IBM PC & DOS compatibles emulators

Also known as MS-DOS, PC compatible

The IBM PC and its clones running MS-DOS and compatibles: home to CGA through SVGA graphics, AdLib and Sound Blaster music, and the shareware era of PC gaming.

Manufacturer: IBM and many others
Released: 1981
CPU: Intel 8088 @ 4.77 MHz (IBM PC 5150), later 286 to Pentium
Models: IBM PC 5150, PC/XT, PC/AT, Tandy 1000, 386/486 clones, Pentium-era PCs
More: Wikipedia

IBM PC & DOS compatibles — Photo: Boffy b · CC BY-SA 3.0 · source

10 emulators

86Box

Active

DOS
Open source

A low-level emulator of real IBM PC-compatible motherboards, from the 8088 to the Pentium II era. It runs DOS, Windows 3.x/9x and OS/2 on period-correct hardware.

Accuracy: High
License: Open source

BizHawk

Active

Arcade
Jaguar
C64
Amiga
DOS
MSX
N64
NES
Game Boy
GBA
GBC
Mega Drive
Spectrum
PlayStation
SNES
Open source

A multi-system emulator built for tool-assisted speedruns, with frame-perfect input recording, memory tools and Lua scripting across dozens of cores.

License: Open source

Clock Signal

Active

Archimedes
BBC Micro
CPC
Atari ST
Amiga
VIC-20
DOS
MSX
Spectrum
Open source

A multi-machine emulator that aims to be invisible: open a disk or tape image and it picks the machine. The CPC, Spectrum and Atari ST are mature; Amiga and early PC support is less complete.

Accuracy: High
License: Open source

DOSBox

Inactive

DOS
Open source

The original DOS emulator that made running old PC games on modern systems easy. It emulates a DOS-era PC with Sound Blaster, AdLib and Gravis Ultrasound, and spawned many forks.

License: Open source
Since: 2002

DOSBox Staging

Active

DOS
Open source

A modernised DOSBox fork focused on gaming, with adaptive CRT shaders, MT-32 and FluidSynth MIDI, sensible defaults and regular releases.

License: Open source
Since: 2020

DOSBox-X

Active

DOS
Open source

A DOSBox fork that aims for completeness over gaming focus. It also emulates PC-98, runs Windows 3.x and 9x, and adds save states, IDE emulation and a debugger.

License: Open source

js-dos

Active

DOS
Open source
Mobile (partial)

DOSBox and DOSBox-X compiled to WebAssembly, packaged as a JavaScript player for embedding DOS and Windows 9x programs in web pages, with on-screen controls, IPX multiplayer and disk streaming.

License: Open source

MAME

Active

BBC Micro
CPC
Arcade
C64
VIC-20
DOS
MSX
NES
Game Boy
GBA
GBC
Mega Drive
MZ-700
Spectrum
PlayStation
SNES
Tiki 100
Open source

The Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator, a long-running project to document and preserve arcade hardware that covers thousands of boards and, since absorbing MESS, many computers and consoles as well.

License: Open source
Since: 1997

A cycle-accurate emulator of the IBM PC 5150, XT 5160 and PCjr and the Tandy 1000, written in Rust and accurate enough to run 8088 MPH and Area 5150. It includes extensive debugging tools and a browser version.

Accuracy: Cycle-exact
License: Open source
Since: 2023

PCem

Active

DOS
Open source

A low-level emulator of specific PC motherboards and graphics cards from the IBM PC to the Pentium era. It is the project 86Box was forked from.

Accuracy: High
License: Open source

DOS hardware

Mini consoles and FPGA hardware that play DOS software. About hardware

Photo: sorgelig, MiSTer project (DE10-Nano with the MiSTer SDRAM and I/O boards) · GPL-3.0 (project repository) · source

Terasic DE10-Nano

Available

Archimedes
Amiga
CPC
+18 more
FPGA
Mini

The Intel Cyclone V SoC development board that the MiSTer project is built on. Most MiSTer cores also need an add-on SDRAM board, and analog video needs an I/O board.

Released: 2017
Launch price: 130 USD

SiDi

Discontinued

Archimedes
Amiga
CPC
+13 more
FPGA
Mini

A low-cost MiST-compatible FPGA board designed by Manuel Fernández Higueras, with a Cyclone IV FPGA, USB ports for controllers and VGA output. MiST cores are resynthesised for it.

Released: 2019

MiSTer Pi

Available

Archimedes
Amiga
CPC
+18 more
FPGA
Mini

A low-cost FPGA board from Retro Remake that is compatible with the DE10-Nano used by the MiSTer project. It is sold in production batches, bundled with SDRAM and, in larger packs, an analog I/O board and USB hub.

Released: 2024

SiDi128

Available

Archimedes
Amiga
CPC
+15 more
FPGA
Mini

The successor to the SiDi, a MiST-family FPGA board with a larger Cyclone 10 LP FPGA and two SDRAM chips, adding HDMI, optical audio and joystick ports.

Released: 2024

MiSTer Multisystem 2

Available

Archimedes
Amiga
CPC
+18 more
FPGA
Mini

A ready-built console from Heber that runs the open-source MiSTer FPGA project, with 128 MB SDRAM on board so it plays all standard MiSTer cores. The Analogue model adds RGB and VGA outputs and a cartridge expansion slot.

Released: 2025
Launch price: 210 GBP

SuperStation One

Available

Archimedes
Amiga
CPC
+18 more
FPGA
Mini

A MiSTer-compatible FPGA console from Retro Remake styled after the PSone, with ports for original PlayStation controllers and memory cards. It runs the MiSTer cores for other consoles and computers too.

Released: 2025
Launch price: 179.99 USD

FPGA cores

Hardware re-creations for FPGA boards such as MiSTer. What's an FPGA core?

ao486 core for MiSTer · A 486-class PC on MiSTer, based on Aleksander Osman's ao486, running DOS and Windows 9x.

DOS file formats

Format	What it is
`.img`	Floppy or hard disk image
`.ima`	Floppy disk image
`.iso`	CD-ROM image
`.cue`	CD image with audio tracks
`.vhd`	Virtual hard disk