Outside of the NES and SNES, the Game Boy is among the rest of the most popular consoles to emulate. Considering how popular the Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance were, it only makes sense to use the new-age power of your smartphone to play those classics.
The problem with finding the best Game Boy and Game Boy Advance emulators for Android is that there are so many different options to choose from, which is not the worst problem to have. Thankfully, certain developers have made it easy for our favorites to stand out from the crowd.
GBA.emu and GBC.emu
It's really great when you find a developer (or a team of developers) dedicated to providing a fantastic experience across multiple apps. That's what you'll find with both GBA.emu and GBC.emu from Robert Broglia. The developer offers 11 different emulators to download and use, highlighted by GBC.emu and GBA.emu, which support cheat codes, configurable on-screen controls, and external controllers.
However, unlike other emulators on this list, you won't be able to try out the app before deciding to make the plunge. Both of these emulators are paid upfront, but we would recommend giving either of them a chance. The apps are regularly updated, and you can even follow along with the development progress over at GitHub.
Pizza Boy A Basic
Following what seemed to be the beginning of the end for emulation, the Pizza Boy emulators were removed from the Play Store. However, it seems as though the developer has had a change of heart, as Pizza Boy A Basic has returned. It now takes the place of Pizza Boy GBA, giving us one of the best Game Boy Advance emulators for Android.
With this new version, there aren't any ads to worry about, so you can just load up your ROM files and start gaming. The developer even promises 60 FPS "even on old hardware," while also offering plenty of other features and options.
Unfortunately, the big "catch" here is that Pizza Boy A Basic is only compatible with Game Boy Advance games. While we're hoping to see a new Pizza Boy Game Boy Color emulator arrive, you'll have to rely on one of the other emulators on this list for those games.
GBCC
Instead of waiting for a Pizza Boy Game Boy Color emulator to return to the Play Store, you can just use GBCC. Despite being around for some time, I only recently discovered GBCC, and it might just be my favorite. GBCC includes all of the features that you'd expect, including save states, autosave, rumble support, and customization options.
However, there are a couple of extra features that have convinced me to stick with GBCC for my Game Boy emulation needs. One of which is simply the ability to automatically back up game saves via Google Drive. This can come in really handy, as it gives me access to my saves from any device, whether it's my Steam Deck or a gaming handheld.
Did I mention that this feature-packed Game Boy emulator is completely free without any ads?
RetroArch
RetroArch is one of those Swiss Army knife emulators that you can use to emulate up to almost 127 different consoles from years past. There are two versions of RetroArch, with the standard version being designed and optimized for 32-bit devices, while RetroArch Plus is developed specifically for 64-bit devices.
The app is open-source and based on the popular Libretro interface, providing some great features with it. Although the design of the Android version may have a bit of a learning curve, once you get the hang of everything, there's a lot to like. Plus, in addition to playing your favorite Game Boy games, you'll be able to use a single app to dive into other consoles from years past.
Lemuroid
If you take RetroArch and give it a better user interface without losing too much functionality, you end up with Lemuroid. The app is relatively new to the Play Store, but is based on the same framework as RetroArch, making it a great alternative. Lemuroid also makes it easy to pair one of the best game controllers to use with Android emulators, so you aren't stuck with using the on-screen controls.
You'll be able to play your favorite classic Game Boy ROMS, along with other select consoles. Lemuroid can be set up to automatically save and restore your game states, while including support for local multiplayer and much more. All of this is done without hiding features behind an in-app purchase or throwing a bunch of ads in your face.
John GBAC
If you've ever been interested in emulating games on Android in the past, then chances are you've come across John emulators. These are some of the best Game Boy and Game Boy Advance emulators for Android, but you don't have to download two separate apps anymore. Now, there's John GBAC, which combines the best of John GBC and John GBA into a single app.
After giving John GBAC permission to view your emulators folder, you'll be presented with a list of compatible games. At first, the app will show just black backgrounds for each game, but as soon as you start playing one and save your progress, a snapshot of your last position will fill the box.
John GBAC also includes a variety of different themes, some of which match the classic GBA and GBC color options, along with an NES and SNES color option. You can even customize your interface. If you only want to play Game Boy, GBC, or GBA games, it doesn't get much better than this.
My Boy! Emulators (GBA / GBC)
Just like we've seen with PizzaBoy, the My Boy! series of emulators is only available for those who want to play Game Boy Color or Game Boy Advance games. There are free versions available for each app, along with paid versions that unlock a few additional features and get rid of the ads from the free apps.
The only catch with My Boy! Emulators is that they haven't been actively developed for a few years. We didn't run into any issues with the ROMs we used with the emulators, but don't expect an interface or experience as elaborate as the others on this list.
Play your favorite Game Boy games today
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Whether you're looking to spend a few dollars or want to download an emulator for free, you can see that there are several great options on Android. Although they aren't packaged together, GBA.emu and GBC.emu are two of the best Game Boy and Game Boy Advance emulators for Android.
If you just want a Game Boy emulator without any of that extra fluff, GBCC is the way to go, featuring fully customizable controls, save states, cheats, and a lot more. But, if you want a single app to handle almost all of your retro emulation needs, it doesn't get any better than RetroArch.
