Best virtual pet apps for iPhone in 2026, and which let your pet die

The best virtual pet apps for iPhone, as of 6 November 2026, depend on how much looking after you want to do. Pou and My Talking Tom 2 keep the classic routine of feeding, washing and bedtime, while Neko Atsume 2 and Pocket Frogs ask far less. Finch grows a bird as you look after yourself, and Tamagotchi Adventure Kingdom has no ads or purchases because it’s on Apple Arcade.

Few of them say what happens when you stop. No listing here says its pet can die, but Common Sense Media says Pou can starve to death, and My Talking Tom 2 has you heal Tom when he gets hurt. Only one listing promises that its pet can never die or run away, and it’s ours.

We make Pockling, a tiny fluffy virtual pet for iPhone and iPad that’s free on the App Store, and its section says when another app is the better pick. Facts about the other apps come from their US App Store pages on 6 November 2026, their developers’ help pages and the reviews cited, so prices are in US dollars. We haven’t played or timed the apps for this post.

Virtual pet apps for iPhone, side by side

Prices are as of 6 November 2026. “Ads” means the app’s App Store page lists advertising, and “not stated” means none of our sources says. All nine list iPad as well as iPhone.

Which virtual pets can die, get sick or run away

App Store listings rarely say, and only Pockling’s makes a promise either way. This is what the other sources say.

• Pou. Common Sense Media’s review says Pou can die of starvation or exhaustion if he’s left alone, but its details are for version 1.3.9, and the App Store version is now 1.4.139. Pou’s listing and help page don’t say.¹²
• My Talking Tom 2. Tom gets hurt, and the listing has you heal him.³
• My Tamagotchi Forever. Its characters need daily care to stay healthy, the listing says, without saying what happens if you stop.⁴
• Finch. Engadget’s Cheyenne MacDonald wrote, four months in, that the bird isn’t a pet you need to worry about keeping alive.⁵
• Neko Atsume 2. There’s no pet of your own, only cats that visit when you put out food and toys.⁶
• Tamagotchi Adventure Kingdom, Pocket Frogs and Pixel Pals. Their listings don’t say, and nor do NimbleBit’s support pages for Pocket Frogs.

Classic virtual pet games for iPhone

Pou (Zakeh)

Pou has been on the App Store since November 2012 and was last updated on 19 October 2026. You feed and clean an alien pet, play mini-games in its Game Room for coins, try potions in its Lab and dress it in outfits, hats and glasses. It talks back, and you can visit friends. It’s the only app here with an upfront price, $1.99 in the US as of 6 November 2026. It still sells coins, potions and a grey body colour from $0.99 to $24.99, and its App Store page lists advertising.⁷

My Talking Tom 2 (Outfit7)

In My Talking Tom 2 you teach Tom skills such as drums, basketball and boxing, feed him snacks from ice cream to sushi, bath him, take him to the toilet and fly him to other islands. His backyard turns into places such as a Candy Kingdom and a Pirate Island as you play, and there are mini-games and puzzles. It’s free with advertising, and in-app purchases run from $0.99 to $99.99, including Remove Ads at $14.99, as of 6 November 2026. Version 26.5.2 came out on 4 November 2026.³

My Tamagotchi Forever (Bandai Namco Entertainment Europe)

My Tamagotchi Forever, out since March 2018, is the Tamagotchi care game for phones. You feed and wash your characters, clean up after them and turn out the lights at bedtime. They evolve into different Tamagotchi characters depending on how you look after them, then pick careers such as scientist or rockstar. There’s a town to decorate and an AR hide-and-seek mode. It’s free, and its page lists loot boxes and advertising, with purchases from $1.99 to $23.99, as of 6 November 2026. It was last updated on 19 November 2025.⁴

Cute pet games for iPhone that ask less of you

Neko Atsume 2 (Hit-Point)

Neko Atsume 2 has no pet to keep. You put snacks and playthings in your yard and wait. More than 40 kinds of cat might stop by, rarer ones only for particular items, and each visitor goes in your Catbook. The sequel, out since October 2024, lets you visit other players’ yards and adds a Cat’s Club of helper cats, which is a subscription. It’s free with advertising, and gold fish and Cat’s Club courses cost $0.99 to $5.99, as of 6 November 2026. Some features need an internet connection.⁶ If you have Apple Arcade, Neko Atsume: Kitty Collector+ is the first game with no ads or in-app purchases.⁸

Pocket Frogs: Tiny Pond Keeper (NimbleBit)

Pocket Frogs is more collection than care. You breed, trade and collect frogs, more than 35,000 kinds of them, decorate their habitats and explore the pond for rare ones. It has been on the App Store since September 2010 and was last updated on 22 September 2026. Its listing and NimbleBit’s support pages say it plays without a connection, though it checks for gifts, backups and video ads when it has one.⁹¹⁰ It’s free with advertising, and in-app purchases run from $0.99 to $29.99, as of 6 November 2026. One of them, the Lost & Found, has to be bought again each time you empty it.¹¹ The App Store rates it 13+.

