# Chess Premium vs Chess without ads

The clearest difference is price: Chess without ads at Free against Chess Premium's $9.99. Chess without ads also leads on update cadence (fortnightly vs every 3 months) and ratings volume (39K vs 5.4K). Chess Premium's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 7) and chart position (#30 vs unranked). On rating, ads, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Chess without ads is free to download; Chess Premium costs $9.99 up front. Chess without ads sells 7 in-app purchases, starting at $0.49 per 7 days. Chess Premium asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Chess Premium against 4.7 for Chess without ads. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Chess without ads has 39K ratings behind it against 5.4K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 80% of Chess Premium's written reviews are positive against 91% of Chess without ads's.

Chess Premium ships an update every 3 months, Chess without ads fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Chess Premium | Chess without ads |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $9.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | [4.7 (5.4K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/chess-premium/id311395924/reviews) | **[4.7 (39K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/chess-without-ads/id522314512/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 5.4K | **39K** |
| Positive reviews | 80.4% of reviews | **90.8% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | **Fortnightly** |
| Monetization | Paid | **Free with in-app purchases** |
| Best chart rank | **#30** | — |
| Size | 39 MB | 44 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 | **15.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Optime Software LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/289278460) | [Christophe Théron](https://appshunter.io/developer/423198262) |

## What reviewers say

### Chess Premium

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/chess-premium/id311395924)

**Currently charting:** #30 Top Paid · Board, #88 Top Paid · Strategy (US App Store)

Enjoy a classic chess experience without ads or internet. Play against a challenging AI with adjustable difficulty or a friend offline. Features stunning visuals, instant auto-saves, and undo support for uninterrupted gameplay.

**Highlights:** No ads or internet required, Adjustable AI difficulty levels, Offline two-player mode, Stunning Retina display visuals, Instant auto-save, Undo support and score tracking

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Great for practicing chess
- 🚀 Fast gameplay
- 💡 Adjustable difficulty levels
- 👍 Simple and intuitive interface
- 👍 No ads in premium version

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional bugs and glitches
- 🐛 Issues with detecting checkmate
- 🐛 Pawns moving incorrectly
- 🐛 Pieces disappearing from the board
- 🐛 Slow performance in premium version

**Reported bugs**

- Incorrect checkmate detection
- Pawns moving in illegal ways
- Pieces randomly disappearing
- Slow performance after upgrade
- Ads still showing after purchase

**Requested features**

- Option to turn off stalemate
- Ability to save and load games
- Notation or move history display
- More board and piece theme options
- Tutorials or strategic tips


### Chess without ads

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/chess-without-ads/id522314512)

Learn and play chess without distractions. This app offers guided lessons for beginners and advanced analysis for experts, helping you improve your game with intelligent suggestions and post-game reviews. Play offline and enjoy a seamless, ad-free experience.

**Highlights:** Ad-free learning and play, Introductory lessons for beginners, Grandmaster move suggestions, Game analysis with good/bad moves, Supports USCF and FIDE rating scales, Strong mobile chess engine, Offline play

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (7)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| PRO, 1 week | $0.49 | per 7 days |
| PRO, 1 month | $0.99 | per month |
| PRO, 3 months | $1.99 | per 3 months |
| Learn chess | $4.99 | one-time |
| PRO, for life (SALE!) | $9.99 | one-time |
| PRO, for life (regular price) | $12.99 | one-time |
| PRO FOR LIFE - TODAY ONLY | $14.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Excellent chess training tool
- 🚀 Customizable difficulty levels
- 💡 Helpful move suggestions
- 👍 Clean and intuitive interface
- 🚀 No ads or distractions

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🔒 Limited free version with paid upgrade
- 🐛 Occasional bugs and glitches
- 💡 Desire for more chess variants and modes
- 🔒 Aggressive prompts to upgrade to paid version

**Reported bugs**

- Freezing on the login screen
- Incompatibility with older devices
- Inconsistent behavior when running out of free credits

**Requested features**

- Add more chess variants (3-check, king of the hill, etc.)
- Provide more detailed game analysis and feedback
- Improve the en passant move functionality
- Add online/multiplayer capabilities


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Chess Premium free?

Chess Premium costs $9.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Chess without ads free?

Chess without ads is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Chess Premium or Chess without ads?

Chess without ads is rated higher. Chess Premium averages 4.7 out of 5 from 5.4K ratings, while Chess without ads averages 4.7 from 39K ratings.

### Do Chess Premium or Chess without ads have ads?

Neither Chess Premium nor Chess without ads shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Chess Premium or Chess without ads?

Chess Premium ships an update every 3 months, and Chess without ads fortnightly. Most recently, Chess Premium was updated on October 24, 2026 and Chess without ads on October 25, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*