Comparison

Sudoku vs Microsoft Sudoku

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

Head to head
About

Sudoku

Engage your mind with this classic Japanese logic puzzle. Offers multiple difficulty levels, customizable backgrounds, and unique emoji number options. Track progress and compete with others.

Highlights
  • Four difficulty settings
  • Customizable background colors
  • Emoji number option
  • Duplicate highlighting
  • Unlimited Undo/Redo
  • Autosave functionality
  • Leaderboards and achievements
  • Note-taking feature
Features
Read full description

Train your brain anytime—and anywhere—with Sudoku :), the classic Japanese logic puzzle game. Playing Sudoku on your mobile device is fun & easy! Now you can take your favorite Japanese game wherever you go. Give your mind a workout with advanced difficulty, or play easier levels to exercise your brain. The Sudoku :) app offers access to many fun features. Game features: ● Play Sudoku games with four different difficulty settings: Easy, Medium, Hard & Expert ● Personalize your gameplay with custom background colors ● Switch numbers to emojis for a fun new way to play ● Highlight duplicates to avoid repeating numbers in rows, columns & blocks ● Use unlimited Undo & Redo actions ● Stop & resume the game anytime with Autosave ● Track your scores & completion times against top Sudoku players with leaderboards and achievements ● Keep track of possible numbers in the grid with Note-taking ● See your progress with Logic Puzzles Completed and Top Completion Times With user-friendly boards, this Sudoku puzzle game is rated one of the top brain games. Whether you are new to this classic puzzle game or you’ve been playing for years, give yourself a fun & challenging game experience with Sudoku :) everywhere you go. Download Sudoku :) on your iPhone & iPad today We hope you enjoy playing Sudoku :) Questions or feedback, please email us at contact@maplemedia.io for fast & friendly support. Brought to you by Maple Media. Visit us at https://maplemedia.io. Terms of Service and Subscription Terms: https://maplemedia.io/terms-of-service/ Privacy Policy: https://maplemedia.io/privacy/ - Level up your Sudoku experience with the Sudoku Membership subscription! Enjoy Ad-free game play, customize with unique backgrounds and mix it up with the new Emoji grid! - Once subscribed, payment will be charged to iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase if you subscribe - Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period - Account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period, and identify the cost of the subscription's renewal - Subscriptions may be managed by the user and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user's Account Settings after purchase.

About

Microsoft Sudoku

Enjoy classic and unique Sudoku puzzles with adjustable difficulty. Engage in daily challenges, track your progress, and customize your gameplay with various themes and settings. An optional premium subscription removes ads and unlocks past challenges.

Highlights
  • Classic and Irregular Sudoku modes
  • 6 difficulty levels
  • Daily Challenges with badges
  • Multiple themes and symbol options
  • Note-taking and mistake erasing
  • Cloud save and Xbox Live achievements
  • Progress tracking and statistics
Read full description

Relax and keep your mind sharp with a game of Microsoft Sudoku, the world’s best Sudoku app. Classic: Play puzzles you’ve come to love now with 6 difficulty levels to choose from! Elegant, clean and intellectually stimulating. Play at your leisure where every puzzle is freshly generated giving you a never-ending supply of unique classic Sudoku games to play. Irregular: Try a whole new take on Sudoku! Rules are the same but the blocks have irregular shapes. You might not ever go back to the classic way of playing again! It’s cool to be Irregular. Daily Challenges: Play 3 unique challenges every day, collect coins and win badges! Classic, Irregular and an all new Ice Breaker game mode! In Ice Breaker placing correct numbers sends shockwaves across the board that break the ice. Give it a try, it’s a breeze! Features… • Freshly generated puzzles every game across 6 levels of difficulty for Classic and Irregular Sudoku • 3 new Daily Challenges every day • Multiple different themes to choose from. Are you a visual person? Try the Charms theme that uses symbols instead of numbers and can be played in any game mode! • Take notes like you would like you did on paper that get automatically updated each time you fill in a cell. • Made a mistake? No problem just erase it • Sign in with a Microsoft account to earn Xbox Live achievements and save your progress in the cloud across all your Apple devices. • Track your Statistics for all game modes including your Best Time, Average Time, and Games Played. • Customize the way you play with tons of settings including Block Duplicates, Show Mistakes, Show All Notes, and more! • Play by choosing a square first or a number first. Any input method works! • Pick up right where you left off, your classic and irregular puzzle progress is saved when you close the app! Upgrade to Premium on iPhone and iPad. You can purchase the Microsoft Sudoku Premium Subscription for $1.99 per Month or $9.99 per Year. Benefits that come with a Premium Subscription include: • Removing advertisements from your game • Play Daily Challenges from previous months NOTE: Premium Subscription grants premium experience on mobile only. It is non-transferrable to other platforms. Payment will be charged to your iTunes Account on confirmation of purchase. Subscription automatically renews monthly or annually depending on the subscription type purchased. Payment will be charged to your iTunes Account within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period ($1.99 monthly, or $9.99 annually, depending on the subscription type purchased). You can turn off your auto-renewal by going to your Account Settings after purchase. If auto-renewal is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period, you will not be charged for the next period. All cancellations will take effect at the end of the current period. © Microsoft 2025. All Rights Reserved. Microsoft, Microsoft Casual Games, the product logos and Sudoku, and the Sudoku logos are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Acceptance of Microsoft Services Agreement and Privacy Statement are required to play. (https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/servicesagreement, https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/privacy/privacystatement) Microsoft account registration required for cross-platform play. Game offers in-app purchases. Persistent internet connection required. Features, online services and system requirements may vary by country and are subject to change or retirement over time.

