Comparison

PopWords! vs Upwords

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

Head to head
About

PopWords!

Engage in a fun and addictive word-finding game with multiple play modes. Challenge yourself in timed classic mode, strategic puzzle mode, or a relaxing untimed practice mode. Compete daily and track your progress against others.

Highlights
  • Classic timed word finding
  • Strategic puzzle mode
  • Relaxing practice mode
  • Daily competition
  • Game Center leaderboards
  • Track records and averages
Features
Read full description

PopWords! is a simple and addictive word finding game. There are three different ways to play: Classic: Find words as fast as you can from an endless stream of letters. Finding words fast enough to keep the game going gets harder and harder as time passes. Try to reach the highest level you can! Then check out the leaderboards in Game Center and realize you've got a long way to go :) Puzzle: You only get one board full of letters, so use them wisely! Longer words will earn you more points, and clearing the board completely will double your points for the whole game. Play on your own or compete in our Daily Puzzle competition to your score compares to everyone else who played that day. You can even watch the winning solution! Practice: Relax with no timer and just try to find as many great words as you can! Features: • Easy to learn -- just drag to make words! • Daily Puzzle lets you compete against the world every day • Game center leaderboards and achievements • Tracks your records, averages, and all-time best words • Relaxing untimed Practice mode • A fun mental exercise to keep your brain sharp!

About

Upwords

This word stacking game challenges you to transform existing words by stacking letters on top. Score higher by stacking higher and outsmarting opponents. Play with friends, strangers, or against the computer.

Highlights
  • Stack letters to change words
  • Score points based on stacking height
  • Play with friends globally
  • Challenge computer opponents
  • Pass & Play mode
  • In-game chat
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

UPWORDS – The Stacking Word Game! UPWORDS is the classic 3D crossword game where you don’t just play words… you change them! Stack letters on top of existing words to transform them into new words, score more points the higher you stack, and outsmart your opponents. Why you’ll love it: - Fun, fast, and endlessly replayable - Play with friends around the world or challenge random opponents - Test yourself against the Computer (4 skill levels) - Pass & Play with family on one device - In-game chat keeps the competition lively UPWORDS is more than just fun — it keeps your brain sharp as you find clever ways to build and stack words. The higher you go, the higher you score! Download today and start stacking your way to victory. -- Terms of use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://www.upwords-app.com/privacy.html

Screenshots

PopWords!4 screens
Upwords4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Upwords at every 2 days against PopWords!'s every 3 months. Upwords also leads on chart position (#152 vs unranked). PopWords!'s advantage is review sentiment (85% vs 67%) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.6). On price, rating, ratings volume 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. PopWords! sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Upwords sells 12 in-app purchases, starting at $1.49 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 — 4.6 for PopWords! against 4.7 for Upwords. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 5.6K and 9.3K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 85% of PopWords!'s written reviews are positive against 67% of Upwords's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PopWords! ships an update every 3 months, Upwords every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 19, 2026 and October 20, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
PopWords! versus Upwords: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPopWords!Upwords
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (5.6K ratings)4.7 (9.3K ratings) — better
Positive reviews85.3% of reviews — better67.0% of reviews
Number of ratings5.6K9.3K — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsEvery 2 days — better
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank—#152 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS12.0 — better15.6
Further details — not scored
Size34 MB91 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSarah PierceLonely Star Software, Inc.

Customer experience

PopWords!

All ratings5,555 ratings
Positive92.5%
Neutral4.6%
Negative2.8%
Written reviews266 reviews
Positive85.3%
Neutral6.4%
Negative8.3%

Upwords

All ratings9,253 ratings
Positive94.2%
Neutral3.2%
Negative2.6%
Written reviews433 reviews
Positive67.0%
Neutral9.5%
Negative23.6%

User reviews

PopWords!

From 5.6K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🤓 Keeps brain active
  • ⏱️ Great daily challenge
  • 🧠 Improves vocabulary
  • 🕰️ Relaxing way to pass time
  • 🏆 Competitive element with leaderboards

Room to improve

  • 🕰️ Timer is too fast
  • 🤯 Frustrating when game ends prematurely
  • 🤖 Questionable word acceptance
  • 📢 Disruptive ads
  • 🔋 Drains battery quickly

Upwords

From 9.3K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Great online game
  • 🤝 Competitive and fun
  • 🧠 Keeps the brain active
  • 🌐 Connects players globally
  • 🕰️ Enjoyable to play daily

Room to improve

  • 🔤 Questionable dictionary
  • 🤖 Computer uses invalid words
  • 🤑 Expensive for a 50MB app
  • 🚫 Rejects valid words
  • 💤 Lack of help from developers

Bugs and requests

PopWords!

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Daily puzzle not updating
  • Game freezes or crashes
  • Incorrect scoring/leaderboard issues

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add more time options
  • Improve word dictionary
  • Implement an ad-free version
  • Add multi-player mode
  • Include a 'hint' feature

Upwords

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Ads that cannot be closed
  • Frequent crashes and freezes
  • Login and verification issues
  • Incorrect scoring and word validation

Requested features

5 requests
  • Option to use British dictionary
  • Choice of dictionaries
  • Ability to swap more than one letter
  • Show opponent's remaining tiles
  • Fairer letter distribution

In-app purchases

1 purchases

PopWords!

One-time1
  • Premium$2.99
12 purchases

Upwords

Subscriptions2
  • Premium Bundle Monthly7 Days trial$1.491 Month
  • Premium Bundle Yearly7 Days trial$11.991 Year
One-time10
  • Full Upgrade - Free!Free
  • Word Glow$1.99
  • 20 Tokens$1.99
Show 7 more
  • Medium Token Pack$4.99
  • 60 Tokens$4.99
  • 125 Tokens$9.99
  • Large Token Pack$9.99
  • 260 Tokens$19.99
  • Premium Bundle Lifetime$34.99
  • 610 Tokens$44.99

Questions

Is PopWords! free?
PopWords! is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Upwords free?
Upwords is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, PopWords! or Upwords?
Upwords is rated higher. PopWords! averages 4.6 out of 5 from 5.6K ratings, while Upwords averages 4.7 from 9.3K ratings.
Do PopWords! or Upwords have ads?
Both PopWords! and Upwords show ads.
Which is updated more often, PopWords! or Upwords?
PopWords! ships an update every 3 months, and Upwords every 2 days. Most recently, PopWords! was updated on October 19, 2026 and Upwords on October 20, 2026.

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