Computers

The best x86 emulators, according to hackers

4 x86 emulators recommended in Hacker News comments over the past year, ranked by how many separate people recommend each one.

• Most recommendedRosetta 231 people recommend it
• Least regretFEX-Emu23 recommend, 5 criticize

All x86 emulators

• Rosetta 2Built-in translation layer that runs Intel apps on Apple Silicon Macs, praised for speed and seamlessness. Caveat: Apple is retiring it, threatening old games and software.31recommend
• FEX-EmuFree open-source emulator that runs x86 Linux apps and Windows games on ARM devices, with strong performance. Critics say it is hard to get running and has bugs on some hardware.23recommend
• v86Free browser-based x86 emulator that boots real Linux and other operating systems in a web page, handy for sharing OS demos. Main caveat: it is 32-bit only.9recommend
• Box64Lets people run x86 programs on ARM and RISC-V Linux, with reports of Steam and games working; critics note possible bugs.7recommend