Soroban Drill vs Abacus Lesson
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Soroban Drill
Practice Japanese abacus calculations with this app. It offers exercises for addition, subtraction, sums, multiplication, and division. Advanced features like multiplication, division, and mock exams are available via in-app purchase.
- Arithmetic drills
- Multiplication practice
- Division practice
- Mock soroban exams
- Addition and subtraction exercises
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This is a soroban practice app for soroban beginners. Easily practice multiplication and other arithmetic anywhere, or try a mock soroban exam. - Addition - Subtraction - Sums - Multiplication - Division - Mock exams * Multiplication, division, and mock exams can be unlocked through in-app payment.
Abacus Lesson
Learn multiplication using a virtual abacus. This app teaches a simple and fast method for calculating multiplication, emphasizing the mental calculation benefits of the abacus over digital calculators.
- Virtual abacus for multiplication
- Simple and fast calculation methods
- Focus on mental calculation skills
- Step-by-step multiplication lessons
- Suitable for beginners
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An abacus is named "Soroban" in Japan. Do you know what an abacus is? The abacus is very simple calculator used in China, Japan, Korea and so on. Some people may say "Isn't it an unnecessary tool if you have a calculator such as a smartphone?". Answer would be "No". The biggest difference between electric calculators and the abacus is whether you need to hold it in your hand when calculating. Because of its simplicity, you will be able to easily use the abacus in your mind. In the app, we will explain simple and fast method of the multiplication using the abacus. To learn multiplication, it is essential to be able to add with an abacus. If you are new to addition and subtraction, we recommend that You first learn with the following app. https://apps.apple.com/us/app/abacus-lesson-add-sub/id1526785916 This app will give you the skill of calculation of multiplication.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Abacus Lesson at 5.0 against Soroban Drill's 4.4. Abacus Lesson also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 65%) and update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 3 months). Soroban Drill's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (66 vs 15). 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. Soroban Drill sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Abacus Lesson sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Abacus Lesson holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 66 and 15 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 65% of Soroban Drill's written reviews are positive against 100% of Abacus Lesson's.
Soroban Drill ships an update every 3 months, Abacus Lesson every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 27, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Soroban Drill | Abacus Lesson |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.4 (66 ratings) | 5.0 (15 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 64.5% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 66 — better | 15 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Every 2 weeks — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 | 11.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 30 MB | 138 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Junichiro Komizo | Hirokazu Komatsu |
Customer experience
Soroban Drill
Abacus Lesson
In-app purchases
Soroban Drill
- 全ての機能をアンロック$3.99
Abacus Lesson
- Donation Lv1 for hiding Ad$1.99
- Donation Lv2 for hiding Ad$3.99
- Donation Lv3 for hiding Ad$8.99
Questions
Is Soroban Drill free?
Is Abacus Lesson free?
Which has better reviews, Soroban Drill or Abacus Lesson?
Do Soroban Drill or Abacus Lesson have ads?
Which is updated more often, Soroban Drill or Abacus Lesson?
Other comparisons
