Comparison

The Cipher vs Kryptos Tools

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

Head to head
About

The Cipher

This app allows users to encrypt and decrypt messages using a variety of classic ciphers. It also includes tools for cryptoanalysis to help understand encrypted text and a mod calculator.

Highlights
  • Multiple classic ciphers (Rail Fence, Caesar, Vigenere, Enigma, etc.)
  • Cryptoanalysis tools (Letter Frequency, N-Gram Frequency)
  • Mod Calculator
  • Random Generator
  • Encrypt and decrypt messages
Features
Read full description

Encrypt and decrypt messages using famous ciphers. *** Ciphers *** * Rail Fence * Scytale * Caesar Shift * Substitution * Vigenere * Enigma *** Crypto-anaylis *** * Letter Frequency * N-Gram Frequency * Word Frequency * Repeated Letters + Factors * Index of Coincidence * Fitness Measure *** Tools *** * Mod Calculator * Random Generator

About

Kryptos Tools

This app offers a comprehensive suite of classic cryptography tools, including Vigenère and Transposition ciphers, to help users explore and potentially solve complex puzzles. It consolidates features from previous versions and provides detailed information on famous unsolved codes.

Highlights
  • Classic cipher implementations
  • Vigenère cipher
  • Transposition Matrix
  • Detailed puzzle information
  • Sixteen classic ciphers
  • Future cipher additions
Features
Read full description

Kryptos Tools combines the best features of the previous two apps (Kryptos Tools - Vigenère and Kryptos Tools - Transposition) along with additional details, documents and photos consolidated into one great app. Kryptos Tools includes classic ciphers, like the Vigenère cipher, that was used to encrypt the first two sections of Kryptos (K1 and K2). It also includes the Transposition Matrix which provides a visual implementation of the Transposition cipher for solving Kryptos section K3. Kryptos Tools now contains sixteen (16) classic ciphers: * Affine * Atbash * Beaufort (plus Autokey variant) * Bifid * Caesar * Columnar Transposition * Four-square * Gronsfeld (plus Autokey variant) * Hill * One-Time Pad * Playfair * ROT13 (Rotate-13) * Substitution * Transposition Matrix * Trifid * Vigenère (plus Autokey variant) Additional ciphers and utilities will be added in future releases. Detailed solutions and information about these sections of the puzzle are also detailed within. Kryptos is a sculpture by the American artist Jim Sanborn located on the grounds of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in Langley, Virginia. Since the dedication of Kryptos on November 3, 1990, the first three sections have been successfully decrypted. However, the fourth section remains one of the most famous unsolved codes in the world. Are you going to be the one to solve this mystery?

Screenshots

The Cipher4 screens
Kryptos Tools4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Kryptos Tools at 4.6 against The Cipher's 2.8. The Cipher's advantage is review sentiment (29% vs 0%) and update cadence (fortnightly vs monthly). On price, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases 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

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Kryptos Tools holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 2.8. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 6 and 7 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 29% of The Cipher's written reviews are positive against 0% of Kryptos Tools's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

The Cipher ships an update fortnightly, Kryptos Tools monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 2, 2026 and October 4, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
The Cipher versus Kryptos Tools: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterThe CipherKryptos Tools
PriceFreeFree
Rating2.8 (6 ratings)4.6 (7 ratings) — better
Positive reviews28.6% of reviews — better0.0% of reviews
Number of ratings67 — better
Update frequencyFortnightly — betterMonthly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS12.2 — better18.6
Further details — not scored
Size42 MB36 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperLogan RichardsJeffrey Williams

Customer experience

The Cipher

All ratings6 ratings
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%
Written reviews7 reviews
Positive28.6%
Neutral0.0%
Negative71.4%

Kryptos Tools

All ratings7 ratings
Positive85.7%
Neutral14.3%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral100.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

The Cipher

No in-app purchases

None

Kryptos Tools

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is The Cipher free?
The Cipher is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Kryptos Tools free?
Kryptos Tools is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, The Cipher or Kryptos Tools?
Kryptos Tools is rated higher. The Cipher averages 2.8 out of 5 from 6 ratings, while Kryptos Tools averages 4.6 from 7 ratings.
Do The Cipher or Kryptos Tools have ads?
Neither The Cipher nor Kryptos Tools shows ads.
Which is updated more often, The Cipher or Kryptos Tools?
The Cipher ships an update fortnightly, and Kryptos Tools monthly. Most recently, The Cipher was updated on October 2, 2026 and Kryptos Tools on October 4, 2026.

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