The best offline games have one thing in common: they stop needing the network the moment they finish installing. A game that depends on a connection stops being a game the moment the signal does. On a plane, on the underground, in a basement office or on a train through a valley, most of what is installed on a typical phone turns into a loading spinner. The games below do not, because they run entirely on the handset and ask the network for nothing once they are installed.
All twelve were checked against their current US App Store listings, which is where the prices and download sizes here come from. They are ordered by price, starting with the two that cost nothing, and the Android column notes where the same game is on Google Play and what it costs there, because several of them are priced differently.
The Best Offline Games at a Glance
| Game | iPhone price | Android | Download |
|---|---|---|---|
| DATA WING | Free | iPhone and iPad only | 108 MB |
| Crossy Road | Free | Also on Android, free | 257 MB |
| Plague Inc. | $0.99 | Also on Android, $3.99 | 122 MB |
| Terraria | $2.99 | Also on Android, $4.99 | 274 MB |
| Mini Metro | $3.99 | Also on Android, $0.99 | 187 MB |
| Alto’s Odyssey | $4.99 | Also on Android, $5.99 | 280 MB |
| Papers, Please | $4.99 | iPhone and iPad | 65 MB |
| Stardew Valley | $4.99 | Also on Android, $4.99 | 464 MB |
| Grimvalor | $5.99 | Also on Android | 775 MB |
| Bloons TD 6 | $6.99 | Also on Android, $6.99 | 215 MB |
| Dead Cells | $8.99 | Also on Android, $8.49 | 1895 MB |
| Balatro | $9.99 | Also on Android, $9.99 | 98 MB |
Download size is worth a look before a flight. Three of these are under 200 MB and will install on airport Wi-Fi in a couple of minutes, while the larger ones want a proper connection and some patience, which is the one thing you cannot do once you have taken off.
1. DATA WING: The Best Free Offline Game on iPhone
A top-down racer told as a conversation with a computer, and the most generous thing on this list: free, no advertising, no purchases of any kind, and about two hours of story that most people finish in one sitting. You slide along neon walls to build speed, and the whole game is built around that one movement feeling good. It is small enough to install on a phone with almost nothing left on it, which is exactly the situation most people are in when they go looking for something to play on a flight.
DATA WING is free from Daniel Vogt, 108 MB on install. iPhone and iPad only.
What it does well
- Completely free with no advertising and no purchases of any kind.
- 108 MB, the smallest download here by a distance.
- About two hours of story, finishable in one sitting.
- One-thumb controls that work on any screen size.
What to know
- iPhone and iPad only, with no Android version.
- Short, so it is an evening rather than a library.
- No replay structure once the story ends.
2. Crossy Road: Endless Offline Play With Ads
The road-crossing game that defined a genre, and one of the few free titles whose store listing says in plain words that it plays offline. The advertising needs a connection to load, so in airplane mode you get the game without the interruptions, which is a quirk rather than a loophole. Runs are 30 seconds to a few minutes, the characters unlock from a prize machine rather than a paywall, and it works on hardware far older than anything else here.
Crossy Road is free from Hipster Whale Pty Ltd, 257 MB on install. Also on Android, free.
What it does well
- Store listing names offline play in plain words, which few free games do.
- Runs of 30 seconds to a few minutes, abandonable at any point.
- Characters unlock from a prize machine, not a paywall.
- Works on much older hardware than anything else here.
What to know
- Advertising funds it, so the free version is interrupted when you are online.
- No progression to speak of beyond collecting characters.
- 257 MB for a game this simple.
3. Plague Inc.: A Full Strategy Game for Under a Dollar
You evolve a pathogen and try to infect the world before a cure arrives, which sounds grim and plays like a tight resource puzzle. A game lasts 20 to 40 minutes, every difficulty rewards a different approach, and the eleven disease types are genuinely distinct rather than reskins. The iPhone price is the outlier on this list at 99 cents, and it is worth knowing the Android version is four times that, so buy it on whichever phone is cheaper if you own both.
Plague Inc. is $0.99 from Ndemic Creations LTD, 122 MB on install. Also on Android, $3.99.
What it does well
- A complete strategy game for 99 cents on iPhone.
- Games last 20 to 40 minutes, which fits a commute exactly.
- Eleven disease types that play genuinely differently.
- No timers, no energy, no shop once bought.
What to know
- Four times the price on Android, so buy it on the cheaper platform.
- Steep early difficulty before the systems click.
- Subject matter will not suit everyone.
4. Terraria: Hundreds of Hours With No Connection
The full console game, not a cut-down mobile version, and the single best value here if you want depth rather than a commute filler. You dig, build, fight bosses and progress through tiers of equipment across a world that generates fresh every time. Multiplayer needs a network, everything else does not, and a single world can absorb a hundred hours. Touch controls take a session to settle into and support a controller if you have one paired.
Terraria is $2.99 from 505 Games (US), Inc., 274 MB on install. Also on Android, $4.99.
What it does well
- The full console game, not a cut-down mobile version.
