Chess King vs Mindgammon
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Chess King
Master the game of chess with this comprehensive learning app. It offers interactive lessons, puzzles, and analysis for all skill levels, from beginner to advanced. Improve your tactics and strategy with a personal chess trainer, available online and offline.
- 100+ learning courses
- Interactive theoretical lessons
- High-quality, double-checked puzzles
- Personal chess trainer
- Computer analysis
- Offline support
- Chess tasks for kids
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Don't just play chess. Train like a master. Chess King teaches the game the way strong players are actually built — with a rigorous, structured curriculum, not a random feed of puzzles. 147 complete courses take you from your first move to advanced play, step by step. WHY CHESS KING IS DIFFERENT Most chess apps let you play. Chess King trains you. Every course is a real lesson built on classical training methods refined over 30 years — the same approach behind CT-ART, the tactics trainer used by serious players worldwide. You don't just solve a position and move on. Chess King gives you hints when you are stuck, explains the idea behind the right move, and shows you the striking refutation of the mistakes you might make. That is how understanding is built — not memorized. WHAT YOU GET - 147 structured courses covering tactics, strategy, openings, the middlegame, and endgames, organized by level from beginner to master. - Chess King University: 7 guided learning paths and 44 courses that give you a clear, ordered route to real improvement — no guessing what to study next. - Interactive theory: read the lesson, then play the moves on the board yourself. Learning by doing, not just reading. - Thousands of carefully selected exercises with graphic hints and full explanations. - Play against the computer to put what you have trained into practice. - A progress report for every lesson, so you always see how far you have come. TRAIN ON EVERY DEVICE Your subscription, purchases, progress, and rating sync automatically across web, iPhone, iPad, and Android. Train on your phone on the commute, continue on the web at home — your progress follows you. TRY IT FREE Preview courses before you commit. When you are ready, choose a monthly or yearly plan, or buy individual courses to keep forever. Chess King — train like a master. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Mindgammon
A head-to-head dice and strategy game where players race chips down a single track, bear them in, and bear them off. It offers tactical gameplay suitable for quick matches or longer sessions, with options to play against AI, friends, or in tournaments.
- Single straight track gameplay
- Chips start off the board
- Doubles grant four moves and re-rolls
- Aces Ducey rolls grant extra moves
- Exact-count bear-off mechanic
- Play against computer or friends
- Tournament play available
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Mindgammon: Roll, Bear-in, Outmaneuver, Bear-off Mindgammon is a head-to-head dice and strategy game played on a single straight track. Each player starts with 15 chips off the board. Bring them into play, race them down the track, and bear them off. The first player to clear all 15 wins. - One straight track, easy to read from your first game - Every chip starts off the board, so each game opens with a fight for position - Doubles give you four moves, and you roll again - Roll a 1 and 2 and you've rolled Acey Ducey: take another roll - Exact-count bear-off, so endgame planning matters - Room to recover: no lead is ever safe Ways to play Play the computer, open a private table with a friend, or enter tournaments. Twenty minutes or two hours, it's easy to learn and tactical enough to keep you sharp. Free to play.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: Mindgammon at none against Chess King's shown. Mindgammon also leads on update cadence (every 2 days vs every 3 weeks) and rating (5.0 vs 4.8). Chess King's advantage is ratings volume (2.5K vs 1). On price, in-app purchases, monetization model and device support 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. Chess King sells 17 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month and Mindgammon sells 6 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Mindgammon holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Chess King has 2.5K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.
Chess King ships an update every 3 weeks, Mindgammon every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Chess King | Mindgammon |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (2.5K ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 78.4% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 2.5K — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Every 2 days — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 | 13.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 109 MB | 149 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Chess King | Christian Bailey |
Customer experience
Chess King
Mindgammon
Bugs and requests
Chess King
Reported bugs
5 issues- Crashes on M1 Macs
- Doesnot work with iOS 13 dark mode
- Doesnot show board and pieces in exercises
- Cannot restore purchases
- Doesnot sync progress across devices
Requested features
7 requests- Add dark mode option
- Improve user interface and design
- Add more opening courses
- Provide better explanations for moves
- Allow resetting progress
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- Improve syncing across devices
- Add online chess mode
Mindgammon
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Chess King
- CT-ART: The Best Tactics7 Days trial$5.991 Month
- Chess King University7 Days trial$11.991 Month
- Chess King Courses3 Days trial$11.991 Month
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- Chess King Maximum Pack1 Month trial$17.991 Month
- Chess King Courses3 Days trial$89.991 Year
- Chess King Maximum Pack1 Year trial$119.991 Year
- Mate in 1 move (Chess Puzzles)$3.99
- Chess Endings for Beginners$7.99
- Chess: From Beginner to Club$12.99
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- Chess Combinations Vol. 1$12.99
- Chess Tactics for Beginners$12.99
- Chess Opening Blunders$12.99
- Chess Opening Lab (1400-2000)$12.99
- Chess Strategy for Beginners$12.99
- Elementary Chess Tactics 1$12.99
- CT-ART 4.0 (Chess Tactics)$17.99
- Total Chess Endgames 1600-2400$17.99
Mindgammon
- 5,000 Chips$0.99
- 10,000 Chips$1.99
- 15,000 Chips$2.99
Show 3 moreShow fewer
- 20,000 Chips$3.99
- Remove Ads$3.99
- 1,000,000 Chips$19.99
Questions
Is Chess King free?
Is Mindgammon free?
Which has better reviews, Chess King or Mindgammon?
Do Chess King or Mindgammon have ads?
Which is updated more often, Chess King or Mindgammon?
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