Comparison

Chess ∙ vs Chess Notation Trainer

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

Head to head
About

Chess ∙

Experience a visually appealing and engaging chess game on your iPhone and iPod Touch. Play against friends or a customizable AI opponent with features like undo and automatic saving. Enjoy a free, ad-supported experience.

Highlights
  • 1 and 2 player gameplay
  • Challenging computer opponent
  • Great graphics and sound
  • Configurable difficulty
  • Undo function
  • Automatic save
Features
Read full description

Are you tired of playing chess games that look like they were designed for a Commodore 64 instead of an iPhone? We've got the antidote for you. Chess Free is the best chess game for the iPhone and iPod Touch, and it's free! Chess Free supports both 1 player and 2 player gameplay, so you can play against friends or test your skills against a challenging computer opponent. Chess Free offers a host of exciting features, including: * Great graphics and exciting sound effects * Configurable player names and score tracking * Outstanding AI engine with configurable difficulty level * Board rotation for two player games * Undo function * Automatic save when you get a phone call or exit the application Chess Free is supported by unobtrusive banner advertising. Chess Premium is the same great app without the ads.

About

Chess Notation Trainer

Master chess squares and notation with this training app. Improve your ability to identify coordinates, translate moves, and visualize the board, even without one. Ideal for serious players looking to enhance calculation speed and chess understanding.

Highlights
  • Identify squares by coordinate
  • Translate move sequences to notation
  • Determine square color instantly
  • Stay oriented on the board
  • Follow chess tutorials without a board
  • Speed up calculation
  • Practice blind chess
Features
Read full description

Serious about chess? But struggling to identify the squares, remembering sequences and follow chess notations? Well, you just landed on the perfect app! This training app is designed to dramatically uplift your mastery over chess squares. There are 5 training sessions. A small dose of regular practice will make you: 1. Spot a square as soon as you hear or see its coordinate 2. Translate a sequence of moves into their notation at ease 3. Immediately identify the color of a square 4. Stay oriented regardless of you facing white or black 5. Follow along with chess tutorials, books or any discussion without a board 6. Massively speedup your thought process on any calculation 7. Finally, start playing blind chess! Don't be surprised if you see a sudden surge of rating simply increasing your strength on square reading. The free version is already good enough to cause a major spike in your chess career. However, a one time purchase will unlock the full version which includes: - Extended time controls - Untimed practice mode - Milestones and achievements - Board assistance during training - And a complete visualization of your records There will be no ads, neither in the full version nor in the free one. Just a beautiful and satisfyingly addictive way to your square mastery. Caution: If you are rated below 1500, this app is probably not gonna be as useful for you, and tactics training is something you should prioritize.

Screenshots

Chess ∙4 screens
Chess Notation Trainer4 screens

Verdict

The call

Chess ∙ and Chess Notation Trainer both sit at 4.5 stars, but that hides the real split: 100% of Chess Notation Trainer's written reviews are positive against 57% of Chess ∙'s. Chess Notation Trainer also leads on ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (every 2 days vs every 4 months). Chess ∙'s advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and ratings volume (205K vs 16). On price, rating 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. Chess Notation Trainer sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Chess ∙ asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.5 for Chess ∙ against 4.5 for Chess Notation Trainer. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Chess ∙ has 205K ratings behind it against 16, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 57% of Chess ∙'s written reviews are positive against 100% of Chess Notation Trainer's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Chess ∙ ships an update every 4 months, Chess Notation Trainer every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and September 7, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard8 real differences · 3 level
Chess ∙ versus Chess Notation Trainer: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterChess ∙Chess Notation Trainer
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (205K ratings)4.5 (16 ratings)
Positive reviews56.9% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings205K — better16
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsEvery 2 days — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationAd-supported — betterFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#81 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS12.0 — better18.6
Further details — not scored
Size84 MB26 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperOptime Software LLCNishat Majid

Customer experience

Chess ∙

All ratings204,953 ratings
Positive87.8%
Neutral5.4%
Negative6.8%
Written reviews2,579 reviews
Positive56.9%
Neutral7.1%
Negative36.1%

Chess Notation Trainer

All ratings15 ratings
Positive86.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative13.3%
Written reviews6 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Chess ∙

Reported bugs

10 issues
  • Rook being able to move diagonally
  • Stalemate glitch where it will preemptively call stalemate before it even happens
  • Call stalemate when only the king can't move, and the other pieces can still move
  • Pieces move too fast
  • Doesn't allow en-passant moves by pawns
Show 5 more
  • Refuses to allow legitimate win, claims draw instead
  • Doesn't recognize stalemate
  • Doesn't recognize checkmate
  • Pieces disappearing
  • Illegal moves by the AI

Requested features

6 requests
  • Undo from stalemate
  • Highland opponents last move in green and my last move in blue
  • Allow a third level of zoom to fill the screen
  • Display a numeric value when difficulty slider is moved
  • Ability to turn off safety where you can't move king to where it would get taken out
Show 1 more
  • Ability to turn off draw by stalemate rule

Chess Notation Trainer

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Chess ∙

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Chess Notation Trainer

One-time1
  • Full Version$4.99

Questions

Is Chess ∙ free?
Chess ∙ is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Chess Notation Trainer free?
Chess Notation Trainer is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Chess ∙ or Chess Notation Trainer?
Chess ∙ and Chess Notation Trainer are both rated 4.5 out of 5 on the App Store, from 205K and 16 ratings respectively.
Do Chess ∙ or Chess Notation Trainer have ads?
Chess ∙ shows ads; Chess Notation Trainer does not.
Which is updated more often, Chess ∙ or Chess Notation Trainer?
Chess ∙ ships an update every 4 months, and Chess Notation Trainer every 2 days. Most recently, Chess ∙ was updated on September 25, 2026 and Chess Notation Trainer on September 7, 2026.

Other comparisons