Pearl Diver vs Maphi
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Pearl Diver
Dive into the ocean to master the number line, including fractions and decimals, by collecting pearls. This educational game is designed by experts to align with Common Core standards for grades 3-8.
- Number line mastery
- Fractions and decimals
- Common Core alignment
- Progress tracking
- Educational game design
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Throw on your diving helmet, and head into the depths of the sea! Master the number line, including fractions and decimals, while gathering beautiful pearls. Will you find the elusive black pearl? • Ideal for elementary and middle school students, grades 3-8. Developed by mathematics educators, researchers, and game developers at the Learning Games Lab at New Mexico State University. Games developed by the Learning Games Lab undergo a rigorous instructional design process, extensive user testing, and input from learners, teachers, and researchers. Pearl Diver addresses Common Core standards relevant to the number line and properties of numbers, including: • Understanding numbers, ways of representing numbers, and number systems. • Understanding and representing commonly used fractions. • Understanding fractions as part of unit wholes and as locations on number lines. • Comparing and ordering fractions, and finding their approximate locations on the number line. Read about research documenting learning effectiveness of Math Snacks: http://mathsnacks.com/research.html Pearl Diver was developed as part of the "Math Snacks" initiative. Other free animations, activities, and games are available through the Math Snacks web site at http://mathsnacks.org. Math Snack materials were developed with support from the National Science Foundation (0918794 & 1503507). Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation. Some materials were originally prototyped or discussed as part of a cooperative agreement from the U.S. Department of Education (U295A050004).
Maphi
This app offers an interactive way to learn and solve mathematical problems. Users can manipulate expressions directly on screen to discover solutions, with a step-by-step guide available for assistance. Gamification elements make the learning process engaging.
- Interactive expression manipulation
- Touch, swipe, and drag controls
- Step-by-step guidance
- Gamification elements
- Arithmetic, Variables, Fractions
- Linear equations, Derivatives, Integrals
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Maphi makes understanding math easier than ever before! You can touch, swipe, and drag mathematical expressions to find your very own solutions to challenging mathematical problems. You’ll soon realise: The best way to understand Math, is to do it yourself. And the best way to do it yourself is with Maphi! Among others, the free version allows the full use of the following chapters: - Arithmetic - Variables - Fractions - Distributive Law - Linear equations The pro version contains the additional chapters: - Rational equations with linear terms - Systems of linear equations - Powers - Derivatives - Integrals Maphi is based on an advanced computer algebra system that has been optimized for ease of use and touch control. If you get stuck a step-by-step guide can be activated for immediate assistance. The unique didactic approach and gamification elements make learning math an interesting and fun experience. See https://www.maphi.app/tos for our general terms and conditions.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Pearl Diver at none against Maphi's 4. Pearl Diver also leads on ads (none vs shown) and rating (5.0 vs 4.6). Maphi's advantage is update cadence (fortnightly vs every 20 months) and review sentiment (93% vs 76%). On price 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. Maphi sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $2.49 per month. Pearl Diver asks for nothing beyond the download.
Pearl Diver holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Maphi has 39 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 76% of Pearl Diver's written reviews are positive against 93% of Maphi's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Pearl Diver ships an update every 20 months, Maphi fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 6, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Pearl Diver | Maphi |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better | 4.6 (39 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 76.2% of reviews | 93.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 2 | 39 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 20 months | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.6 | 10 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 28 MB | 72 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | New Mexico State University Board of Regents | Edutapps GmbH |
Customer experience
Pearl Diver
Maphi
Bugs and requests
Pearl Diver
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
Maphi
Reported bugs
3 issues- App freezes on the title screen
- App crashes immediately after starting on iPhone XS Max
- Integration by parts has u-substitution problems
Requested features
8 requests- More trigonometric functions (csc, sec, cot, arc sin, arc cos, arc tan)
- More calculus content (Calc II, Calc III)
- One-time payment option for premium features
- Randomly generated problems under a time limit
- Daily quizzes
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- Step-by-step explanations for problems
- Ability to set a comma in the formula editor
- Faster double-tap recognition for easier manipulation
In-app purchases
Pearl Diver
No in-app purchases
Maphi
- Maphi Pro 1 Month$2.491 Month
- Maphi Pro 6 Months$4.996 Months
- Maphi Pro 12 Months$6.991 Year
- Maphi Pro Lifetime$8.99









