Comparison

Apparent Sudoku vs Sudoku Explorer

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

Head to head
About

Apparent Sudoku

Experience classic Sudoku puzzles without any distractions. This app offers a clean interface, multiple difficulty levels, and advanced features like pencil marks and smart highlighting. Track your progress and compete globally with Game Center leaderboards.

Highlights
  • Four difficulty levels
  • Game Center Leaderboards
  • 50,000+ puzzles
  • Clean, intuitive interface
  • Pencil marks and smart highlighting
  • iCloud sync
  • iPad Apple Pencil support
Features
Read full description

Take a break, clear your mind, and solve the puzzle of the day. Apparent Sudoku pairs classic Sudoku with a calm, carefully made experience on iPhone and iPad. Version 2.5 lets you race your friends on every puzzle. FOUR DAILY CHALLENGES • The Daily: solve the day's board and keep your streak. • Daily Mini: a quick, nearly complete puzzle. • Daily X: every row, column, box and diagonal holds all nine digits. • The Twist: replay the Daily's board with one extra rule. It unlocks when you finish the Daily. RACE YOUR FRIENDS • See your Game Center friends' times on every puzzle you've both played: before you start, while you play and when you finish. • New games start on a puzzle a friend has solved, and the clock shows the next friend to beat. • Send a friend your time in a tap, see who's ahead this week, and keep a record against each friend. • Challenge friends on each Daily, and share any puzzle as a head-to-head race. • Each hint adds 30 seconds, so everyone gets a time. PLAY YOUR WAY • Choose a cell and then a digit, or pick up a brush and fill cells with a single tap. • Add pencil marks and erase mistakes easily. • On iPad, write right on the board with Apple Pencil. • On iPhone Duo, the board and keypad each take their own half, and your game carries across as you open and close it. • Larger text, VoiceOver, Increase Contrast and Reduce Motion are supported throughout. • Try Hardcore, 3 Strikes or Zen in regular games. A NEW LOOK Paper, ink and one bold color for each difficulty. Every Daily has its own geometric composition, and your win card shows the order you finished the boxes. UNLOCK SUDOKU PRO A one-time purchase unlocks the full library of 51,400 puzzles, Extreme difficulty and more board styles, including shapes, fruit and Wordoku, on iPhone, iPad and Mac. No ads and no tracking. No account needed to play. Game Center and iCloud are optional. Your puzzle times are shared with your Game Center friends, and you can turn off Share My Times anytime. Feedback is optional and sent only when you tap Send.

About

Sudoku Explorer

Features
Read full description

Sudoku Explorer is an exciting twist on the classic Sudoku puzzle game! Embark on a journey through a variety of challenging Sudoku grids, from easy to expert levels. As you progress, unlock new themes, backgrounds, and special puzzle packs. Whether you're a Sudoku novice or a seasoned expert, Sudoku Explorer offers a fun and relaxing experience with intuitive controls and stunning visuals. Solve puzzles, explore new levels, and challenge yourself in this addictive number puzzle adventure!

Screenshots

Apparent Sudoku4 screens
Sudoku Explorer4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Apparent Sudoku at none against Sudoku Explorer's shown. Sudoku Explorer's advantage is iOS requirement (12.0 vs 26.0). On price, update cadence, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Apparent Sudoku sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Sudoku Explorer sells 8 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Apparent Sudoku ships an update every 10 days, Sudoku Explorer weekly. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Apparent Sudoku versus Sudoku Explorer: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterApparent SudokuSudoku Explorer
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.4 (10 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews42.9% of reviews—
Number of ratings10 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 10 daysWeekly — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemium—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, MaciPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS26.012.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size15 MB225 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperApparent Logic, LLCThinking Game Limited

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Apparent Sudoku

One-time1
  • Sudoku Pro$4.99
8 purchases

Sudoku Explorer

One-time8
  • 240 Coins$0.99
  • Get 720 Coins!$4.99
  • Remove Ads$4.99
Show 5 more
  • Mega Bundle$9.99
  • Get 1500 Coins!$9.99
  • Get 2800 Coins!$19.99
  • Get 6200 Coins!$49.99
  • Get 13000 Coins!$99.99

Questions

Is Apparent Sudoku free?
Apparent Sudoku is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Sudoku Explorer free?
Sudoku Explorer is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Apparent Sudoku or Sudoku Explorer have ads?
Sudoku Explorer shows ads; Apparent Sudoku does not.
Which is updated more often, Apparent Sudoku or Sudoku Explorer?
Apparent Sudoku ships an update every 10 days, and Sudoku Explorer weekly. Most recently, Apparent Sudoku was updated on November 3, 2026 and Sudoku Explorer on October 30, 2026.

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