Pixel Pals Widget Pet Game (Christian Selig)

Pixel Pals keeps a pixel-art pet on your Home Screen, Lock Screen and Dynamic Island. Since version 2.0 in September 2023 you can feed and play with your pal from its widget, grow its food on a farm and let friends’ pals visit, MacRumors reported.¹² The dog and cat are free, and Premium adds the 16 other animals, from a hedgehog to a pet rock. Premium is listed at $1.99 a month, $14.99 a year or $49.99 for life, as of 6 November 2026, though the description still quotes older prices. Its page lists no advertising, and its privacy label says the developer collects no data. It needs iOS 18.3 or later and was last updated on 11 November 2025.¹³

Finch, the self-care pet

Finch is filed under Health & Fitness, and you look after the pet by looking after yourself. You set small daily goals, from getting out of bed to a breathing exercise or a journal entry, and each one you complete gives your bird energy for an adventure. When it comes back, it tells you about its day, and Engadget’s reviewer noted that nothing scolds you over goals you miss.⁵

Finch’s help centre says the core self-care features are free and always will be. Finch Plus adds customisation and extra content for $9.99 a month or $69.99 a year, as of 6 November 2026. Finch can be used offline, but gifts, good vibes and adding friends need a connection. Its App Store page lists no advertising, shows Apple’s Editors’ Choice badge and rates it 9+.^14151617

Virtual pets with no ads

Tamagotchi Adventure Kingdom (Bandai Namco, Apple Arcade)

Tamagotchi Adventure Kingdom is an adventure game. You play Mametchi, travelling the kingdom to solve problems and finish quests, and you meet nearly 300 Tamagotchi characters along the way. Between journeys you build and decorate a camp and invite them over. It came to Apple Arcade in January 2024 and runs on iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple TV, with controller support. The download is 3.4 GB, and the last update was on 22 January 2026. Its privacy label says the developer collects no data.¹⁸

Apple Arcade games have no ads or in-app purchases. Arcade costs $6.99 a month or $49.99 a year, as of 6 November 2026, and Family Sharing extends one subscription to up to five family members.¹⁹

Pockling (9io, ours)

We make Pockling, so weigh this entry with that in mind. It’s free on the App Store for iPhone and iPad with iOS 17 or later, with no ads, no in-app purchases, no accounts and no timers that nag you. That makes it the only app in the table that is free to download with no ads and no in-app purchases. Tamagotchi Adventure Kingdom, the only other one without them, needs Apple Arcade.

You tap an egg six times until it cracks and name what comes out, one of six kinds, each in four coats. You stroke it and feel it purr through the phone, feed it, bath it, walk it through the park on a lead, and play fetch, Snack Drop and Hide and Seek. It repeats what you say in a squeaky voice. It lives on your real clock, you tuck it into bed when it’s sleepy, and it grows from Baby to Kid after 2 days of care and to Grown after 7. Version 1.1, out on 6 November 2026, added more sounds.

Its listing says the pet can never die or run away, and the code shows how. Its five needs fall by the hour, but time passing can’t take any of them below 14 out of 100, so a pet you’ve left alone is just very glad to see you. The listing also says nothing you say or do leaves your device.

You can try it first in your browser. It’s the same game, free with no sign-up or time limit, and it saves in that browser on that device. Pockling suits anyone who wants a pet to look after without ads, purchases or the risk of coming back to a dead one. It has no online play or friends to visit, so for that, pick Neko Atsume 2 or Pixel Pals.

How to check a pet app before you download it

Three parts of an App Store page answer the money and privacy questions before you download anything.

• Contains, under the age rating, lists advertising and loot boxes. Of the eight apps here that we don’t make, five list advertising, and My Tamagotchi Forever lists loot boxes too.
• In-App Purchases shows prices, and whether an app sells currency, a subscription such as Finch Plus or a one-off purchase such as My Talking Tom 2’s Remove Ads.
• App Privacy says whether data may be used to track you across other companies’ apps and websites. Neko Atsume 2, My Talking Tom 2, My Tamagotchi Forever and Pocket Frogs say it may, and Pixel Pals and Tamagotchi Adventure Kingdom say the developer collects no data. Apple notes that it hasn’t verified these answers.

None of the three says whether a pet can die. For that, search the description and the developer’s help pages for words such as sick, hurt or healthy, and check Version History for the last update.

Which virtual pet app to pick

• If you want the classic feed, wash and bedtime routine and can live with ads, pick Pou ($1.99) or My Talking Tom 2 (free, or $14.99 to remove the ads).
• If you want a Tamagotchi to look after, My Tamagotchi Forever is the care game, but it lists loot boxes and was last updated in November 2025.
• If you’d rather nothing depended on you, pick Neko Atsume 2 and let the cats come to you.
• If you want the pet to reward you for looking after yourself, pick Finch, which keeps its core features free.
• If you’d rather collect than care, and want to play offline, pick Pocket Frogs.
• If you want a pet on your Home Screen and Dynamic Island from an app that collects no data, pick Pixel Pals.
• If you already pay for Apple Arcade, Tamagotchi Adventure Kingdom and Neko Atsume: Kitty Collector+ come with no ads or purchases.
• If you want a free pet with no ads or purchases that can never die, try Pockling, which we make, in your browser first.

For more on Pockling, read its launch post or the guide to every kind, coat and food.

Frequently asked questions