app testing platform that requires little to no manual configuring.
Appetize iOS emulator is suitable for both lightweight consumer apps and games. Its Device Sandbox is the emulator hub that hosts independent virtualized iPhones (iPhone 8 to iPhone 16 Pro Max) and iPads (iPad Air, iPad Pro, iPad, and iPad Mini).
| Pros | Cons |
| Free trial available without any credit card. | Not a convenient choice for heavy gaming; you can play lightweight game apps compatible with mouse-based controls. |
| Offers most app testing and feedback collecting features, like AppRecorder, Network Logs, and Debug Logs. | Doesn’t support any external game controllers. |
| It also allows you to insert your own media into the device for screenshots or screen recording purposes. | No option to use virtual input-output sensors, like GPS, gyroscope, compass, etc. |
| It doesn’t allow swipes with the mouse. |
3. LambdaTest
Price: 1 virtual iOS parallel test is free. You can subscribe to a paid subscription starting from $19/month to get more parallel tests and features.
LambdaTest is a full-service iOS and Android mobile app testing platform accessible online on most popular browsers, e.g., Firefox, Chrome, Edge, and Safari. Its capabilities include online app testing on any browser, test management, Selenium testing, real devices cloud, accessibility testing, iOS emulator for PC, and more. Furthermore, it offers detailed technical documentation for its testing platform and API.
The best thing about LambdaTest is that it has an extensive collection of virtualized iPhones and iPads in different iOS and iPadOS versions. So, if an app or game works only on a specific iPhone and iOS, check out LambdaTest and see if it meets your requirements.
LambdaTest’s iOS emulator allows you to upload your own IPA file or import from a cloud app development project storage. Once imported, the virtual iPhone or iPad automatically installs your IPA file. Mostly, the swipe navigations on the virtual iPhone work with mouse clicks and drag. However, there could be a bit of sluggishness since the emulator works from a distant cloud server.
| Pros | Cons |
| You can try it out for free without signing up with a credit card. | You can switch between the portrait and landscape views for the virtual iOS device. |
| Offers an extensive range of virtual device controls, like Volume, Lock Device, Shake, On-Screen Keyboard, Rotate, etc. | No option for external game controllers. |
| Allows geolocation-based apps since you can easily adjust the Time Zone in the Settings section. | The overall device performance and responsiveness aren’t enough for high-performance gaming. |
| Offers many app development integrations, like Jira, Mantis, DevRev, Github, and more. | Mostly suitable for development purposes, not for individual usage. |
| Virtual iOS devices load quite fast compared to other web-based iOS emulators. | |
| Mouse-based swipe movements are also fast and responsive. |
4. Smartface
Price: It offers a case-by-case basis subscription offers.
You can also try out Smartface to use virtual iPhone and iPad devices on a Windows PC. It’s a desktop IDE so you must install and configure the tool before you can start app testing, manage app development lifecycles, and preview iOS apps on iPhone and iPad.
Its virtual iOS devices come in different screen sizes, models, and iOS editions. Therefore, no need to worry if certain apps will install or not. Just simply switch to the appropriate iOS edition and device model. The virtual iOS devices are mostly accessible from a premium subscription, like enterprise or more-level licenses.
| Pros | Cons |
| Includes a built-in iOS emulator to preview and run apps. | No free trial. |
| Offers different types of IOS devices and editions. | Subscriptions are costly. |
| Includes many tools for iOS app development, testing, and deployment. | There are no standalone Smartface iOS emulators that you can only use to create virtual devices. |
| It has a steep learning curve. |
So, these are some of the best and most reliable iOS emulators for PC. You can use these platforms mostly for iOS app development, testing, feedback collection, and deployment. If you’re really into emulators, you might want to explore GBA emulators that you can run without jailbreaking.