Deep Green vs ChessPrep
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Deep Green
This app provides a classical chess experience with a clean, native interface and customizable piece designs. It supports open game formats, offers a unique chess engine with adjustable strength, and features a private, ad-free environment.
- Clean, native user interface
- Customizable chess piece designs
- Open game format (PGN/FEN)
- Adjustable strength chess engine
- Private and ad-free experience
- System-level integration
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A no-nonsense classical chess app. - CLEAN UI: Deep Green offers a distraction-free experience in a clean, native user interface, with Liquid Glass on iOS 26 and later. - CUSTOM PIECE DESIGN: Beautiful chess set designed specifically for Deep Green and rendered at high resolution in both outline and 3D throughout the app. - MADE FOR IPAD: Dedicated menu bar, multiple windows, and refined trackpad, mouse, and Apple Pencil support. Squares highlight as you hover over the board. - MADE FOR IPHONE DUO: Adapts to both displays and every pose. The board centers on the fold like a folding chess board, and the game controls follow the system into the vertical bar. - TIGHT SYSTEM INTEGRATION: System-level sharing, drag and drop, AirDrop, undo/redo, contextual menus, Quick Look previews of chess files, Dark Mode, high contrast support and more. - OPEN GAME FORMAT: Games can be shared, saved, copied, pasted, imported, exported in the ubiquitous, open source PGN and FEN formats. Deep Green can open chess files straight from the Files app. - UNIQUE CHESS ENGINE: Enjoyable opponent with adjustable strength, praised for its humane gameplay, developed for Deep Green on the Apple Newton more than 25 years ago. - TWEAKABLE APPEARANCE: Engage the knights in the game by having them turn towards the center of the board, apply a humane, slightly random placement of the pieces. - IN YOUR LANGUAGE: Available in English, German, and Danish. - MODERN ARCHITECTURE: Written in Swift as a fully native app – modern, maintainable, and prepared for the future. - PRIVATE, AD-FREE: No ads, no tracking, no analytics, no nonsense. If you like Deep Green, please rate it favorably on the App Store.
ChessPrep
Enhance your chess strategy with a powerful companion app. Build your repertoire from grandmaster moves, analyze opponent responses, and master tactics using a strong chess engine and spaced repetition.
- Build repertoire from grandmaster moves
- Analyze opponent responses by elo
- Stockfish 16 chess engine
- Spaced repetition system
- Position analysis and variation calculation
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ChessPrep is the ultimate chess companion designed to enhance your strategic prowess and elevate your game. Whether you're a beginner or a seasoned player, ChessPrep empowers you to: Build Your Repertoire: Choose from a curated list of masterful moves played by grandmasters. Opponent Insights: Analyze the most common responses from opponents in your elo range, giving you a strategic edge. Stockfish 16 with NNUE: Access a powerful chess engine directly within the app to analyze positions, calculate variations, and refine your understanding of the game. Spaced Repetition: Master your chosen moves through an intelligent spaced repetition system, ensuring optimal retention and application during your games. ChessPrep is not just an app; it's your key to unlocking a deeper understanding of chess and outplaying your opponents.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Deep Green at 3.9 against ChessPrep's 3.0. Deep Green also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 3) and review sentiment (66% vs 33%). ChessPrep's advantage is update cadence (every 3 days vs every 4 months) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 16.4). On price, ads 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. ChessPrep sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Deep Green asks for nothing beyond the download.
Deep Green holds the better App Store score, 3.9 against 3.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Deep Green has 76 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 66% of Deep Green's written reviews are positive against 33% of ChessPrep's.
Deep Green ships an update every 4 months, ChessPrep every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and September 30, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Deep Green | ChessPrep |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.9 (76 ratings) — better | 3.0 (2 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 66.0% of reviews — better | 33.3% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 76 — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months | Every 3 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Paid | Free with in-app purchases — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 16.4 | 12.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 24 MB | 109 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Cocoa Stuff | Stephen Papadatos |
Customer experience
Deep Green
ChessPrep
Bugs and requests
Deep Green
Reported bugs
4 issues- App crashes when promoting pawns
- Board orientation issues when rotating device
- Unresponsive UI elements
- Compatibility problems with newer iOS versions
Requested features
5 requests- Game saving and loading functionality
- Online/multiplayer mode
- Customizable board/piece themes
- Difficulty settings for beginners
- Indicators for check, checkmate, and draw
ChessPrep
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Deep Green
No in-app purchases
ChessPrep
- ChessButler Monthly Sub$0.991 Month
- ChessButler Yearly Sub$9.991 Year
- ChessButler Lifetime Premium$19.99
Questions
Is Deep Green free?
Is ChessPrep free?
Which has better reviews, Deep Green or ChessPrep?
Do Deep Green or ChessPrep have ads?
Which is updated more often, Deep Green or ChessPrep?
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