Backgammon vs Fair Play Backgammon
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Backgammon
Engage in classic backgammon with AI or live multiplayer opponents. This app offers a comprehensive experience with features like a doubling cube, rule tutorials, and detailed player statistics. Play offline or online to hone your strategic skills and climb the leaderboards.
- Online and offline play
- Challenge AI or real players
- Master the doubling cube
- Learn and improve with hints
- Track detailed player statistics
- Play anywhere, portrait/landscape
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Challenge adaptive AI, share the board with a friend in local pass-and-play, and master the doubling cube — all free, with dice you can actually trust. The most complete backgammon experience for iPhone, iPad and Apple Vision: sharpen your strategy with hints, track deep stats, and climb the leaderboards. * SMART, ADAPTIVE AI Beginner, Intermediate & Expert levels tuned to your playstyle — never a rigged board, just a smarter opponent. * PASS & PLAY Share one device and play a real match against a friend, head-to-head, no connection required. * LEARN & IMPROVE Move hints, legal-move highlights, and a full rules tutorial — go from your first roll to your first double with confidence. * REAL MATCH PLAY 1-point, 3-point & full matches, doubling cube, and the Crawford rule — tournament-standard play, not a simplified clone. * STATS THAT MATTER Elo-style rating, win/loss graphs, pip counts, and complete dice history, so you can see exactly how fair your rolls really are. * PLAY ANYWHERE Portrait or landscape, online or fully offline vs. AI. "The best free backgammon app—AI is tough, local play is smooth." – App Store review Also known as Tavla, Nardi, or Narde — this is backgammon the way it's meant to be played.
Fair Play Backgammon
Experience backgammon with a focus on fairness and a clean interface. This game ensures truly random dice rolls for a pure strategic challenge. Enjoy the classic game without distractions.
- Fair dice rolls
- Clean interface
- Online multiplayer
- Pure backgammon experience
- Strategic gameplay
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Tired of suspicious rolls? So were we. We built a backgammon experience centered on integrity and style. By stripping away the clutter and ensuring every dice throw is truly random, we’ve returned the game to its purest form. It’s just you, the board, and the math. Privacy policy: https://inkscapestudios.com/backgammon/privacy
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Backgammon at none against Fair Play Backgammon's 6. Backgammon also leads on ratings volume (188 vs 5). Fair Play Backgammon's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and review sentiment (100% vs 70%). On price, rating, update cadence and monetization model 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
Both are free to download. Fair Play Backgammon sells 6 one-off in-app purchases. Backgammon asks for nothing beyond the download.
Fair Play Backgammon holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Backgammon has 188 ratings behind it against 5, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 70% of Backgammon's written reviews are positive against 100% of Fair Play Backgammon's.
Backgammon ships an update fortnightly, Fair Play Backgammon weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 28, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Backgammon | Fair Play Backgammon |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.4 (188 ratings) | 4.6 (5 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 69.6% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 188 — better | 5 |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | Weekly — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 16.4 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 104 MB | 61 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Linda Mottley | ADRIAN ALBU |
Customer experience
Backgammon
Fair Play Backgammon
Bugs and requests
Backgammon
Reported bugs
9 issues- App won't open
- App freezes/hangs
- Two taps required for one move
- Incorrect move selection by AI
- AI rolls are not random
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- Display graphics obscure continue button
- In 2-player mode, no menus appear when black starts
- Software doesn't always display who goes first in 2-player hard mode
- UI elements cover board pieces
Requested features
5 requests- Fix rigged AI rolls
- Make AI more challenging/less predictable
- Allow users to choose layout/design
- Reconsider placement of move/undo buttons
- Add option for cube
Fair Play Backgammon
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Backgammon
No in-app purchases
Fair Play Backgammon
- 15 Gems Pack$0.99
- 1000 Coins$0.99
- 45 Gems$1.99
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- 2300 Coins$1.99
- 5000 Coins$2.99
- 95 Gems$3.99
Questions
Is Backgammon free?
Is Fair Play Backgammon free?
Which has better reviews, Backgammon or Fair Play Backgammon?
Do Backgammon or Fair Play Backgammon have ads?
Which is updated more often, Backgammon or Fair Play Backgammon?
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