- A single world absorbs a hundred hours.
- Controller support if touch does not suit you.
- Worlds generate fresh, so it does not run out.
What to know
- Touch controls take a session to settle into.
- Multiplayer needs a network, though nothing else does.
- No hand-holding, which stalls some players early.
5. Mini Metro: Short Sessions, No Download Needed After Install
Draw underground lines between stations and keep a growing city moving until it collapses. It is the cleanest game here, with no text, no tutorial beyond a few prompts and no ongoing anything: you buy it once and it never asks for a connection again. A run lasts about fifteen minutes, which fits a commute exactly, and the daily challenge gives a reason to come back without needing a server to deliver it.
Mini Metro is $3.99 from Dinosaur Polo Club Limited, 187 MB on install. Also on Android, $0.99.
What it does well
- Fifteen-minute runs, the exact length of a commute.
- No text and no tutorial beyond a few prompts.
- Bought once, never asks for anything again.
- A daily challenge that works without a server.
What to know
- Visually spare, which some people read as unfinished.
- One core idea, so it is narrow by design.
- Cheaper on Android at 99 cents.
6. Alto’s Odyssey: The Calmest Game on the List
A sandboarding endless runner through a desert that shifts from dunes to canyons to temples, with a day and night cycle and weather that rolls in while you play. One thumb does everything. The paid iPhone version has no advertising and no purchases, so once it is installed it is entirely self-contained, and the Zen mode strips out the goals and scores for anyone who wants it as something to do with their hands rather than a challenge.
Alto’s Odyssey is $4.99 from Snowman, 280 MB on install. Also on Android, $5.99.
What it does well
- No advertising and no purchases in the paid version.
- One thumb does everything.
- Zen mode strips out goals and scoring entirely.
- Weather and a day-night cycle that change how it plays.
What to know
- Endless by design, so there is no ending to reach.
- A pound more on Android.
- Repetitive if you are not there for the atmosphere.
7. Papers, Please: A Border Checkpoint in Your Pocket
You are an immigration inspector in a fictional Eastern Bloc state, checking documents against rules that change every day while your family needs heat and food. It is a game about paperwork that turns out to be tense, and the twenty endings come from decisions made in seconds. The mobile port is the complete game, plays in portrait with one hand, and needs nothing beyond the initial download.
Papers, Please is $4.99 from 3909 LLC, 65 MB on install. iPhone and iPad.
What it does well
- The complete game, not a mobile adaptation.
- Plays in portrait with one hand.
- Twenty endings from decisions made in seconds.
- Nothing to download after install.
What to know
- iPhone and iPad only.
- Deliberately bleak, which is the point and not for everyone.
- Dense text on a small screen.
8. Stardew Valley: The Biggest Single Purchase Here
Inherit a farm, plant crops, mine, fish, and get to know a village of characters who remember what you say to them. It is the deepest game on this list by a distance, with years of in-game time available and no energy timers or purchases pushing you anywhere. The mobile version is the full game with a reworked interface, saves locally, and the only thing a connection buys you is multiplayer, which most people never touch.
Stardew Valley is $4.99 from ConcernedApe LLC, 464 MB on install. Also on Android, $4.99.
What it does well
- Years of in-game time with no energy timers.
- The full game with a reworked interface.
- Saves locally, so nothing depends on a server.
- Deepest game on this list by a wide margin.
What to know
- 464 MB, so install it before you travel.
- Slow first hour before the loop takes hold.
- Multiplayer is the only part that needs a connection.
9. Grimvalor: A Console-Style Action Game That States It Plays Offline
A side-scrolling hack and slash with weight behind the combat, four chapters of it, and a store listing that specifically sells offline play for the commute. The first chapter is free to try before the purchase unlocks the rest, which is the fairest arrangement on this page. It leans on precise timing rather than button mashing, and it supports a controller, which is worth pairing if you have one.
Grimvalor is $5.99 from Direlight Oy, 775 MB on install. Also on Android.
What it does well
- Store listing sells offline play for the commute directly.
- First chapter free before the purchase unlocks the rest.
- Controller support for precise combat.
- Four chapters of real console-style action.
What to know
- 775 MB, one of the larger downloads here.
- Timing-based combat that punishes button mashing.
- Dark visuals that need brightness up outdoors.
10. Bloons TD 6: Tower Defence With Explicit Offline Support
Monkeys pop balloons, which undersells a tower defence game with genuine strategic depth, dozens of maps and upgrade paths that take a long time to exhaust. The listing names offline play directly alongside the online co-op, so the single-player side is designed to work with nothing connected. Rounds scale from five minutes to much longer on the higher difficulties, and new content arrives through updates rather than purchases.
Bloons TD 6 is $6.99 from Ninja Kiwi Limited, 215 MB on install. Also on Android, $6.99.
What it does well
- Offline play named in the listing alongside online co-op.
- Dozens of maps and deep upgrade paths.
- New content arrives in updates, not purchases.
