Comparison

Codenames vs Clue

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Codenames

Engage in a strategic word game of deduction and teamwork. Give one-word clues to help your team guess associated words before the opposing team. Enjoy a blend of casual fun and deep thinking with turn-based multiplayer matches.

Highlights
  • Turn-based multiplayer
  • One-word clue system
  • Teamwork and deduction
  • Multiple game modes
  • Spymaster and Operative roles
  • Logic and creativity challenges
Read full description

The official Codenames puzzle game from the makers of the award-winning board game. Built on the same clever clue-giving, but made for mobile: nearly 50 rule-bending game modes, daily solo puzzles, themed word collections and a deep meta-game. One purchase. No ads. No timers, no pay-to-win. Optional Duet expansion for two-player co-op. NOT JUST THE BOARD GAME ON YOUR PHONE This is a standalone Codenames game with its own content and style. Where the board game is a party game, this one is a puzzle game: every clue is a small riddle you crack at your own pace, and every mode adds a new twist to think through. HOW IT WORKS A grid of words hides your team's secret agents. As Spymaster, you give a single clue that links as many of your words as you dare. As Operative, you work out what your teammate meant and make the guesses. One wrong word helps the other team, and the assassin ends the game instantly. NEARLY 50 TWISTS ON THE RULES Every mode keeps the core of Codenames and bends one rule, turning each game into a fresh puzzle: • Mines: Codenames meets Minesweeper. Numbers on the cards tell you how many agents are hiding nearby. • Mirrors: the Spymasters' grids are symmetrical. Find the axis and you can deduce cards you were never given a clue for. • Convertor: before giving a clue, the Spymaster can swap the colors of two cards to set up a better clue or sabotage the other team. • Quantum Gadget: torn between two words? Mark both and the gadget reveals which one is the better pick. Use it wisely, you only get three per mission. • …and dozens more. SOLO PUZZLES EVERY DAY • Daily Cases: 16 cards, one clue. Find the right words, collect your reward and move on to the next case. Every puzzle is made by real players, not an algorithm. • Daily Spymaster Challenge: everyone gets the same board. Come up with your best clue, then see how it performs when other players try to guess it, and how it ranks against every other Spymaster's clue. COLLECT, LEVEL UP, EXPLORE • Open briefcases to collect themed word cards: video games, movies, travel, sci-fi, fantasy, history, the 20th century and more • Play themed missions with the words you've collected • Earn experience and level up your agent to unlock more daily cases, better rewards and new options PLAY WITH OTHERS AT YOUR OWN PACE • Turn-based matches for 2–4 players: take your turn whenever you have a minute • Get matched with players from around the world, on iPhone, iPad and Android • Invite friends to a private game, or pass one phone around with Pass & Play • Run several games at once, chat with your team and draw notes right on the board PLAY IN YOUR LANGUAGE English, Czech, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese and Arabic. FROM THE MAKERS OF THE ORIGINAL Codenames is designed by Vlaada Chvátil and published by Czech Games Edition. The board game won the Spiel des Jahres 2016. This app won Best Design at the Czech Game of the Year Awards and was selected as an App Store Editors' Choice. CODENAMES: DUET EXPANSION (in-app purchase) The cooperative two-player version, based on the green-box Duet board game: • Work together instead of competing: take turns giving clues and guessing • Each player knows only some of the agents, and the same card can look different to each of them: a card one player sees as the assassin may be an agent the other player needs to contact • 28 VIP missions adapted from the original Duet, now for cooperative play • Dual Cases: probably the hardest puzzle in Codenames yet. First find the cards that connect to both clues, then the words that fit only one

About

Clue

Experience the classic murder mystery board game digitally. Gather evidence, interrogate suspects, and solve the crime. Offers multiple game modes for solo or multiplayer play.

Highlights
  • Digital board game adaptation
  • Gather evidence
  • Interrogate suspects
  • Solve murder mysteries
  • Classic and new game modes
  • AI and global multiplayer
Features
Read full description

Join fellow detectives all over the world in the official digital board game version of Clue! Gather crucial evidence, interrogate suspects and solve the original murder mystery. Follow Miss Scarlett, Colonel Mustard, Professor Plum, Chef White, Solicitor Peacock and Mayor Green through the iconic Tudor Mansion, unlocking their motives and alibis as you go. Enjoy Clue the way you remember it in Classic Mode, or jump in for a quick game with Clue Cards mode. Alternatively, if you want to really test your sleuthing skills, try a new investigation format available exclusively to Clue – Ultimate Detective. In Ultimate Detective Mode, everyone answers suggestions at the same time…but secretly! Face your suspects in a direct interrogation as you rely on your skills of deduction to get to the truth. Experience the mystery, solve the murder and become a top-tier detective! HOW TO PLAY CLUE: 1. Three cards are dealt face-down and set aside – this is the solution to the crime! 2. Everyone is dealt three cards. These are automatically crossed off your clue sheet, as they can’t be part of the solution. 3. Roll the dice and move around the board. 4. When you enter a room, you can make a suggestion – select who you think the murderer is, what weapon they used and where the crime happened. 5. Other players will then aim to disprove your suggestion; if one of your suggestions matches a card in their hand, they show you that card to disprove it. 6. Use your clue sheet to keep track of which characters, weapons and rooms have been disproven. 7. Think you’ve figured it out? It’s time to make an accusation! Be careful though – if you’re right, you win, but if you are wrong, you’re out! FEATURES - THE CLASSIC TUDOR MANSION – Play the beloved original board game, now rendered in stunning 3D animation and entirely ad-free! - A BRAND-NEW GAME MODE – Exclusive to the digital version of Clue, Ultimate Detective Mode lets you interrogate multiple characters at once. - MULTIPLE MODES – Compete against cutting-edge AI opponents that adapt to your skill level for the perfect game, or challenge detectives around the world. - ADDITIONAL ORIGINAL CONTENT – What happened after the shocking events of Tudor Mansion? Find out in a series of original new crime scenes designed specifically for the digital version of Clue! New characters emerge, bringing with them new clues, motives and case files to consider as you travel around the world in search of the truth. Sharpen your mind with the iconic murder-mystery board game, now available on mobile!

