Playgroup vs Board Game Mate
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Playgroup
Track life totals, damage, and game statistics for multiplayer card games. Syncs across devices and provides detailed performance analytics for decks and players on a companion website.
- Life counter for up to 6 players
- Real-time game stats sync
- Commander damage and poison counter tracking
- Detailed deck performance analytics
- Playgroup management and leaderboards
- Intuitive swipe and tap UI
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Please note: Only one person in your playgroup has to download and install the Playgroup life tracker app on a phone, tablet or run it on PC. The tracker app is exclusively used for tracking games. Stats will be available in real-time on the website for all participants (playgroup.gg). Ever wanted to know whether you are the best Commander player in your Playgroup? Whether that friend of yours really does take 10 minutes turns? Wondering what your average damage per game is for your favourite deck? You'll need to track life during your games anyway enhance your experience by using the Playgroup Life Counter App and get answers to all of the above questions and much more. Please note that the Playgroup app requires a Playgroup.gg account. Main Features: + The life counter is available on all platforms. + With Playgroup Device Sync you can all use your own device and keep the game stats synced automagically. + Supports up to 6 players + Don't just track wins and losses, but track how much damage has been done by which player and to which player, track turn duration and of course commander damage and poison counters. + Intuitive UI: By using a combination of swiping gestures (swipe towards the player that you want to damage) and tapping (tap for 1 life or hold for 10 life) tracking takes little effort. + Player profiles: each player loads up their personal player profile into the life counter easily via QR code. Select your deck from your deck list and start tracking! + Backgrounds: the life counter automatically sets your Commander as your background. Dashboard (https://playgroup.gg) Features: + Personalised stats: Get detailed statistics about your deck's performance. See the power level, win rate, elo rating, average kills per game, largest kill & win streaks and much more. + Playgroup management: create and manage playgroups, invite an unlimited number of friends. + Leaderboards: Get competitve, and rank against your playgroup members with the deck or player leaderboards. Playgroup is still under active development so be sure to drop by our Discord (https://discord.gg/wAG8aApDU5) and give your feedback and ideas for new features!
Board Game Mate
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Successor of Imbascorer with BGG integration! Helps you keep track of score, prepares player order, rolls dice and generates deduction sheets for Cluedo and Alchemists. Save your plays directly on Board Game Geek if you login through the app. Supports all games in BGG. Ability to import plays that were recorded by other players in BGG. Simple and intuitive interface. Apart from keeping track of your scores for simple games, the app allows creation of complex score sheets like Agricola, Five Tribes, 7 Wonders and many more. Many games with complex scoring, already have a predefined score sheet. Enables you to create your own custom game templates. DISCLAIMER: The developer of this app cannot be held responsible for unintentional modification of your BGG plays due to misuse of this app or otherwise. A lot of safety nets are placed to protect your BBG plays integrity however nothing is guaranteed. Use the synchronization features at your own risk.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Playgroup at Free against Board Game Mate's $4.99. Playgroup also leads on update cadence (monthly vs every 6 months) and device support. Board Game Mate's advantage is iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15). On in-app purchases 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
Playgroup is free to download; Board Game Mate costs $4.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Playgroup ships an update monthly, Board Game Mate every 6 months. The most recent releases landed on October 22, 2026 and May 14, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Playgroup | Board Game Mate |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free — better | $4.99 |
| Rating | 4.8 (74 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 82.4% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 74 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Monthly — better | Every 6 months |
| Ads | No | — |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | — |
| Requires iOS | 15 | 13.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 99 MB | 28 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Arcane Digital B.V. | Andreas Neofytou |
In-app purchases
Playgroup
No in-app purchases
Board Game Mate
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Playgroup free?
Is Board Game Mate free?
Which is updated more often, Playgroup or Board Game Mate?
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