iGBA How to open a GBA file on an iPhone or iPad
A .gba file is a GBA game backup, and iOS has nothing built in that can play it: Files offers a preview at most. Install iGBA, tap Import ROMs, pick the file from Files or another storage provider, and it appears in your games list, ready to launch.
★ 4.4 (2,692) Tap a .gba file in Files and you get a grey icon and a size. That is all. It is not a document. It is the whole contents of a cartridge, and only a program that acts like the console can run it.
Import it from Files
- Open iGBA. With no games yet the list says No ROMs Found.
- Tap Import ROMs.
- In the picker, browse to the file. Several can be selected at once.
- Tap the game in the list to start it.
After the first import, the ads consent prompt can pop up a moment later. This can look like the import failed. It has not.
Skip the button sometimes
iGBA also registers for these file types, so a loose .gba, .gbc or .gb opens in iGBA straight from Files or the share sheet. Archives still need the import button. Files you drop into iGBA's own folder in Files show up in the list too.
What the picker accepts
| File | What happens |
|---|---|
| .gba | Copied into the library as a GBA game |
| .gbc or .gb | Copied as a GBC or GB game |
| .zip, .7z, .gz | Unpacked; every .gba, .gbc or .gb inside is imported |
| .ips, .ups, .bps | Opens the patch screen to patch a game already in the library |
| Most other types | Refused with a message listing the supported formats (.bin and .agb pass the check but never show in the list) |
An archive with no game inside gets the same unsupported-type message. True, but it never says what the archive did hold.
One zip, two games
Take a zip holding two games, 8 MiB and 16 MiB. The library grows by 8 + 16 = 24 MiB. While iGBA works it unpacks to a temporary folder, so plan on roughly double that, 48 MiB, of free space during the import. The zip stays where it was.
Common time-wasting mistakes
- Two files with the same name and different extensions, such as a .gba and a .gbc, are refused, because saves are keyed by the name and the two games would share one.
- Importing a file that is still in the cloud: it can arrive as zero bytes and be refused with The selected file is empty or corrupted. If the picker cannot read it at all you get Cannot access the selected file. Try importing from a different location.
- Expecting a game to come with the app. It does not, and it never links to any.
Importing is free. Pro changes the save-state, cheat, rewind and speed limits, not what you can open.
Questions and answers
What is a GBA file?
Can I open a .gba file on iPhone without an app?
Can I import a zip with a .gba inside?
Do I need a BIOS file to open a GBA file in iGBA?
More iGBA guides
- How to save a state and load it back in a GBA emulator
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- How to Use an Xbox or PS5 Controller With a GBA Emulator on iPhone
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- How to fix a GBA emulator save error with Flash 128K
- How to patch a ROM on iPhone with iGBA, then play the hack
- How to play Radical Red on iPhone, from patch to save file
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- ROM hack white screen: what a bad patch does and how to fix it
- All questions about iGBA
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