- Rounds scale from five minutes to much longer.
What to know
- Cartoon presentation undersells the strategy underneath.
- Co-op and events need a connection.
- Long sessions once the higher difficulties open up.
11. Dead Cells: The Hardest Game Here, and the Most Replayable
A roguelike where every death sends you back to the start with a different castle layout and a different set of weapons. The mobile port is the full game with its expansions sold separately, runs at a steady frame rate on anything recent, and has auto-hit and auto-dodge options for anyone who wants the structure without the reflex test. Runs last 30 to 60 minutes, and nothing about it touches a server.
Dead Cells is $8.99 from Playdigious, 1895 MB on install. Also on Android, $8.49.
What it does well
- The full game with expansions sold separately.
- Runs of 30 to 60 minutes, each one self-contained.
- Auto-hit and auto-dodge options for anyone who wants the structure without the reflexes.
- Steady frame rate on anything recent.
What to know
- 1,895 MB, by far the largest download on this page.
- Hardest game here, and it does not apologise for it.
- Expansions cost extra on top of the base price.
12. Balatro: Poker Hands, Rebuilt as a Run-Based Puzzle
You build poker hands to beat escalating score targets, with jokers that break the rules in ways that compound absurdly by the end of a good run. It is the most expensive game on this list and the one most likely to eat a week. A run lasts around 40 minutes, the deck and stake combinations give it a long tail, and it runs happily on an old phone because it is almost entirely cards on a table.
Balatro is $9.99 from Playstack Ltd, 98 MB on install. Also on Android, $9.99.
What it does well
- Runs of about 40 minutes with a clear end point.
- Runs on an old phone, because it is cards on a table.
- Deck and stake combinations give it a very long tail.
- 98 MB, tiny for how much game it is.
What to know
- Most expensive thing on this list.
- Assumes you know poker hands, at least roughly.
- Genuinely hard to put down, which is a warning.
How to Tell Whether a Game Really Works Offline
Store listings rarely say. Only three of the twelve above mention offline play in their own description, and the rest are offline because of what they are rather than because anyone advertised it. There is a reliable test and it takes a minute.
- Install the game and open it once on Wi-Fi, so any first-run download finishes.
- Turn on Airplane Mode and reopen it.
- Start a new run or load a save. If it reaches gameplay, it is genuinely offline.
- Play for five minutes and watch for a prompt. Some games only check in when a run ends.
- Check whether progress saved after you reconnect, which catches the ones storing saves on a server.
The categories that reliably fail that test are the ones built around other people or around a daily cycle: anything with live events, energy that refills over time, a shop with rotating stock or a leaderboard you have to reach. The ones that reliably pass are premium single-player games bought once, which is most of this list.
Free Versus Paid for Offline Play
Free games pay for themselves with advertising, and advertising needs a connection. That produces the odd situation where a free game plays better offline than on, because the ad breaks simply fail to load, which is true of several endless runners including the one at number two here.
- Free with ads: plays offline, usually without the interruptions, but progress tied to watching an advert stops being available.
- Free with purchases: the shop needs a connection, so anything bought has to be bought before you lose signal.
- Paid once: the safest category by far, since there is nothing left for the game to ask a server for.
- Subscription games: usually need a periodic check, so they are the worst choice for a long flight even when they download fully.
If you want more that costs nothing, our list of free Android games worth installing covers the Google Play side, and for the larger console-style ports the best AAA games on iPhone are mostly offline too, at bigger download sizes.
What Offline Play Does to the Battery
Offline is usually kinder to the battery, because the radio stops hunting for a signal and nothing is streaming. Airplane mode on its own typically adds an hour or more to a long session, which is the real reason it is worth using even when there is a connection available.
The exception is the heavier games here. A 3D action game pushes the processor and the screen just as hard offline as on, so a long session still warms the phone and drains it, and the fixes in our guide to stopping a phone overheating matter more on a flight than anywhere else, since there is nowhere cool to put it.
Several of these also belong to the roguelike family, where a failed run ends in minutes rather than hours. That structure suits a phone better than a long save-and-resume game does, because you are never halfway through something when the plane lands.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best offline game for iPhone?
For depth, Stardew Valley at $4.99, which has more content than anything else here and never asks for a connection. For nothing at all, DATA WING, which is free with no advertising and no purchases. Between those two you have covered both ends of what people usually want.
Do offline games still use data?
Not during play, but most will use a little in the background if they can, for analytics, crash reports or advertising. Airplane mode stops all of it. The one thing to do before losing signal is open each game once, because a first run after install often pulls down extra assets.
Can you play offline games on a plane?
Yes, and airplane mode is the right way to do it. Every game on this list reaches gameplay with the radios off. Install and open them before you travel, since the first launch is the step that sometimes needs a connection.
Are free offline games any good?
Some are excellent. The limit is that free games are usually funded by advertising or purchases, both of which need a connection, so what you lose offline is the reward videos and the shop rather than the game. Paid games avoid the problem entirely and two of the best here cost under four dollars.
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