# Simple chess board — user reviews > 50 indexed App Store user reviews of Simple chess board by Luis Lopez, rated 4.50/5 from 67 ratings. - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/simple-chess-board/id531158560/reviews - App overview in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/simple-chess-board/id531158560.md - Rating breakdown: 5★ 49 · 4★ 10 · 3★ 2 · 2★ 2 · 1★ 4 ## Newest reviews (13 of 50) ### 5/5 — Great *2021-12-25* This app is just great! ### 5/5 — Love having a practice board. *2021-06-29, version 1.2.1* Allows you to simply use this just like a regular chessboard. ### 5/5 — Excellent app *2021-03-31, version 1.2.1* Good for setting up positions for study. ### 5/5 — Simple board *2021-03-14, version 1.2.1* Just what I wanted. Easy to set a position and go from there. No AI. Because the app is so old there are no ads. ### 5/5 — Beautiful In It’s Simplicity and Utility *2021-02-10, version 1.2.1* This is easily the most human chess game on the App Store. Playing a computer is fun and all but this allows me to play multiple casual games at once via video chat and email. Or play in the park, the bus, camping, or the beach with a friend without losing any pieces or having them knocked over. The ability to save the board is especially nice because it allows me to switch between multiple games without having to take photos or own multiple chess boards. ### 5/5 — Great to record correspondence games! *2020-12-18, version 1.2.1* I don't need analysis, hints, move dots, just an electronic chessboard that can be saved. On iOS enter a name in the text box, tap 'enter'. Enter the same name and they will each be listed as a history. Delete unneeded boards by swiping left and tap delete. ### 4/5 — Nearly There *2020-11-18, version 1.2.1* Useful to try out games whilst reading a chess book. I just wish the author would allow the board to be turned round. I have to use it with the ipad upside down in It’s holder. All other apps swivel when the ipad swivels. This doesn’t. ### 5/5 — Great for Planning the Next Move! *2020-07-06, version 1.2.1* I can “see” a few moves ahead when playing chess online, but to really examine all the possibilities it helps to be able set up the board as you want. This one does the trick. ### 5/5 — All I need it to be *2020-02-27, version 1.2.1* I can play through the games of the masters and save them, learning more efficiently than with a board. I save my own games and replay to see my mistakes. It’s helping my game more than any other app. Thank you. ### 5/5 — Serves the purpose *2020-01-23, version 1.2.1* Serves the purpose of a blank board you can play out openings or games out of a book on. Perfect for that. Not always looking to play a game online! ### 4/5 — Handy, easy to use, cannot save positions *2017-07-09, version 1.2.1* Handy for playing or for studying positions. Easy to use. But there is no Help, and, when you tap Save, it fails with the message "You must insert text". There is no way that I can find to insert any text. I imagine the text it wants is a name for the position. ### 5/5 — Travel chess *2017-03-18, version 1.2.1* Great board for use while holding a book looking at lines. The write a review tab has trouble so if developer fixed would likely get more good reviews which are deserved. ### 4/5 — Essential *2017-01-02, version 1.2.1* This is very handy to read along with chess books, can edit any position and also save positions. Can also be used for two player games, assuming you know how to play, as the lack of a chess engine means the app can't check your moves are legal. Would like to see more board colours, and the ability to hide the clocks, as for me I don't need them personally. ## Most critical reviews (10 lowest-rated) ### 1/5 — I never write reviews... *2015-06-11, version 1.2* I just can't understand how anyone could rate such a glitchy, advert saturated application anything more than 1 star. It froze mid way through a game with a friend of mine rendering it utterly useless and inexplicably frustrating! ### 2/5 — Technically, erm, realistic *2017-12-29, version 1.2.1* While it IS what it says it is - a chess board - somehow I got used to rule-enforcing apps. This thing works like the real thing - if you want to move your knight sideways 5 fields, there you go. Castling you have to do manually. Two moves in a row by the same player - just do it! Getting tired of a pawn? Just move it off the board - it’ll disappear. It shows about half of the possible moves, not all. Funny. ### 2/5 — Meh *2016-11-04, version 1.2.1* This would be a great app if this disgusting clock wasn't in the way. I'd easily rate 5 if there was either a option to remove the clock or no clock at all. ### 2/5 — View of pieces on board and moving of pieces *2014-02-16, version 1.1* 1) The board view is pathetic. You can barely see the black pieces on the black squares. Please do correct immediately by changing the hue for the black squares. That should be pretty simple! Please correct immediately. 2) The other major problem is the dragging of the pieces onto a blank board. You have to try 3 to 6 times before the piece next to the board is finally "grabbed" so you can drag it onto the board ! 