86Box
6.2#19 in emulator softwareFree planFree planLinuxmacOSWindows
Visit86Box vs QEMU
What both publish
| Fact | 86Box | QEMU |
|---|---|---|
| License | 86Box is released under the GNU General Public License version 2 or later. | QEMU and its manual are released under GNU General Public License version 2, although some components have specific licenses. |
| Purpose | 86Box emulates x86-based IBM PC systems and compatibles from 1981 through systems based on the PCI bus. | QEMU is a generic and open source machine emulator and virtualizer. |
| Security reporting | The project security policy says to report vulnerabilities by opening a GitHub issue or joining its Discord server. | QEMU requires potential security issues to be filed as confidential GitLab issues and provides no SLA for responses. |
86Box plans
- 86BoxFree
QEMU plans
- QEMUFree
Pick 86Box if…
86Box suits people who want to run older PC systems or guest operating systems in configurable virtual machines. It is available on Windows, Linux, and macOS, with at least 4 GB of RAM recommended.
Pick QEMU if…
QEMU suits users who need whole-machine emulation, cross-architecture process execution, or disk-image utilities. It is available across several platforms, with specific Windows and macOS requirements.