SimpleChess vs ChessM8
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
SimpleChess
Engage in a straightforward and rapid chess experience. Compete globally, customize your board and pieces, and track your ELO ranking. Enhance your skills with tactical training and puzzle battles.
- Online multiplayer chess
- Customizable chessboards and pieces
- Tactical training modules
- Puzzle battles
- ELO ranking tracking
- Chess960 variant
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Play chess online - it's that simple! Simple, practical and fast, SimpleChess makes playing chess as easy as child's play! • It's free! • Compete against opponents from all over the world • Customize your chessboard, with 20 piece types and 40 chessboard designs • 10 different themes (5 dark, 5 light) • Choose your game rating: fast, blitz, bullet, or create the rating of your choice • Track your progress with your ELO ranking • Make progress with our tactical training modules • Challenge other players to a puzzle battle • Play Chess960, a variant of the chess game • Earn XP experience points with every game Become a member and enjoy additional features: • Analyze your games by computer • Find your friends easily • And enjoy full access to our training modules!
ChessM8
Engage in correspondence chess with players globally. Plan your moves, communicate with opponents, and invite others to spectate your matches. Receive post-game analysis from a computer engine.
- Correspondence chess play
- Global player matchmaking
- Move planning tools
- In-game chat functionality
- Spectator mode for games
- Post-game computer analysis
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This app allows players around the world to play correspondence chess. It allows players to plan moves, chat with each other, invite others to watch games. It also provides a computer analysis after games are completed.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: ChessM8 at 100% against SimpleChess's 53%. ChessM8 also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.0) and in-app purchases (none vs 8). SimpleChess's advantage is iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.6). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and ads 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. SimpleChess sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. ChessM8 asks for nothing beyond the download.
ChessM8 holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 8 and 15 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 53% of SimpleChess's written reviews are positive against 100% of ChessM8's.
SimpleChess ships an update every 8 days, ChessM8 every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 20, 2026 and August 18, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | SimpleChess | ChessM8 |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.0 (8 ratings) | 5.0 (15 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 52.7% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 8 | 15 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 8 days — better | Every 2 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 — better | 15.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 82 MB | 46 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Europe Echecs | Corneliu Lupu |
Customer experience
SimpleChess
ChessM8
In-app purchases
SimpleChess
- Essential Pack (Monthly plan)$2.991 Month
- Premium Pack (Monthly plan)$3.991 Month
- Essential Pack (Annual Plan)$24.991 Year
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- Premium Pack (Annual Plan)$34.991 Year
- 1 month extend$0.99
- 3 months extend$1.99
- 6 month extend$3.99
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- 1 year extend$5.99
ChessM8
No in-app purchases