3) The representation of the pieces next to the board is so ridiculuously small that you never know if the intended piece is grabbed or the one next to it. The buttons for the clock could be made smaller in order to make more room to make the pieces next to the board larger. Please correct as soon as possible, otherwise this will be another application that is not even worth the aggravation. The intention of the app is good but the execution leaves a lot to be desired …! ### 3/5 — Squares *2020-04-19, version 1.2.1* Perfect app except really aggressive colours for board. Dark brown with black pieces? Why not leave get green or blue or some options? ### 3/5 — Have option to hid timers *2020-03-20, version 1.2.1* I would love this for analysis it the timers take up too much of the screen. ### 4/5 — Fills a chess need! *2022-08-17, version 1.2.1* Having just a chess board where pieces can easily be moved around to set up practice positions is a great feature of this app...who needs another chess computer with so many others out there? So this app in all its simplicity is so welcomed and unique! However, it loses points for lacking two main features...no portrait view on iPad and the board alone cannot expand to fill the entire screen... If author fixes these, this program would be perfect for all who study chess! ### 4/5 — The more I use it, the more I pleased I am *2021-03-01, version 1.2.1* It just has a simple, charming utility. I use it on my iPad with a split screen and whatever chess book I'm reading so I can recreate all the chess diagrams on the page. ### 4/5 — Simple board, no AI, good for game analysis *2021-01-11, version 1.2.1* All I wanted was a simple ‘board+pieces’, with no move restrictions, no AI, so that I could analyse games. This was surprisingly hard to find, but this app provides just that. I would have given it 5stars for its simplicity and practicality, but the graphics are a little distracting for my liking, too noisy and, well, a little ugly. A simpler aesthetic would have been appreciated. ### 4/5 — i like it but... *2020-12-27, version 1.2.1* somhow it keeps starting the setup with the kings and queens on wrong squares?! Also, I was using it to keep track of a long game and some piece positions shifted on me?! I love just having a board I can move pieces around on. I'd like it even more if all other features were eliminated. ## Most praised reviews (10 highest-rated) ### 5/5 — Love it! *2025-09-18, version 1.2.3* Only one thing I would like to see added. Being able to use this as a scoresheet when playing a regular game of chess o n this or another board. Instead of writing down move on a score sheet you could just make the moves on this board as well. The '' on a iPad??? be able to export the game to analyze. Please make my dream come true! Still like it a lot, but how do you get the keyboard up to enter text and save a position ### 5/5 — Love it! *2025-08-07* Only one thing I would like to see added. Being able to use this as a scoresheet when playing a regular game of chess on this or another board. Instead of writing down move on a score sheet you could just make the moves on this board as well. The be able to export the game to analyze. Please make my dream come true! ### 5/5 — Great app *2024-02-19, version 1.2.3* Easy to use, clear graphics. An excellent study tool. ### 5/5 — Great practice tool *2023-08-16, version 1.2.1* When going through chess books and they explore different lines, you can back up to a particular starting point. No engine or help-it is what it says , just a simple board. One addition that would be nice is a move counter so you know if you’re on track with what you’re studying. ### 5/5 — Simple *2022-11-05, version 1.2.1* One observation - the chessmen are not bound by the rules (i.e., they can move anywhere), so learners may find that misleading. ### 5/5 — Only App of its kind *2022-10-20, version 1.2.1* Excellent free format app that doesn’t have any restrictions or ‘help’ functions. It allows you to test and save various moves/positions without using ‘cheat’ hints when playing online games on other apps. ### 5/5 — Just what I wanted. *2022-10-18, version 1.2.1* No frills, just necessary functions. With this app, it’s easy to play through a recorded game, resetting pieces as needed to try variations. It would be a great teaching tool as well, or a way to play over the board with a tablet. I haven’t seen anything else as straightforward and functional for these purposes. ### 5/5 — Great for “random 360” chess *2022-06-24, version 1.2.1* Excellent and simple to take a game with you, save easily. ### 5/5 — Great practice tool *2022-03-02, version 1.2.1* When going through chess books and they explore different lines, you can back up to the starting point. No engine or help-it is what it says , just a simple board. There seems to be a save position function, but I can’t seem to figure out how that works. ### 5/5 — A little quirky *2022-02-18, version 1.2.1* As near perfect as can be for practice drills etc. Once you get used to its quirks. Would be nice if it would set up longitudinally instead of horizontally. --- *Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-06-11.*