Stardew Valley vs Hay Day
Which is better in 2026? Five scores, side by side.
Stardew Valley is the better app overall, scoring 9.3 to 8.0. Stardew Valley wins on 4 of the 5 scores, Hay Day on 1.
Players who want a relaxing farm game they can sink a whole year into
Casual farmers who like short check-ins and trading with friends
Score by score
The details
| Feature | Stardew Valley | Hay Day |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Strategy & Simulation Games | Strategy & Simulation Games |
| Category rank | #1 of 8 | #8 of 8 |
| Developer | ConcernedApe | Supercell |
| Pricing | Paid | Free + paid plans |
| Usable for free | No | Yes |
| iPhone & iPad | ✓ | ✓ |
| Android | ✓ | ✓ |
| Mac | ✓ | — |
| Windows | ✓ | — |
| Linux | ✓ | — |
Common questions
Is Stardew Valley better than Hay Day?
Stardew Valley is the better app overall, scoring 9.3 to 8.0. Stardew Valley wins on 4 of the 5 scores, Hay Day on 1.
Which is cheaper, Stardew Valley or Hay Day?
Stardew Valley: $4.99 in the App Store, with no in-app purchases or ads. Hay Day: Free with ads; diamond packs from $1.99 to $39.99 in the App Store. On value for money, Stardew Valley scores higher.
Do Stardew Valley and Hay Day work on the same devices?
Only Stardew Valley runs on Windows, Mac, Linux.
Which is more private, Stardew Valley or Hay Day?
Stardew Valley scores higher on privacy (9.6/10). App Store label: only crash, performance and other diagnostic data is collected, used for app functionality and not linked to you. No tracking.
Strengths and weaknesses
Stardew Valley
- One purchase, no ads or in-app purchases
- Seasons and years of farming, mining and town life
- Collects almost no data
- Touch controls can feel fiddly in busy menus
- Multiplayer on mobile is hidden and experimental
Stardew Valley is the farm sim every other cozy game gets measured against, and the phone version is the full game, 1.6 update included. You clear an overgrown plot, plant by the season, fish, mine and slowly win over a town with 12 marriage candidates. It's one cheap purchase with no ads or extras to buy. Touch controls take some getting used to, and multiplayer is only a hidden experimental mode on mobile.
Full Stardew Valley review
Hay Day
- Relaxing loop that suits short check-ins
- Neighborhoods make it social
- Regular seasonal events and updates
- Timers nudge you toward buying diamonds
- Ads, loot boxes and tracking, per the App Store
Hay Day is the farm game for people who love ticking off orders. You plant wheat and corn, turn crops into goods in production buildings, then fill truck and boat orders for coins. Neighborhoods let you trade and help each other, and the Halloween update adds a bigger fishing game. Everything runs on timers that diamonds can skip, and the App Store listing notes ads and loot boxes.
Full Hay Day review
