Comparison

PANDANET(Go) vs Kifubara

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

Head to head
About

PANDANET(Go)

Play, view, and learn the ancient strategy game of Go on your mobile device. Connect with a global community, watch professional matches, and improve your skills with daily challenges and archived games.

Highlights
  • Real-time game viewing and play
  • Watch professional Go matches
  • Daily Go trivia questions
  • Social networking features
  • Match history and archives
  • Automated opponent matching
Features
Read full description

At long last, a free iOS-compatible Go app is now available through Pandanet! Approximately 80 thousand members from more than 150 countries use the Pandanet Go Match website and its world-class online Go Salon. Go is gaining popularity around the world as a "mind game," and now Pandanet brings it to your fingertips to be enjoyed at home or "on the go." == App Features == [Game Viewing] This feature allows you to display a list of users currently in rooms, view matches in real time, etc. If you have a Pandanet account already, you can play games. At least 1,000 members are logged in at all times, allowing you to play or view Go matches 24 hours a day, every day of the year. A perfect way to wile the time during commutes to work or school. Plus a reliable, patented rating system allows you to match up with anyone, regardless of skill differences, under the appropriate handicaps to even out the playing field. -------- [Pro Games] This feature enables you to view live or archived title matches between top professional Go players, including the Qisheng, Meijin, Honinbo, Oza, Gosei, and Judan matches. Various other professional matches, Pair Go championship games, and even amateur tournaments are available for live or archival viewing as well. -------- [News / Streaming] Go has been gaining worldwide popularity as an international "mind game". Pandanet features a stream of relevant, up-to-date Go-related information, including professional title match and amateur match information in real time. -------- [Invitation] Pressing "Invitation" at the bottom of the screen will display a list of potential opponents who you can invite to play in a match. You can also select "Any player", which has the computer automatically match you with an opponent who meets your conditions. Checking the "Received" box shows invitations received from other players, and checking the "Sent" box shows you details for invitations that you've sent out. -------- [Question-a-day] A question is asked each day, covering various genres. Questions are updated on a daily basis, allowing you to answer at your own leisure. Answering a little each day will surely improve your playing skills. -------- [Net Social Plaza] - Pandanet offers a "Social Plaza" (SNS) feature that includes the following services: - The option to view your own match history and records. - The option to join a community that interests you, and to socialize with other community members by posting on a forum and sending messages. -------- [Archive] Every match you've played can be saved to the software. You can also enter your own game records to store them, enter a variation diagram, etc. so that you can look through past matches anywhere at any time. -------- [Settings] You can change the following settings, or check app controls here. == Content unrelated to matches == - Account - Change status - Set info - Move room + Match-related content + - Show coordinates - Change autoplay speed - Confirm moves - Zoom out after move - Adjust volume * Layout features such as stones and boards can be customized in the iPad version. -------- == Intro to Pandanet Events & Tournaments == Pandanet holds a variety of Go tournaments and events. (1) SportAccord-Pandanet Cup Online Go Tournament The "SportAccord Go Online Tournament" and "Pandanet Cup Internet World Amateur Go Tournament" were combined to form this large-scale internet world Go tournament. It's held for classes ranging from indiscriminate to C Class, and awesome prizes are awarded to the champions in each class. Participation is free, so please take advantage of this unique opportunity to compete with Go fans from around the world. (2) Pandanet Go European Team Championship Five players, each representing a European country, play in team competition. (3) Pandanet-AGA City League Five players, each representing an American city, play in team competition. (Many more events are available as well. Check the website for details.) --------

About

Kifubara

Instantly scan any physical Go board with your camera to detect stones, count territory, and calculate scores. Supports both Chinese and Japanese rules, with options to manually adjust the position and export game data.

Highlights
  • Automatic stone detection from photos
  • Territory counting and scoring
  • Adjustable komi
  • Manual position editing
  • SGF export
  • Game library
Features
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Point your camera at any Go board and Kifubara reads the position, counts territory, and calculates the score — in seconds. No more counting by hand. Leave scoring to Kifubara. HOW IT WORKS Take a photo of your Go board or pick one from your gallery. Kifubara detects every stone, maps territory for both players, and scores the position under Chinese or Japanese rules. Review the result, adjust anything that needs fixing, and export. FEATURES • Automatic stone detection from a single photo • Territory counting and scoring under Chinese or Japanese rules • Adjustable komi • Mark dead stones and edit the position by hand • Deep analysis to refine scoring accuracy • Group strength and influence visualization • SGF export to share or study in your favorite Go app • Save and name games in your library BUILT FOR REAL BOARDS Kifubara is designed for the moment after you finish a game on a real board. Works with wood boards, printed boards, magnetic travel sets — any physical Go board. Just make sure all four corners are visible and the lighting is decent. Kifubara uses on-device machine learning. Your photos never leave your phone. Go. Baduk. Weiqi. Whatever you call it — Kifubara counts it.

Screenshots

PANDANET(Go)4 screens
Kifubara4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Kifubara at 100% against PANDANET(Go)'s 34%. Kifubara also leads on rating (4.6 vs 2.9) and in-app purchases (none vs 1). PANDANET(Go)'s advantage is ratings volume (33 vs 7) and iOS requirement (9.0 vs 16.0). On price, ads 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. PANDANET(Go) sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Kifubara asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Kifubara holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 2.9. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 33 and 7 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 34% of PANDANET(Go)'s written reviews are positive against 100% of Kifubara's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PANDANET(Go) ships an update every 2 months, Kifubara every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on November 7, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
PANDANET(Go) versus Kifubara: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPANDANET(Go)Kifubara
PriceFreeFree
Rating2.9 (33 ratings)4.6 (7 ratings) — better
Positive reviews33.8% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings33 — better7
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 2 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS9.0 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size5 MB148 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperPANDANET Inc.Artur Tamazian

Customer experience

PANDANET(Go)

All ratings31 ratings
Positive38.7%
Neutral25.8%
Negative35.5%
Written reviews133 reviews
Positive33.8%
Neutral15.0%
Negative51.1%

Kifubara

All ratings6 ratings
Positive83.3%
Neutral0.0%
Negative16.7%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

1 purchases

PANDANET(Go)

One-time1
  • 30 Days Registration$17.99
None

Kifubara

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is PANDANET(Go) free?
PANDANET(Go) is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Kifubara free?
Kifubara is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, PANDANET(Go) or Kifubara?
Kifubara is rated higher. PANDANET(Go) averages 2.9 out of 5 from 33 ratings, while Kifubara averages 4.6 from 7 ratings.
Do PANDANET(Go) or Kifubara have ads?
Neither PANDANET(Go) nor Kifubara shows ads.
Which is updated more often, PANDANET(Go) or Kifubara?
PANDANET(Go) ships an update every 2 months, and Kifubara every 2 days. Most recently, PANDANET(Go) was updated on November 7, 2026 and Kifubara on October 31, 2026.

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