Screenshots

Sudoku4 screens
Microsoft Sudoku4 screens

Verdict

The call

Sudoku and Microsoft Sudoku both sit at 4.7 stars, but that hides the real split: 65% of Sudoku's written reviews are positive against 37% of Microsoft Sudoku's. Sudoku also leads on update cadence (monthly vs every 2 months) and ratings volume (59K vs 7.5K). Microsoft Sudoku's advantage is iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.0). On price, rating, ads and in-app purchases 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. Sudoku sells 11 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month and Microsoft Sudoku sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Sudoku against 4.7 for Microsoft Sudoku. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Sudoku has 59K ratings behind it against 7.5K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 65% of Sudoku's written reviews are positive against 37% of Microsoft Sudoku's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Sudoku ships an update monthly, Microsoft Sudoku every 2 months. Both last shipped on October 28, 2026.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Sudoku versus Microsoft Sudoku: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSudokuMicrosoft Sudoku
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (59K ratings) — better4.7 (7.5K ratings)
Positive reviews65.0% of reviews — better37.3% of reviews
Number of ratings59K — better7.5K
Update frequencyMonthly — betterEvery 2 months
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.012.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size147 MB153 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperMaple Media Apps, LLCMicrosoft Corporation

Customer experience

Sudoku

All ratings59,043 ratings
Positive93.8%
Neutral3.7%
Negative2.4%
Written reviews635 reviews
Positive65.0%
Neutral6.5%
Negative28.5%

Microsoft Sudoku

All ratings7,407 ratings
Positive93.6%
Neutral2.3%
Negative4.1%
Written reviews496 reviews
Positive37.3%
Neutral15.5%
Negative47.2%

User reviews

Sudoku

From 59K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Great game
  • 👍 User-friendly interface
  • 📊 Tracks stats and times
  • 💡 Useful features like pencil mode
  • 🧠 Challenges the brain

Room to improve

  • 🔍 Intrusive ads
  • 💰 Expensive ad-free version
  • 🐛 Crashes and freezes
  • 🔋 Battery draining
  • 🔇 Disrupts audio playback

Microsoft Sudoku

From 7.5K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Intuitive and fast gameplay
  • 🔒 Robust security features
  • 👍 Variety of puzzle types
  • 👍 Customizable options
  • 👍 Great for beginners and experts

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent crashes and freezes
  • 🔋 Ads play audio even in silent mode
  • 🔋 Excessive ads and intrusive monetization
  • 🐛 Progress not saving properly
  • 🐛 Compatibility issues on certain devices

Bugs and requests

Sudoku

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Numbers getting stuck/grayed out
  • Inconsistent difficulty levels
  • Display issues on newer devices
  • Crashes after updates

Requested features

5 requests
  • Dark mode option
  • Customizable color themes
  • Option to disable number highlighting
  • Reset button that fully clears the board
  • More granular difficulty levels

Microsoft Sudoku

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Daily challenge progress not syncing across devices
  • Levels and scores resetting unexpectedly
  • App getting stuck on loading screens
  • Ads hijacking device controls and interrupting background audio

Requested features

5 requests
  • Landscape mode support for tablets
  • More customization options for notes and highlighting
  • Ability to replay past daily challenges
  • Improved undo/redo functionality
  • Autofill or auto-complete options for advanced players

In-app purchases

11 purchases

Sudoku

Subscriptions10
  • Premium Monthly$0.991 Month
  • Premium Monthly$1.991 Month
  • Sudoku Apps Bundle$7.991 Month
Show 7 more
  • Premium Annual$8.991 Year
  • Sudoku Membership$14.991 Year
  • Sudoku Bundle1 Month trial$14.991 Month
  • Premium Annual$14.991 Year
  • Sudoku Apps Bundle$64.991 Year
  • Sudoku Apps Bundle$99.991 Year
  • Sudoku Bundle1 Year trial$129.991 Year
One-time1
  • Disable Ads$24.99
2 purchases

Microsoft Sudoku

Subscriptions2
  • Premium Monthly Subscription$1.991 Month
  • Premium Yearly Subscription$9.991 Year

Questions

Is Sudoku free?
Sudoku is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Microsoft Sudoku free?
Microsoft Sudoku is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Sudoku or Microsoft Sudoku?
Sudoku is rated higher. Sudoku averages 4.7 out of 5 from 59K ratings, while Microsoft Sudoku averages 4.7 from 7.5K ratings.
Do Sudoku or Microsoft Sudoku have ads?
Both Sudoku and Microsoft Sudoku show ads.
Which is updated more often, Sudoku or Microsoft Sudoku?
Sudoku ships an update monthly, and Microsoft Sudoku every 2 months. Most recently, Sudoku was updated on October 28, 2026 and Microsoft Sudoku on October 28, 2026.

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