Ah the joys of gaming on the go were perhaps never brighter than in the good days of the Game Boy Advance. But what if you could still have that same joy on your mobile device?
You would just need to learn all about the best GBA emulators for Android. Keep reading!
Which are the best Game Boy Advance emulators for Android?
My Boy!

Recognized by many players to be the best emulator available for Android devices, Myboy runs most games on the old Nintendo handheld pretty much without issues. Not only that, but it will take up little space, and resource-wise, it’s also pretty lightweight. It’s got most of the options you would expect, such as controller customization and filters of all kinds and, if you switch over to another app, it will suspend the game and leave it for you to resume. Finally, its on-screen controls are probably the best around.
While this emulator has a free version available (the Lite version), its features can feel a bit limited. For example, fast forwarding is stuck to 2x, while the pro version can go up to 16x, which can be pretty useful for those long stretches of narrative in RPGs that you have already played. Also, the free version limits you to one save slot, which could be enough for most simple games, but we all know you will need more for longer games. But with the paid version being just a few bucks, if you have been using the emulator and found it worthwhile, that could be an upgrade worth your money.
Retroarch

This is one that tends to pop up on most lists of emulators for Android devices that you can find. This is because Retroarch is not a single emulator, but a frontend that can be used to emulate most consoles and systems of the past, as long as you download the necessary bios and files. This also means that it is quite a bit more complicated to use, as it has separate options for its base program and specific ones for the platform you are emulating. If you aren’t really interested in emulating more than a couple of systems, it might not be worth the trouble.
Still, it remains one of the few free GBA emulators to offer an almost-perfect experience. It is hard to argue that the GBA core that it uses is one of the faster and more accurate around. If you are looking for pixel-perfect emulation on your Android device, then you can’t do a lot better than Retroarch. With that said, if ease of use and overall resource effectiveness are more important to you, then you could be better off with one of the other emulators on this list.
John GBAC

We can all agree the Game Boy Advance had so many incredible games, but what about the Game Boy Color? Definitely less so, but still if you are looking to emulate both handhelds, then this free emulator will do the trick. It combines both previous John GBA and John GBC emulators, which have now been discontinued, so if you want to make sure the emulator works on future Android releases, this is the one you are looking to install on your device.
This is another free emulator, supported by ads. While it would be nice to have the option to pay to disable the in-game ads, they are tolerable, as long as you avoid exiting and going back to the emulator again and again. Some players have reported some trouble with the emulator reading some ROM files, especially in some Pokémon games, but overall this works pretty fine and, in the realm of free GBA emulators, remains one of the best around.
Gba.emu

This is a paid emulator with no free version available, but it’s got most of the features you would expect from a GBA emulator. With precise video and audio emulation, and great controller support, this is one we would especially recommend if you are a more serious player and want to spend several hours in your favorite Game Boy Advance games. Get yourself a nice Bluetooth controller and you will have no trouble playing your favorite games.
Gba.emu supports all kinds of different phones and even devices such as Nvidia Shields. Its experience is aimed at users who are not experts at emulating games, but are still looking for accuracy and quite satisfying speed, without having to sacrifice additional features. The emulator is also being constantly updated, so that you won’t feel left out with future Android releases.
Vgbanext

Another paid emulator and this one doesn’t have a free version available. But still, with an asking price that is surely reasonable, Vgbanext not only emulates the Game Boy Advance but also most other classic Nintendo consoles of the past such as the NES and the original Game Boy. Plus, it offers all the classic features you can expect such as numerous save slots for all your games, and the pretty handy rewind function.
But, most appreciated by its many users, is the compatibility with Google and Android TV. This means that you can use your Android device to play GBA games on your home TV, which is pretty nifty. Also, if you already have a decent Bluetooth controller, Vgbanext offers the whole package, you wouldn’t really need anything else to play your favorite GBA games.
Lemuroid

Another free emulator that can run several consoles and old systems, with some degree of accuracy and pretty good speed. The main issue with Lemuroid is that its on-screen controls are not customizable and take up too much of the screen. Still, if you are serious about playing games on your device, then you surely have a Bluetooth controller already, so this shouldn’t be a dealbreaker.
On the plus side, not only is Lemuroid free but it has no in-game apps of any kind. Just pure and free emulation that, while not pixel-perfect, it will allow you to run most of the GBA games you are looking for. Also, its interface is quite friendly and most users should be able to quickly set it up without much trouble. Clearly, finding games to emulate is a different topic, but on that, we would recommend going to Google or looking on YouTube.
Published: Feb 5, 2025 03:11 am