iTavli vs Backgammon Live
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
iTavli
This app offers a vast collection of backgammon variations, allowing you to play against friends online or the computer. Enjoy features like chat, statistics, and customizable game settings for an enhanced backgammon experience.
- 15 backgammon variations
- Online multiplayer with friends
- Play against AI (3 difficulty levels)
- Chat functionality
- Tournament mode
- Detailed statistics
- Customizable chip colors and board layout
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Why do you play a single backgammon game, when you can play ALL backgammon games? Why do you play against the computer, when you can play with your FRIENDS from all over the world? Play against your friend or the computer (3 levels of difficulty) 15 backgammon like games: * Modern Backgammon (with the Doubling Cube) * Portes or Backgammon * LongGammon * Plakoto or Blockgammon: (You block your opponent's single checker when you land on it) * Plakoto Express * Fevga or Narde: (You can land your checkers on open or friendly occupied places) * Russian Narde * Khacapuri * Gul bara * Acey - Deucey (American) * Acey - Deucey (European) * Nackgammon * Tawla31 * Gioul * Moultezim * Set the winning score and play a tournament with your opponent Use the bluetooth to connect and play with your nearby friends OR Online Game (Please visit the website for instructions): - Play with your friends from all over the world!! - Chat with you friends!! - Select your opponent - Select the game you wish to play - Statistics - Be notified when your opponent is offline and back-online Extra Features: - Control chip's movement with tapping - Unlimited undo function (for each turn) - Realistic sound - Amazing graphics - Three different options for rolling the dice (auto-roll, tap to roll, shake to roll) - Statistics - Save the name of the player - Select and Save the color of the chips for the player and the opponent - Two ways to set up the board: left and right layout
Backgammon Live
Play backgammon online against real players with this app. It offers matches, tournaments, and chat features, supporting various internet connections. Learn strategies and master the game.
- Online backgammon matches
- Backgammon tournaments
- In-game chat
- Reconnection on internet loss
- Email games for analysis
- Backgammon rules and strategies
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With Backgammon Live, you can play online backgammon on iPad in HD and you can play on iPhone and iPod Touch as well. Internet connection required. Play internet backgammon games or matches or tournaments, chat, compete, make new friends! If you had an internet disconnection, Backgammon Live Online will reconnect you. You can use either WIFI or non-WIFI connection. Backgammon Live Online will play fine with 3G connection as well. Play single and multi-point backgammon matches, invite players or respond to invitations, email games to yourself for further analysis. Backgammon is not a game of luck as many perceive, but rather, a strategic visual game of war; in many ways it is as difficult to master as chess. Although an element of luck is involved, a skilled backgammon player uses intuition, calculations, creativity and psychology to beat the opponent. The goal in backgamon online is to move all own checkers into the home board and then bear them off (i.e. remove them from the backgammon board). The first backgammon player to remove all of his checkers wins the backgammon game. The Help section of Backgammon Live Online presents rules and strategies for backgammon. You will learn the best ways to play your opening rolls, how to Build a Blockade, how to Establish Anchors, how to Optimize Distribution of Checkers and how to Reduce 'Good' Rolls for the Opponent. The backgammon strategies section describes When to Expose Checkers vs. When to Consolidate Them and how to make a decision When to Hit or not to Hit opponent's backgammon checker. Although backgammon is a very old game, it still continues to fascinate its numerous fans around the globe. It is no wonder that nowadays there are many spellings and acronyms of the game's name. Backgammon can be referred to as: gammon, backgamon and even baggamon, baggammon and bagamon and bagammon! In Greece and Turkey, backgammon is known as tavla. In Iran and Russia, they call backgammon nardi. If backgammon were strictly a game of chance, players would only be expected to win on average just about one half of their games. Yet, just like in chess, stronger backgammon players consistently win games against backgammon newbies. There is a lot more skill required in backgammon than just rolling the dice and mindlessly racing checkers around the board! Backgammon Live Online app won't bedazzle you with currently fashionable 3D graphics. However, you’ll discover that this online backgammon app is a fast-paced and at the same time comfortable, relaxing and familiar parlor game of old. Backgammon Live Online offers an authentic backgammon experience in an online backgammon club where you can chat, play and compete against other real players on the net and fall in love with this board game that’s been played for thousands of years. Do you know the difference between 'gammon' and 'backgammon' in backgammon matches? A gammon is a completed game of backgammon in which the losing player has not borne off any checkers. A gammon is also called a double game because the winner receives twice the value of the doubling cube. A backgammon is a completed game of backgammon in which the losing player has not borne off any checkers and still has one or more checkers on the bar or in the winner's home board. A backgammon is also called a triple game because the winner receives three times the value of the doubling cube.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Backgammon Live at 79% against iTavli's 43%. Backgammon Live also leads on rating (4.0 vs 3.7). 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. iTavli sells 12 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per year and Backgammon Live sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Backgammon Live holds the better App Store score, 4.0 against 3.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 55 and 139 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 43% of iTavli's written reviews are positive against 79% of Backgammon Live's.
Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and October 16, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | iTavli | Backgammon Live |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.7 (55 ratings) | 4.0 (139 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 42.9% of reviews | 79.3% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 55 | 139 — better |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Monthly |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 | 15.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 72 MB | 40 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 17+ |
| Developer | i-SmartSolutions | BPS Software |
Customer experience
iTavli
Backgammon Live
User reviews
iTavli
From 55 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🎮 Comprehensive game variants (Portes, Plakoto, Fevga, Acey-Deucey)
- 🌐 Online multiplayer functionality with global players
- 🎯 Good for learning multiple backgammon variations
- 🎨 Stylish and attractive user interface design
- 👥 Ability to play tournaments with all three games in sequence
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and freezes during gameplay
- 🐛 Game-breaking bugs affecting piece placement and movement
- 🤖 Weak AI opponent at all difficulty levels
- 🐛 Illegal moves allowed (extra moves on doubles, pieces moving backwards)
- 📊 Unfair difficulty scaling (relies on dice luck rather than strategy)
Backgammon Live
From 139 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Competitive and fun gameplay
- 🌐 Ability to play with players worldwide
- 🎨 Great graphics and visuals
- ⚖️ Fair and unbiased dice rolls
- 💰 Opportunities to earn prizes and tickets
Room to improve
- 🐛 Occasional connection issues and crashes
- 💤 Slow game progression and move animations
- 📢 Excessive in-app advertisements
- 🤖 Suspicions of bots or rigged gameplay
- 💸 Concerns about the fairness of paid features
Bugs and requests
iTavli
Reported bugs
18 issues- App crashes during gameplay, especially in tournament mode
- Pieces disappear or become invisible when stacked
- Opponent's pieces land on player's pieces and stall game
- Illegal moves allowed (extra moves on doubles, moving backwards)
- Game freezes when online opponent disconnects
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- Undo function only works for first move
- Game selection doesn't match what loads (Plakoto/Fevga confusion)
- Checker stuck in place for extended periods
- Board state inconsistency between players
- App won't respond to play button
- Game hangs waiting for online player acceptance
- Crashes when finishing online games
- Sluggish performance after multiple games
- Dice rolls appear biased or unfair
- In-app purchases not registering properly
- Game becomes unresponsive mid-game
- Pieces move illegally in Acey-Deucey variant
- Tournament mode freezes at Fevga (third game)
Requested features
17 requests- Improved AI difficulty with better strategic gameplay
- Resign button for early game exit
- Reliable undo/confirm button for moves
- Tournament save/resume functionality
- Sound effects and dice rolling audio
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- Authentic kafenio background ambiance
- Player rating and statistics system
- Move timer for online games
- Bluetooth connectivity between devices
- Customizable board colors and checker colors
- Better online player discovery and filtering
- In-game contact/support option
- Auto-finish when neither player can capture
- Faster online game responsiveness
- Right-aligned default board setup option
- Headphone compatibility
- Improved graphics and animation speed
Backgammon Live
Reported bugs
4 issues- Login and account issues
- Freezing or black screens
- Inconsistent dice rolls and game outcomes
- Inability to close or exit advertisements
Requested features
5 requests- Ability to play against friends or in private rooms
- More customization options for the game interface
- Improved chat functionality and sportsmanship
- Better matchmaking based on player skill levels
- Offline or single-player mode for practice
In-app purchases
iTavli
- Annual Subscription3 Days trial$4.991 Year
- Get 1000 coins for $1.99$1.99
- Get 3000 coins for $2.99$2.99
- Get 10000 coins for $4.99$4.99
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- The Plakoto (or Blockgammon) game$5.99
- The Fevga (or Narde) game$5.99
- Purchase the Acey Deucey (Amercan) game$5.99
- Purchase the Gulbara game$5.99
- Purchase the Acey Deucey (European) game$5.99
- Purchase the Tawla 31 game$5.99
- Purchase Russian Narde game$5.99
- Purchase Plakoto Express game$5.99
Backgammon Live
- Set of 2 $Tickets$2.99
- Set of 7 $Tickets$9.99
- Set of 15 $Tickets$17.99
Questions
Is iTavli free?
Is Backgammon Live free?
Which has better reviews, iTavli or Backgammon Live?
Do iTavli or Backgammon Live have ads?
Which is updated more often, iTavli or Backgammon Live?
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