Comparison

Chess King vs Chesspy

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

Head to head
About

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.

Highlights
  • 100+ learning courses
  • Interactive theoretical lessons
  • High-quality, double-checked puzzles
  • Personal chess trainer
  • Computer analysis
  • Offline support
  • Chess tasks for kids
Features
Read full description

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/

About

Chesspy

Solve daily chess logic puzzles by strategically placing pieces to attack numbered targets. Compete with friends in multiplayer battles or tackle endless challenges. Offers a tutorial for beginners and advanced modes for experienced players.

Highlights
  • Daily chess logic puzzles
  • Multiplayer battles with friends
  • Piece placement strategy
  • Tutorial for beginners
  • Unlimited daily boards
  • Hints and past missions
Features
Read full description

Place chess pieces. Hit every number. Numbered squares are targets. Place chess pieces so each target is attacked by exactly its number — in the app, your pieces are called agents. A 0 is a safe square: nothing may attack it. Match every number and the next board is right there. Every board has exactly one solution, and you can reach it by logic alone — no guessing. Today’s Mission • Twenty boards in a row, growing from 3×3 to 6×6. • Three hearts. Placing or moving an agent so a number newly turns red costs one heart. Removing and undoing are always free. • Lose your last heart and you can see that board’s answer. • Everyone gets the same mission each day. Finish it to see your Top % today. • Sundays bring the S-Rank Mission: it starts at 4×4 and the last five boards are 7×7. Battles • Create a battle and get a six-digit code. Paste the link in a group chat and friends jump straight in. • Everyone plays the same five boards with three hearts. Most boards, then fewest hearts lost, then fastest time wins. • Up to 16 players, each joining as a chess piece: king, queen, rooks, bishops, knights and pawns. • A battle stays open for 7 days. Joining is free for anyone. The agents • The rook attacks along rows and columns, the bishop along diagonals — all the way to the edge, right past other agents. • From board 10 the knight joins in, jumping in an L. • No chess needed. A four-board tutorial shows you how on the board. More to play • Unlimited: opens after today’s mission. Endless boards that grow to 7×7 — two free runs a day. • Hints: stuck in Unlimited or a past mission? Get the reason for the next move, one step at a time. One free hint a day. • Past missions: anyone can play one past day for free. • Streaks, six achievements that unlock agent designs, and a result card to share. • Dark mode and a colour-blind palette. • English, Korean, Japanese, Traditional Chinese, French, German and Spanish. Pro (one-time purchase) • Unlimited, with no daily limit • Hints, with no daily limit • Create battles • Every past mission — fill a missed day to keep your streak • Every agent design and detailed stats • Pro never touches a daily score, and Today’s Mission has no hints. Everyone plays by the same rules. No ads. No account. Your records stay on your device; Top % and battles use only a random ID with no name.

Screenshots

Chess King4 screens
Chesspy4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Chesspy at none against Chess King's shown. Chesspy also leads on update cadence (every 2 days vs every 3 weeks) and review sentiment (100% vs 78%). Chess King's advantage is ratings volume (2.5K vs 2) and device support (4 vs 1). On price, in-app purchases 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Chess King sells 17 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month and Chesspy sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Chesspy 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 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 78% of Chess King's written reviews are positive against 100% of Chesspy's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Chess King ships an update every 3 weeks, Chesspy every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Chess King versus Chesspy: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterChess KingChesspy
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (2.5K ratings)5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews78.4% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings2.5K — better2
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 2 days — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — betteriPhone
Requires iOS13.0 — better16.4
Further details — not scored
Size109 MB14 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperChess King037

Customer experience

Chess King

All ratings2,501 ratings
Positive95.2%
Neutral2.3%
Negative2.4%
Written reviews324 reviews
Positive78.4%
Neutral5.2%
Negative16.4%

Chesspy

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

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
Show 2 more
  • Improve syncing across devices
  • Add online chess mode

Chesspy

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

17 purchases

Chess King

Subscriptions6
  • 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
Show 3 more
  • 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
One-time11
  • Mate in 1 move (Chess Puzzles)$3.99
  • Chess Endings for Beginners$7.99
  • Chess: From Beginner to Club$12.99
Show 8 more
  • 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
1 purchases

Chesspy

One-time1
  • Chesspy Pro$1.99

Questions

Is Chess King free?
Chess King is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Chesspy free?
Chesspy is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Chess King or Chesspy?
Chesspy is rated higher. Chess King averages 4.8 out of 5 from 2.5K ratings, while Chesspy averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.
Do Chess King or Chesspy have ads?
Chess King shows ads; Chesspy does not.
Which is updated more often, Chess King or Chesspy?
Chess King ships an update every 3 weeks, and Chesspy every 2 days. Most recently, Chess King was updated on October 26, 2026 and Chesspy on October 24, 2026.

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