Crossword+ vs Scatterbox
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Crossword+
Start your day with two new themed crossword puzzles daily, ranging from classic literature to movie magic. Enjoy a satisfying yet gentle challenge, with helpful hints and auto-check features. Solve puzzles offline and adjust text size for a comfortable, ad-free experience.
- Two new themed puzzles daily
- Over 3,000 puzzles in archive
- Helpful hints and AutoCheck
- Offline play supported
- Ad-free experience
- Adjustable text size
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Start your day with a crossword and a smile! Whether you’re a novice solver or a seasoned veteran, we’ve designed Crossword+ so that players of all abilities can enjoy solving our crosswords! We release new crosswords every day and every single crossword in the app has a unique theme. For example, Monday’s crossword is music related, and Friday’s crossword is movie related. Even if you don’t know anything about the topic, you’ll still be attempt the crossword as the theme words are sprinkled into the crossword among other clues. So look forward to testing and expanding your knowledge of movies, music, food, books and much, much more! Why Crossword+? * Two new themed puzzles every single day (one maxi and one mini) * Over 3,000 puzzles in our ever-growing collection * Helpful hints when you need a little extra help * Catches mistakes as you type with our AutoCheck function * 100% ad-free. Just you and the puzzle * Works offline * Adjustable text size for readability Join over 500,000 solvers who've made Crossword Plus part of their routine. Is Crossword+ good for beginners? Yes! Crossword+ is designed for solvers of all abilities. Start with our daily mini crosswords, make use of instant error checking, and use hints whenever you're stuck. We aim to make our clues challenging enough to be satisfying, but accessible enough to keep you moving forward. How does it compare to other crossword apps? We designed Crossword Plus to be simple, intuitive, and accessible to everyone. While there are many excellent crossword apps available, we focus on delivering a clean, distraction-free solving experience that feels natural. Is every puzzle themed? Yes! Every single crossword in Crossword+ is built around a unique theme. What kinds of themes do you feature? Everything from Trivia Delights and Hollywood Hits to Tasty Treats and beyond! With over 3,000 themed puzzles in our archive, there’s lots to explore and new topics every day. Can I use Crossword+ offline? Yes! Download puzzles and solve them anywhere! On planes, trains, or wherever your internet connection isn't reliable. Do you have free crossword puzzles? We publish a new free 5×5 mini crossword every day. We offer a subscription which gives you access to full-size maxi puzzles and our extensive archive. Does Crossword+ have ads? No. We're ad-free. Is Crossword+ good for seniors? Yes! The app automatically respects your device's text size settings. Additionally, you can zoom in on any puzzle grid for additional magnification. Can crosswords help with vocabulary? Definitely. Regular crossword solving strengthens vocabulary, reinforces spelling, and improves word recall. All while having fun. Is this an American or British crossword? Both! We use vocabulary and spelling that works for solvers on both sides of the Atlantic, making our puzzles accessible to a global audience. Does Crossword Plus include easy and hard crossword puzzles? We focus on a single, balanced difficulty level that appeals to most solvers. You can make puzzles easier or more challenging by toggling hints and assistance features on or off. Can I use Crossword+ for quick puzzles? Perfect for it! Our daily 5×5 mini crossword is designed for a quick mental break which is ideal when you just want a few minutes of crossword fun. Does Crossword+ offer hints or help with clues? Yes! Every clue comes with an optional hint to nudge you in the right direction. Fair warning: using a hint adds 30 seconds to your completion time. LICENSED APPLICATION END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Scatterbox
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Scatterbox is a game of pure deduction. A handful of atoms are hidden in a grid. You fire a beam in from any edge, see where it comes out, and reason your way to what must be inside. No reflexes. No timers. No luck. Every board has exactly one answer, and it is always findable. There are only four things a beam can do: • Miss — straight in, straight out the far side. That lane is clear. • Hit — the beam never comes back. It ran into an atom head-on. • Deflection — passing an atom on the diagonal turns the beam ninety degrees. • Reflection — two atoms turn it back out the square it entered. Learn those four and you have learned the whole game. In the Ray Lab the atoms are visible: place them anywhere, fire beams, and watch every path bend, bounce, or vanish. BOARD OF THE DAY One puzzle a day, the same for everyone, built from the date. The difficulty rotates through the week — gentle on Monday, brutal by the weekend. Solve it to build a streak; miss a day and the streak resets. Your best streak is always on the home screen. FREE PLAY Set your own board — width, height, and atom count, up to 12×12 on iPhone and 16×16 on iPad — or switch on random mode and get a fresh shape every game. BUILT FOR THINKING • Every marker is numbered, so you are never guessing at colors • Dark mode and a color-blind friendly palette • An optional timer if you want the pressure, off by default • "Check" your guesses before you commit — for a small score cost • Reveal shows the full path every beam actually took Your score is the number of beams you fired plus a penalty for wrong guesses. Lower is better. There is no way to lose — only to solve it in fewer beams next time. Scatterbox plays entirely on your device. No account, no sign-in, nothing to sync. It works on a plane. Scatterbox is an independent game in the tradition of Black Box, the deduction puzzle designed by Eric Solomon in 1976. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by the original game or its publishers. Free to play, with ads. A one-time "Remove Ads" purchase turns them off for good. Privacy Policy: https://scatterbox.ggates1020.com/privacy/ Terms of Use: https://scatterbox.ggates1020.com/terms-of-use/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: Crossword+ at none against Scatterbox's shown. Crossword+ also leads on chart position (#153 vs unranked) and iOS requirement (17.6 vs 26.5). Scatterbox's advantage is update cadence (every 2 days vs every 10 days). On price, in-app purchases 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. Crossword+ sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and Scatterbox sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Crossword+ ships an update every 10 days, Scatterbox every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 15, 2026 and October 13, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Crossword+ | Scatterbox |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.5 (11K ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 83.5% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 11K — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 10 days | Every 2 days — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Best chart rank | #153 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 17.6 — better | 26.5 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 49 MB | 4 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 12+ |
| Developer | PuzzleStar Limited | GEORGE,HOWARD GATES |
Bugs and requests
Crossword+
Reported bugs
2 issues- Freezing or crashing issues for some users
- Subscription not always working as expected
Requested features
3 requests- Search function to find puzzles by topic
- More difficulty levels to cater to all skill levels
- Ability to track progress and stats over time
Scatterbox
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Crossword+
- Monthly$4.991 Month
- Monthly$7.491 Month
- Monthly$9.991 Month
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- Monthly7 Days trial$9.991 Month
- Yearly1 Year trial$37.991 Year
- Yearly7 Days trial$37.991 Year
- Yearly1 Year trial2 variants$39.991 Year
- Yearly7 Days trial$39.991 Year
Scatterbox
- Remove Ads$2.99
Questions
Is Crossword+ free?
Is Scatterbox free?
Do Crossword+ or Scatterbox have ads?
Which is updated more often, Crossword+ or Scatterbox?
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