Best NES Emulators in 2026
Updated
In short: NESER is ranked #1 of 26 as of 7 October 2026, ahead of binjnes and HalfNES. The best-ranked option with a free plan is binjnes.
Choosing an NES emulator starts with checking platform support, then weighing the play and display features you care about. Compare save states, rewind and cheat support, along with netplay and shader support; free-plan and paid-from details are also listed. NESER and binjnes are options to review, and HalfNES gives you another entry to compare. Think about whether you want to save progress, play online or adjust visuals, and check those needs against each emulator's listed features and supported platforms before narrowing your choices.
26 NES emulators ranked on what their makers publish — plans and prices, free tiers, platforms and the facts on their own pages.
10 of the 25 here have a free tier you can use, 0 have open-source code on record, and 0 have full bars: free, open, on most of your devices and documented.
| # | App | Signal | Free tier | Open code | Devices | From | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | NESERWeb · Windows · Mac · Linux | Three bars | — | 4 of 6 | Free | 6.7 | |
| 2 | binjnesWeb · Mac · Linux | Three bars | — | 3 of 6 | Free | 6.5 | |
| 3 | HalfNESWindows · Mac · Linux | Three bars | — | 3 of 6 | Free | 6.5 | |
| 4 | Nestopia Undead EditionWindows · Mac · Linux | Three bars | — | 3 of 6 | Free | 6.5 | |
| 5 | NET-NESWindows · Mac · Linux | Three bars | — | 3 of 6 | Free | 6.5 | |
| 6 | fixNESWindows · Linux | Two bars | — | 2 of 6 | Free | 6.4 | |
| 7 | JnesWindows | Two bars | — | 1 of 6 | Free | 6.4 | |
| 8 | KuroganeNESWeb | Two bars | — | 1 of 6 | Free | 6.4 | |
| 9 | My NESWindows | Two bars | — | 1 of 6 | Free | 6.4 | |
| 10 | no$nesWindows | Two bars | — | 1 of 6 | Free | 6.3 | |
| 11 | DendyWeb · Windows · Mac · Linux | Two bars | — | — | 4 of 6 | — | 5.7 |
| 12 | NintengoWeb · Windows · Mac · Linux | Two bars | — | — | 4 of 6 | — | 5.7 |
| 13 | GeolithWindows · Mac · Linux | Two bars | — | — | 3 of 6 | — | 5.6 |
| 14 | GoNESWeb · Windows · Mac · Linux | Two bars | — | — | 4 of 6 | — | 5.6 |
| 15 | NestalgiaWindows · Mac · Linux | Two bars | — | — | 3 of 6 | — | 5.5 |
| 16 | puNESWindows · Linux | One bar | — | — | 2 of 6 | — | 5.5 |
| 17 | NES Emulator + 6502 StudioWeb · Linux · Self-hosted | One bar | — | — | 2 of 6 | — | 5.4 |
| 18 | NesalizerWindows · Linux | One bar | — | — | 2 of 6 | — | 5.4 |
| 19 | NesbitMac · iPhone | One bar | — | — | 2 of 6 | — | 5.4 |
| 20 | WebNESWeb | One bar | — | — | 1 of 6 | — | 5.4 |
| 21 | FCEUXWindows · Mac · Linux | One bar | — | — | 3 of 6 | — | 5.3 |
| 22 | Lynx.emuLinux · Android · iPhone | Two bars | — | — | 3 of 6 | — | 5.2 |
| 23 | Nes2xNo platforms listed | One bar | — | — | 0 of 6 | — | 5.2 |
| 24 | NintendulatorWindows | No signal | — | — | 1 of 6 | — | 5.2 |
| 25 | JSNESWeb | No signal | — | — | 1 of 6 | — | 5.1 |
Compare all 25 in a table
| # | App | Score | Free plan | From | Free plan | Paid from | Supported platforms | Save states |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | NESER | 6.7 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | Web browser, Windows, macOS, and Linux desktop builds | Yes |
| 2 | binjnes | 6.5 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | Linux, macOS, web via WebAssembly | Yes |
| 3 | HalfNES | 6.5 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | Windows; Linux; other Java-compatible platforms | No |
| 4 | Nestopia Undead Edition | 6.5 | Free plan | Free | — | — | Windows | Yes |
| 5 | NET-NES | 6.5 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | Windows, macOS, Linux | — |
| 6 | fixNES | 6.4 | Free plan | Free | — | — | Windows, Linux | — |
| 7 | Jnes | 6.4 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | Windows | Yes |
| 8 | KuroganeNES | 6.4 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | Modern web browsers | Yes |
| 9 | My NES | 6.4 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | Windows | Yes |
| 10 | no$nes | 6.3 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | Windows 32-bit | — |
| 11 | Dendy | 5.7 | No | — | Yes | — | Windows, macOS, Linux, and modern web browsers via WebAssembly | Yes |
| 12 | Nintengo | 5.7 | No | — | Yes | — | macOS, Linux, Windows, WebAssembly/browser | Yes |
| 13 | Geolith | 5.6 | No | — | Yes | — | Windows, macOS | — |
| 14 | GoNES | 5.6 | No | — | — | — | Windows, macOS, Linux, web browsers | Yes |
| 15 | Nestalgia | 5.5 | No | — | — | — | Windows, Linux, macOS | Yes |
| 16 | puNES | 5.5 | No | — | Yes | — | Linux, FreeBSD, OpenBSD, Windows | Yes |
| 17 | NES Emulator + 6502 Studio | 5.4 | No | — | — | — | Web browser; native builds via C++ and CMake | — |
| 18 | Nesalizer | 5.4 | No | — | — | — | Linux/POSIX; Windows (experimental port) | Yes |
| 19 | Nesbit | 5.4 | No | — | — | — | iOS, iPadOS, macOS | — |
| 20 | WebNES | 5.4 | No | — | Yes | — | Web browsers; optimized for Chrome and unsupported in Internet Explorer | Yes |
| 21 | FCEUX | 5.3 | No | — | Yes | — | — | — |
| 22 | Lynx.emu | 5.2 | No | — | No | — | Android and Linux | Yes |
| 23 | Nes2x | 5.2 | No | — | — | — | — | — |
| 24 | Nintendulator | 5.2 | No | — | — | — | Windows 10 and later; older Windows versions may work; Wine is tested for recent builds | Yes |
| 25 | JSNES | 5.1 | No | — | Yes | — | Browser, Node.js | Yes |
Is your app on this list?
Numbered spots on this list can be sponsored, and a sponsored row is labelled as paid.
Questions about this list
Which NES emulator is ranked first on Freedom251?
NESER is ranked #1 of 26 with a score of 6.7. binjnes is second and HalfNES third.
How many of these have a free plan?
10 of the 25 on this page publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.
How is this list ranked?
Ranked free-and-open first: a usable free tier and open-source code, then the platforms it runs on and its documentation.