Comparison

Backgammon vs The Spades

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

Head to head
About

Backgammon

Experience the classic board and dice game with multiple variations and play modes. Challenge yourself against AI or friends online, with helpful features like move assist and unlimited undos.

Highlights
  • Multiple game variations (Nackgammon, Old English, Acey Deucey)
  • Single player with adjustable AI difficulty
  • Online and Bluetooth multiplayer
  • Match play with Doubling and Crawford Rule
  • Move-Assist feature
  • Unlimited Undo in single-player
  • Extensive game statistics
Read full description

Challenge yourself in the deluxe board & dice game! Both the press and customers agree: Backgammon's got it in spades! __________________________________________ PRESS LOVE: Recommended by MacWorld Magazine as a Top Download for your iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad. “Backgammon Premium is the crème-de-la-crème ‘gammon’” 9 out of 10 stars from Appaddicts.com! Nominated for “Best Dice Game” in the Best App Ever Awards hosted by bestappever.com! __________________________________________ CUSTOMER LOVE: "Elegant and beautifully laid out. The play is terrific. I play a game every break I get. The fun just doesn't stop!" "This app is awesome!!! No problems and extremely fun." "Backgammon is a great game, simple and intriguing. This app does it justice. The AI is smart and sometimes infuriating. Five Stars!" __________________________________________ Play solo or live online against friends! Great for players who enjoy Gin Rummy, Spades, Cribbage, Blackjack, or Dominos. GREAT GAME VARIATIONS: Backgammon - The classic game you know and love Nackgammon - Changing the token setup requires players to get creative. Old English - A British favorite! No more than 5 checkers to a single point. Acey Deucey - Start in your own goal tray and work your way into your opponent's! WAYS TO PLAY: Single Player- Prove you're the King against Backgammon's Easy, Medium, or Hard difficulties! Online Multiplayer- Match against friends or strangers to prove your mastery! Peer to Peer- Play against your friends on their devices with no network required. __________________________________________ FEATURES: - Single Player Games (with Easy, Medium, Hard) - Match support! Play to 3, 5, 9 or 15 points with Doubling. Matches use the Crawford Rule - Four distinct board designs - Online and Bluetooth multiplayer - Move-Assist, highlights available moves - Unlimited “Undo” in single-player games - Extensive game statistics

About

The Spades

Experience the classic 4-player contract trick-taking card game on iOS. Enjoy smooth gameplay, scalable difficulty, and track your performance against 18 AI opponents. Customize your partnerships and challenge yourself to beat them all.

Highlights
  • Full Spades partnership play
  • 18 CPU characters with varying skill
  • Choose partners and opponents
  • Undo play and hint facility
  • Save player statistics
  • Customizable graphics and sound
Features
Read full description

The most downloaded Spades app now available !! 'The Spades' brings this classic 4-player contract trick taking card game to the iOS, based on the No.1 downloaded Spades app by AI Factory! 'The Spades' supplies classy graphics, super smooth gameplay, addictive background music and sound effects, highly scalable difficulty & much more. The game will track your wins/losses and draws against each of the difficulty levels. You can monitor how well you have performed in partnership with all the 18 CPU players provided for the game. Beat them all and partner them all! Features: -- Full Spades Partnership Play -- 18 CPU characters of varying skill (beginner to expert) -- Choose who to partner with and who to play against! -- Undo your play anytime -- Hint facility -- Backgroud Music and Sound Effects (ON/OFF) -- Beautiful Card and Background graphics -- Animation speed (Normal/ Fast) -- Saves history of your and CPU player stats -- Remove ads

Screenshots

Backgammon4 screens
The Spades4 screens

Verdict

The call

Backgammon and The Spades both sit at 4.4 stars, but that hides the real split: 65% of Backgammon's written reviews are positive against 45% of The Spades's. On price, rating, ratings volume and update cadence 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. Backgammon sells 2 one-off in-app purchases and The Spades sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

The Spades holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 15K and 8.2K respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 65% of Backgammon's written reviews are positive against 45% of The Spades's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Backgammon ships an update every 5 months, The Spades every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and September 22, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard1 real difference · 9 level
Backgammon versus The Spades: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBackgammonThe Spades
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.4 (15K ratings)4.6 (8.2K ratings) — better
Positive reviews65.4% of reviews — better45.2% of reviews
Number of ratings15K — better8.2K
Update frequencyEvery 5 monthsEvery 4 months — better
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.615.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size123 MB116 MB
Age rating12+17+
DeveloperWildCard Classics IncUNBALANCE Corporation

Customer experience

Backgammon

All ratings14,844 ratings
Positive86.4%
Neutral5.2%
Negative8.4%
Written reviews1,403 reviews
Positive65.4%
Neutral10.1%
Negative24.5%

The Spades

All ratings8,163 ratings
Positive91.5%
Neutral4.7%
Negative3.9%
Written reviews115 reviews
Positive45.2%
Neutral12.2%
Negative42.6%

User reviews

Backgammon

From 15K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Refresher
  • 👍 Bugs worked out
  • 👍 Love this game!
  • 👍 Fun
  • 👍 Great way to pass time

Room to improve

  • 🔍 Ads in middle of game
  • 🔍 Ads doubled in one month
  • 🔍 Too many ads interrupt the game
  • 🔍 Ads During Play
  • 🔍 Ads every three moves

The Spades

From 8.2K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🎮 Enjoyable game
  • 👍 Good entertainment
  • 🕹️ Relaxing gameplay
  • 🧠 Improves gameplay skills

Room to improve

  • 💸 Too many ads
  • 🤖 Biased AI partners
  • 🤔 Inconsistent partner behavior
  • 🧠 Questionable AI decision-making

Bugs and requests

Backgammon

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Pieces no longer hand on the bars on iPads or iPad minis
  • Doesn't work anymore with the last update of the iPhone
  • Game freezes after ads
  • Crashes every time I try to open it
  • Pieces become minuscule after ads

Requested features

4 requests
  • Allow offline playing
  • Turn based option
  • Ability to review board before doubling
  • Ability to undo moves

The Spades

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Game freezes and crashes
  • Scoring issues and discrepancies
  • Undo feature locked behind ads

Requested features

4 requests
  • Option to customize game rules
  • Ability to lead with spades
  • More balanced AI partners
  • Add-free version

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Backgammon

One-time2
  • Christmas Theme$0.99
  • Acey Deucey$1.99
1 purchases

The Spades

One-time1
  • Remove Ad$5.99

Questions

Is Backgammon free?
Backgammon is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is The Spades free?
The Spades is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Backgammon or The Spades?
The Spades is rated higher. Backgammon averages 4.4 out of 5 from 15K ratings, while The Spades averages 4.6 from 8.2K ratings.
Do Backgammon or The Spades have ads?
Both Backgammon and The Spades show ads.
Which is updated more often, Backgammon or The Spades?
Backgammon ships an update every 5 months, and The Spades every 4 months. Most recently, Backgammon was updated on September 25, 2026 and The Spades on September 22, 2026.

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