Game Development · head to head
Defold vs Unity
Unity
Game Development
Create beautiful interactive content with the world's leading real-time engine
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Defold the Defold License requires you to include the Defold license and copyright notice in any work you create with the engine; Unity unity Personal is free only for businesses with under $200,000 in funding or annual revenue; above that a Pro subscription is required
- They diverge on capability: Defold covers Lua scripting, Unity covers Visual editor.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Defold and Unity actually diverge.
Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Game Development).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in Defold
- Lua scripting
- Physics engine
- Sprite system
- Particle effects
- Sound management
- Collection editor
- Mobile optimization
- Lightweight
Only in Unity
- Visual editor
- Physics engine (PhysX)
- Animation system
- Particle system
- Built-in audio engine
- Scripting with C#
- Asset Store
- Version control integration
Both cover
- Visual Studio Code
- GitHub
- Local deployment
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Defold
- Building 2D games for mobile, desktop, web and console from a single projectnot Unity
- Shipping small-footprint HTML5 gamesnot Unity
- Teams wanting a free engine with no revenue share on gamesnot Unity
Unity
- Building 2D and 3D games for desktop, mobile, web, AR and VRnot Defold
- Shipping console titles under a Pro or Enterprise licencenot Defold
- Real time 3D for manufacturing, automotive and retail visualisationnot Defold
- Live operations and in-app purchase management for mobile gamesnot Defold
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Defold
- The Defold License requires you to include the Defold license and copyright notice in any work you create with the engine
- The licence forbids commercialising original or modified versions of the Defold editor or engine itself
- Significant changes made to the Defold source must be documented under the licence terms
Unity
- Unity Personal is free only for businesses with under $200,000 in funding or annual revenue; above that a Pro subscription is required
- Unity Pro costs $210.00 per month or $2,310.00 per year per seat
- Businesses with more than $25M in annual revenue are required to be on Unity Enterprise, which is custom priced and requires contacting sales
- Deploying to game consoles and to Apple Vision Pro requires Unity Pro or above
- Splash screen customization is not available on Unity Personal
- Unity Personal is licensed for gaming and entertainment applications only
- Read-only engine source code access is an Enterprise feature and carries an additional cost
- Asset Manager storage on Personal is capped at 10 GB per organization
- Unity AI tools are free for a 14 day trial on Personal, after which a paid subscription is required
- Enterprise terms note that minimum subscription or spending commitments may apply
Pricing, plan by plan
Defold
Free- FreeFree
- Full editor
- Lua scripting
- Physics engine
Unity
Free- PersonalFree
- Full engine access
- Asset Store access
- Community support
- Professional$399/month
- All Personal features
- Priority support
- Advanced analytics
Which should you pick?
Choose Defold if
- You need lua scripting.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Windows, Macos, Linux, Ios, Android, Web.
- You also want physics engine.
Choose Unity if
- You need visual editor.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Windows, Macos, Linux, Ios, Android, Webgl.
- You also want physics engine (physx).
Questions people ask
- Is Defold or Unity better?
- Neither clearly leads. Defold starts at Free and Unity at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Defold or Unity?
- Defold starts at Free and Unity at Free.
- Does Defold or Unity run on more platforms?
- Defold runs on Windows, Macos, Linux, Ios, Android, Web. Unity runs on Windows, Macos, Linux, Ios, Android, Webgl.
- Can I use Defold for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Defold best used for?
- Defold is most often used for building 2d games for mobile, desktop, web and console from a single project, shipping small-footprint html5 games, teams wanting a free engine with no revenue share on games. Of those, building 2d games for mobile, desktop, web and console from a single project and shipping small-footprint html5 games are not what Unity is typically brought in for.
- What can Defold do that Unity cannot?
- Defold covers Lua scripting, Physics engine, Sprite system, Particle effects. Unity covers Visual editor, Physics engine (PhysX), Animation system, Particle system. Both handle Visual Studio Code, GitHub, Local deployment.