Indian Joe / Android Salad
PSP was a popular portable console from Sony. Production has been out for many years at this point, but many people still want to play the games. This is, after all, the reason you are here. There are a few decent options for PSP emulators, but the generally accepted recommendation is PPSSPP. Fortunately, it is available for Mac. However, to get your money’s worth, here are some other great PSP emulators for Mac.
quick answer
For the most part, we recommend PPSSPP. It is the most famous and active emulator. Even if you go with OpenEmu and RetroArch, both integrated emulators use PPSSPP cores to support PSP. Basically, no matter what, you’re using PPSSPP.
Additionally, every emulator on this list supports Apple M1 chipsets as of this writing. In fact, we tested every emulator with the M1 Macbook Air.
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OpenEmu
Indian Joe / Android Salad
OpenEmu is an all-in-one emulator specially developed for macOS that also includes Sony PSP support.
What we like:
- It played our PSP test games without issue.
- It’s relatively easy to configure thanks to the Mac’s built-in mentality.
- You can also play other consoles with it.
- The emulator uses the core of PPSSPP to support its PSP, ensuring high compatibility and good performance.
What we don’t like:
- It does not support as many controllers as RetroArch.
OpenEmu is a perfectly serviceable PSP emulator for Mac. It’s an all-in-one emulator that supports dozens of other consoles, and the PSP is simply one of them. It does this by integrating an existing PSP emulator, in this case, PPSSPP, so you get all the benefits of PPSSPP. The compatibility rate is very high, and the controls are easy to change. I’ve read the ROM ISOs we provided without issue, and honestly, it’s a drama-free experience for us. It’s also free to play, and we love that you can play other consoles as well.
PPSSPP
Indian Joe / Android Salad
The best PSP emulator on any platform is also available on macOS.
- Pricing: Free / $2.49 – $49.00
- Platforms: macOS (and many others) (downloads)
What we like:
- PPSSPP is the gold standard in PSP emulation on every platform available.
- It has high compatibility, excellent performance, and is available on multiple platforms.
- The premium version, PPSSPP Gold, is optional. At least, on macOS it is.
- It played our test games without issue.
PPSSPP is the best PSP emulator on any platform, including macOS. It ran without issue on our Macbook Air and played our test games without drama. The menu system is very easy to follow, and there are many configuration options you can use. Your Mac may flag this when you first install it, but just push it and open it anyway. It is not malware. Anyway, there isn’t much to add here. This is as good as PSP emulators on macOS.
RetroArch
Indian Joe / Android Salad
An all-in-one emulator that uses PPSSPP to support its PSP.
What we like:
- It can emulate more consoles than OpenEmu.
- It uses PPSSPP to emulate it, so you get the same compatibility and performance.
- You can install RetroArch on a toaster, probably. Supports many platforms.
- It includes a bunch of extras, such as Achievements based on games, Netplay, and more.
What we don’t like:
- There is a fairly steep learning curve for beginners.
- The user interface is not the most comfortable.
RetroArch is arguably the best all-in-one emulator out there. It supports a lot of game consoles, and works on a range of platforms. It uses “cores” to emulate game consoles. Simply download the cores for your desired consoles, and you’ll have a dedicated all-in-one emulator. It uses PPSSPP core to support its PSP, so it should play the same games with the same level of performance as the main PPSSPP emulator. The only downside to RetroArch is that it is more difficult to learn at first than the other emulators on this list. However, we think it’s worth the effort as you can use this to emulate more than one PSP game.
If we missed any PSP Emulators for Mac, let us know about them in the comments. You can also click here to check out our latest Android apps and game lists.