Screenshots

Codenames4 screens
Clue4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Codenames at fortnightly against Clue's every 2 months. Clue's advantage is monetization model (free with in-app purchases vs paid) and ratings volume (4.1K vs 1.2K). On price, rating, review sentiment and ads there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Codenames costs $4.99 and Clue $4.99 up front. Codenames sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Clue sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Codenames against 4.8 for Clue. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1.2K and 4.1K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 66% of Codenames's written reviews are positive against 59% of Clue's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Codenames ships an update fortnightly, Clue every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on November 13, 2026 and November 14, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 8 level
Codenames versus Clue: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCodenamesClue
Price$4.99$4.99
Rating4.7 (1.2K ratings)4.8 (4.1K ratings) — better
Positive reviews66.0% of reviews — better59.1% of reviews
Number of ratings1.2K4.1K — better
Update frequencyFortnightly — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
Best chart rank#12 — better#18
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.015.0
Further details — not scored
Size221 MB1.5 GB
Age rating9+4+
DeveloperCGE Digital s.r.o.Marmalade Game Studio Limited

Customer experience

Codenames

All ratings1,150 ratings
Positive93.6%
Neutral2.5%
Negative3.9%
Written reviews444 reviews
Positive66.0%
Neutral14.6%
Negative19.4%

Clue

All ratings4,086 ratings
Positive96.1%
Neutral2.7%
Negative1.2%
Written reviews171 reviews
Positive59.1%
Neutral20.5%
Negative20.5%

User reviews

Codenames

From 1.2K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Smooth and intuitive gameplay
  • 🎨 Excellent visual design
  • 💰 Good value for money
  • 🕹️ Engaging single-player modes
  • 🤝 Enjoyable multiplayer experience

Room to improve

  • ⏱️ Long wait times for other players
  • 🌐 Connectivity issues and server problems
  • 🌍 Cultural differences and language barriers
  • 🔒 Restrictive clue-giving rules
  • 🤖 Jury system allowing questionable words

Clue

From 4.1K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Excellent graphics and animations
  • 👍 Variety of game modes and options
  • 🎨 Enjoyable character designs
  • 🕹️ Fun and engaging gameplay
  • 🕵️‍♀️ Challenging detective elements

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Bugs and glitches
  • 📃 Small and hard-to-read clue sheet
  • 🕹️ AI opponents not challenging enough
  • 💰 Expensive DLC
  • 🔀 Character token movement issues

Bugs and requests

Codenames

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Initial launch with only Czech language support
  • Occasional app crashes and server disconnections

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add Codenames Duet mode
  • Implement AI/bot players for faster games
  • Allow custom word packs and themes
  • Add a 'speed mode' for faster gameplay
  • Improve the jury system to maintain game integrity

Clue

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Clue card progress not saving properly
  • Game freezing or crashing on certain actions
  • Incorrect character starting positions
  • Ability to make illegal moves not prevented
  • Online matchmaking not working as expected

Requested features

5 requests
  • Pass and play multiplayer mode
  • Ability to customize player name
  • Larger clue sheet with zoom option
  • Improved tracking of completed goals/tasks
  • More diverse character selection

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Codenames

One-time1
  • Krycí jména: Duet$4.99
10 purchases

Clue

One-time10
  • Black Adder CaseFile Revisited$2.99
  • Tropical Pack$3.99
  • Winter Ball Records$4.99
Show 7 more
  • Ultimate Edition Sale$7.99
  • Black Adder Resort Bundle$12.99
  • Whispering Pines Bundle$12.99
  • PolarStation Crime SceneBundle$12.99
  • 2016 Edition Character Pack$14.99
  • Welcome Offer$19.99
  • Clue 2 Epic Crime Collection$34.99

Questions

Is Codenames free?
Codenames costs $4.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Is Clue free?
Clue costs $4.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Codenames or Clue?
Clue is rated higher. Codenames averages 4.7 out of 5 from 1.2K ratings, while Clue averages 4.8 from 4.1K ratings.
Do Codenames or Clue have ads?
Neither Codenames nor Clue shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Codenames or Clue?
Codenames ships an update fortnightly, and Clue every 2 months. Most recently, Codenames was updated on November 13, 2026 and Clue on November 14, 2026.
Which is more popular, Codenames or Clue?
Codenames currently peaks at #12 in the App Store charts, and Clue at #18. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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