Comparison

Chess Opener Lite vs ChessBase Mobile Chess

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

Head to head
About

Chess Opener Lite

Master chess openings with an interactive trainer and comprehensive database. Build and memorize your own repertoire, compare variations, and track your progress. Works offline and offers extensive opening exploration.

Highlights
  • Chess opening tree with game statistics
  • Encyclopedia of Chess Openings (ECO)
  • Build and edit opening repertoire
  • Interactive opening trainer
  • Offline functionality
  • PGN export
  • Progress tracking
Features
Read full description

Features: - Chess opening tree with game statistics - The Encyclopedia of Chess Openings (ECO) - Compare ECO and opening tree moves side by side in any position - Export chess openings in PGN format - Build your own opening repertoire - Add or edit comments on moves - Automatically classify any sequence of moves using the ECO system - Chess opening explorer highlights moves already in your repertoire - Chess database includes all transpositions - Interactive trainer to memorize your chess openings and variations - Train multiple variations at once against random opponent moves from your repertoire - Set up a starting position for training - Track your training progress - Customize chessboard colors and chess pieces - Supports dark mode - Works completely offline CHESS OPENING EXPLORER Search in the Encyclopedia of Chess Openings or browse the chess opening tree. Swipe left or right to switch between the exploration features in any position. BUILD YOUR OPENING REPERTOIRE Add your favorite opening lines to your repertoire using the chess opening explorer. You can always edit the names of your openings and organize them in your repertoire. OPENING TRAINER A simple and efficient method to memorize variations of openings in your repertoire. You can train either white’s moves or black’s moves only or both. Optionally, you can train all variations at once. The trainer chooses the opponent’s moves randomly from your opening repertoire. Chess Opener tracks your progress and shows your stats. Upgrade to Chess Opener PRO to unlock more features: - Unlimited repertoire size - Unlimited depth of openings - 6x larger opening tree with game statistics - Database of top 100+ grandmasters’ repertoires - Powerful chess engine analysis - Import openings in PGN format

About

ChessBase Mobile Chess

Access a vast chess game database, save and analyze your own games, and practice openings. This app offers advanced notation and sharing features, with a free tier and optional premium upgrades for more extensive cloud storage and search capabilities.

Highlights
  • Access 13+ million chess games
  • Save and sync personal game databases
  • Analyze games with built-in engine
  • Live opening book statistics
  • Create and practice opening repertoires
  • Advanced game notation and sharing
  • PGN file compatibility
Features
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ChessBase Mobile is the training, playing, and analysis platform for chess players who track their progress by the numbers. ChessBase Mobile is built by ChessBase, the company behind the standard desktop software used by world champions and club players alike for over 30 years. Solve tactics puzzles rated by difficulty and watch your Elo rise or fall with every attempt. No participation trophies, your rating reflects exactly where you stand. The tactics database draws from positions in real games, not synthetic exercises, so the patterns you train are the patterns you encounter at the board. Puzzle Fight puts you head-to-head against another player in a timed series of 24 tactical positions. Both players solve the same puzzles simultaneously. The one who solves more, faster, wins - and gains Elo. Structured competition, not a casual minigame. Play live games in Blitz and Rapid formats against opponents worldwide. Premove support, clean interface, no clutter. The ChessBase Online Database contains over 14 million games. Search by player, position, or opening. Review grandmaster games, study endgame structures, track opening trends - the same database used by professionals, accessible from your phone. Cloud analysis with several engines, including Fritz and Lc0. Basic cloud analysis with Fritz is free. For deeper analysis, scalable cloud servers are available, from Large to Gargantuan, paid per minute in ducats. Lc0 brings neural network evaluation for positions where classical engines struggle. The engine panel shows evaluation, depth, and principal variation. Build and maintain your opening repertoire in the cloud. 300 opening overviews with repertoire suggestions help you get started with new systems. A live opening book provides up-to-date statistics for every position. Three practice modes let you drill your variations until they stick. Annotate your games with comments, symbols, variations, arrows, and markings. Save games and analyses in cloud databases that synchronise across all your devices. Share positions and games via link, image, GIF, FEN, QR code, or PGN. Upload and download PGN files for full compatibility with desktop software. AI Kibitzer provides live commentary during games and puzzles — with personality. Chess-legend anecdotes, opinions, the occasional bad joke. Like a friend with too much chess trivia sitting next to you. Audio output included. Available in 27 languages. Customisable board colours, piece sets, and notation display. Light and dark mode across all screens, or set to follow your device preference. No ads. No energy systems. No artificial gating. Open the app, train, close the app. Free to use, all functions are available at no cost. ChessBase Premium unlocks expanded cloud storage and unlimited database search results. Free: search the online database (max 50 games displayed), up to 10 cloud databases (10 MB total), cloud clipping for up to 10 games. Premium: unlimited database search, up to 200 cloud databases (500 MB total), cloud clipping for up to 400 games. Privacy policy: https://en.chessbase.com/pages/security Terms of use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Chess Opener Lite4 screens
ChessBase Mobile Chess4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Chess Opener Lite at 4.1 against ChessBase Mobile Chess's 2.9. Chess Opener Lite also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 1) and update cadence (every 5 weeks vs every 6 months). On price, review sentiment, ratings volume and ads 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. ChessBase Mobile Chess sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $3.99 per month. Chess Opener Lite asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Chess Opener Lite holds the better App Store score, 4.1 against 2.9. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 17 and 18 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 43% of Chess Opener Lite's written reviews are positive against 41% of ChessBase Mobile Chess's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Chess Opener Lite ships an update every 5 weeks, ChessBase Mobile Chess every 6 months. The most recent releases landed on November 2, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Chess Opener Lite versus ChessBase Mobile Chess: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterChess Opener LiteChessBase Mobile Chess
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.1 (17 ratings) — better2.9 (18 ratings)
Positive reviews42.9% of reviews — better40.6% of reviews
Number of ratings1718 — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeks — betterEvery 6 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.1 — better15.6
Further details — not scored
Size55 MB1 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperStanislav BasovnikChessBase GmbH

Customer experience

Chess Opener Lite

All ratings17 ratings
Positive76.5%
Neutral0.0%
Negative23.5%
Written reviews7 reviews
Positive42.9%
Neutral0.0%
Negative57.1%

ChessBase Mobile Chess

All ratings18 ratings
Positive44.4%
Neutral5.6%
Negative50.0%
Written reviews32 reviews
Positive40.6%
Neutral0.0%
Negative59.4%

In-app purchases

None

Chess Opener Lite

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

ChessBase Mobile Chess

Subscriptions1
  • ChessBase Premium (Monthly)$3.991 Month

Questions

Is Chess Opener Lite free?
Chess Opener Lite is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is ChessBase Mobile Chess free?
ChessBase Mobile Chess is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Chess Opener Lite or ChessBase Mobile Chess?
Chess Opener Lite is rated higher. Chess Opener Lite averages 4.1 out of 5 from 17 ratings, while ChessBase Mobile Chess averages 2.9 from 18 ratings.
Do Chess Opener Lite or ChessBase Mobile Chess have ads?
Neither Chess Opener Lite nor ChessBase Mobile Chess shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Chess Opener Lite or ChessBase Mobile Chess?
Chess Opener Lite ships an update every 5 weeks, and ChessBase Mobile Chess every 6 months. Most recently, Chess Opener Lite was updated on November 2, 2026 and ChessBase Mobile Chess on October 30, 2026.

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