Comparison

Pinochle vs Canasta.

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

Head to head
About

Pinochle

Experience a full-featured card game with configurable options for single- or double-deck play. Enjoy bidding, melding, and trick-taking against AI opponents. Updates include user-suggested features and AI improvements.

Highlights
  • Single- or double-deck play
  • Configurable bidding options
  • Meld bids and shoot the moon
  • Play with AI opponents
  • User-suggested features
  • AI improvements
Features
Read full description

Full-featured, ad-supported pinochle app for iPhone and iPad. Play single- or double-deck with configurable options including meld bids and shoot the moon. Pinochle is updated frequently with user-suggested features and AI improvements. Also available in the App Store is a paid version with NO advertising. Pinochle is a card game played with a 48- or 80-card deck of 9s, 10s, jacks, queens, kings and aces. The game consists of a repeating sequence of bidding (for the right to name the trump suit and optionally to pass cards), melding, and trick-taking. Players score points by melding various card combinations and by taking tricks. In this version, one human player (South) plays with a computer partner (North) and two computer opponents (West and East). BIDDING: Each player bids the number of points she thinks she can make with her hand. Player to the dealer's left is required to bid, and bidding proceeds to the left. Players who pass are out of the bidding for that hand. A typical high bid is 35 points (for 48 cards) or 60 (for 80 cards). High bidder names the trump suit for the hand and optionally exchanges cards with her partner. MELDING: Players get points by showing various card combinations. A run (or straight) in the trump suit is worth 15 points. Aces in all four suits is 10 points. Pinochle (queen of spades and jack of diamonds) is 4 points, or 30 points for double pinochle (two of each). TRICKS: Play begins with the high bidder, and proceeds around the table to the left, 4 cards per trick. Each trick has a winner, who gets 1 point per ace, ten or king. SCORING: If the high bidder fails to make the bid (his team's total meld plus trick points is less than the bid), the bid amount is subtracted from the team score. Play continues until one team goes out.

About

Canasta.

Experience the strategic card game of the rummy family, featuring joker cards for unpredictable gameplay. Form melds, create canastas, and aim for 5000 points to win team rounds.

Highlights
  • Rummy family card game
  • Joker cards for unpredictability
  • Team play against computer
  • Forming melds and canastas
  • Scoring to 5000 points
Read full description

Canasta is the popular card game of the rummy family also known as Argentine Rummy. Use of joker cards makes the game unpredictable and very challenging. You play as a team with computer opponent against computer team. Pick up cards and fit them into groups (melds). Group of seven cards called canasta and allows team to finish the round. Points go for the melds, the first team scoring 5000 points wins.

Screenshots

Pinochle4 screens
Canasta.4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Pinochle at none against Canasta.'s 12. Canasta.'s advantage is ads (none vs shown) and review sentiment (71% vs 54%). 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. Canasta. sells 12 one-off in-app purchases. Pinochle asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Pinochle against 4.7 for Canasta.. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 27K and 25K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 54% of Pinochle's written reviews are positive against 71% of Canasta.'s.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Pinochle ships an update monthly, Canasta. every 2 months. Both last shipped on October 31, 2026.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Pinochle versus Canasta.: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPinochleCanasta.
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (27K ratings)4.7 (25K ratings) — better
Positive reviews53.9% of reviews70.7% of reviews — better
Number of ratings27K — better25K
Update frequencyMonthly — betterEvery 2 months
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationAd-supported — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.0 — better15.6
Further details — not scored
Size38 MB35 MB
Age rating4+4+
Developerfishdog.netSergey Skosyrev

Customer experience

Pinochle

All ratings26,515 ratings
Positive94.6%
Neutral3.0%
Negative2.4%
Written reviews165 reviews
Positive53.9%
Neutral17.6%
Negative28.5%

Canasta.

All ratings25,130 ratings
Positive94.0%
Neutral3.5%
Negative2.5%
Written reviews659 reviews
Positive70.7%
Neutral10.3%
Negative19.0%

User reviews

Pinochle

From 27K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Great pastime
  • 🚀 Helps improve playing skills
  • 👍 Enjoyable game
  • 👍 Configurable settings
  • 👍 Minimal ads

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Unrealistic meld and opponent hands
  • 🐛 Poor partner AI and bidding
  • 🐛 Opponents often get advantageous cards
  • 🐛 Algorithms seem to favor opponents
  • 🐛 Partner makes questionable plays

Canasta.

From 25K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🎮 Great game
  • 🧠 Mentally stimulating
  • 🕰️ Relaxing and enjoyable
  • 💰 No ads or in-app purchases
  • 🕹️ Smooth gameplay

Room to improve

  • 🤖 Incompetent AI partner
  • 🤔 Questionable game logic and rule implementation
  • 🔢 Inconsistent scoring and card interactions
  • 🧠 Lacks challenge at higher difficulty levels
  • 🤑 Paywall for better opponents

Bugs and requests

Pinochle

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Partner passing poor cards instead of trumps
  • Partner overbidding or underbidding
  • Opponents getting unrealistic meld hands
  • Computer players making suboptimal plays

Requested features

4 requests
  • Ability to set minimum bid value
  • Partner bidding and play options
  • More realistic card dealing
  • Online multiplayer mode

Canasta.

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Partner ignores player's instructions
  • Opponents get unrealistic card draws
  • Incorrect implementation of Canasta rules
  • Game freezes or crashes unexpectedly

Requested features

5 requests
  • Online multiplayer mode
  • Customizable difficulty levels
  • Ability to choose partner skill level
  • Clearer display of canasta information
  • Option to play 2-player version

In-app purchases

None

Pinochle

No in-app purchases

12 purchases

Canasta.

One-time12
  • 1000 diamonds$0.99
  • Cards from deck$1.99
  • 2200 diamonds$1.99
Show 9 more
  • Win Points$2.99
  • 3400 diamonds$2.99
  • 4700 diamonds$3.99
  • Partner difficulty$4.99
  • Opponents difficulty$4.99
  • 6000 diamonds$4.99
  • 8500 diamonds$6.99
  • Advanced Features$9.99
  • 12500 diamonds$9.99

Questions

Is Pinochle free?
Pinochle is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Canasta. free?
Canasta. is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Pinochle or Canasta.?
Canasta. is rated higher. Pinochle averages 4.7 out of 5 from 27K ratings, while Canasta. averages 4.7 from 25K ratings.
Do Pinochle or Canasta. have ads?
Pinochle shows ads; Canasta. does not.
Which is updated more often, Pinochle or Canasta.?
Pinochle ships an update monthly, and Canasta. every 2 months. Most recently, Pinochle was updated on October 31, 2026 and Canasta. on October 31, 2026.

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