Ask API. GET https://whichemulator.wtf/ask answers questions from the same data as this page, and it is the only place the setup steps are published. It takes the question as q and, optionally, this page's path as page, and returns JSON with answer, sources and follow_ups, or Markdown with Accept: text/markdown. No key needed.
curl -G 'https://whichemulator.wtf/ask' --data-urlencode 'q=Which Commodore 64 emulator should I use on a Mac?' --data-urlencode 'page=/c64/'Questions it answers:
Commodore 64, Commodore, 1982. C64.
whichemulator.wtf calls its recommendation for each system the Gold Cartridge pick. For the Commodore 64, the Gold Cartridge pick is VICE.
VICE has been the standard C64 emulator for decades and is still the one everything else is measured against. Its x64sc emulator is cycle-exact, it handles tapes, disks and cartridges, runs demos that rely on timing tricks, and has a proper monitor for debugging. It is GPL, ships the system ROMs, and also covers the VIC-20, C128, Plus/4 and PET.
Runs on Windows · Mac · Linux. Open source. Download: https://vice-emu.sourceforge.io
ROMs: The official VICE downloads include the C64 system ROMs, so you only need your games, usually as .d64, .t64, .tap, .prg or .crt files. Debian and Ubuntu packages strip the ROMs out, so on Linux use the Flathub build or compile the source release.
The VICE cores have the C64 ROMs built in. JiffyDOS files are optional.
VICE is a bundle of emulators, one per machine. For the C64, run x64sc. The older x64 trades accuracy for speed and is no longer built by default. The VICE team recommends the GTK3 builds over the SDL2 ones on desktop systems.
On Linux there is no official binary. The Flathub package builds the unmodified source release, ROMs included. The Debian and Ubuntu packages don’t have the ROMs and won’t start a C64 without them.
Most games are .d64 disk images or .t64 and .tap tapes. Drag one onto the window, or use autostart, and VICE types the LOAD command for you. Loading from an emulated 1541 is as slow as the real drive; warp mode skips the wait.
The C64 was sold with PAL and NTSC video, and the CPU clock differs slightly between them. Most European games and demos were written for PAL and can glitch or run at the wrong speed on NTSC. VICE defaults to PAL; change it if an American release looks wrong.
Reference: WEM-C64-IC20