# Basilisk II

5 Hacker News commenters recommended Basilisk II and 1 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 3 of 13 months.

**Verdict:** Recommended as a good way to run classic 68k Mac software, with people calling it the best option for later Macintosh systems alongside SheepShaver.

## Why people recommend it

- Good for 68k Mac emulation (1 comments): "Basilisk II is a very worthy emulator for Mac 68k emulation" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48732261))
- Best option for later Macintosh systems (1 comments): "Basilisk II and SheepShaver are still the best option available for later Macintosh systems." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47904069))
- Meets my needs (1 comments): "Basilisk II / Sheepsaver meets my needs" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50202776))
- Ongoing ARM64 JIT development (1 comments): "I have been spending the past few months adding an ARM64 JIT to Basilisk II" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47733324))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [86Box](https://hackerapproved.com/p/86box.md): 25 recommend
- [SIMH emulator](https://hackerapproved.com/p/simh.md): 13 recommend
- [Infinite Mac](https://hackerapproved.com/p/infinite-mac.md): 11 recommend
- [Executor](https://hackerapproved.com/p/executor.md): 9 recommend
- [WinUAE](https://hackerapproved.com/p/winuae.md): 6 recommend

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "Basilisk II", https://hackerapproved.com/p/basilisk-ii/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).