Chess without ads vs Really Bad Chess
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Chess without ads
Learn and play chess without distractions. This app offers guided lessons for beginners and advanced analysis for experts, helping you improve your game with intelligent suggestions and post-game reviews. Play offline and enjoy a seamless, ad-free experience.
- Ad-free learning and play
- Introductory lessons for beginners
- Grandmaster move suggestions
- Game analysis with good/bad moves
- Supports USCF and FIDE rating scales
- Strong mobile chess engine
- Offline play
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Beginner or advanced, become a chess master, without ever being disturbed by ads. Do you want to master the most prestigious, the classiest game ever, while having fun? It's EASY! For starters, there are no ads to distract you. There's no account to create, and you don't even need to be connected to the Internet. So, how does it work? If you are a beginner, let yourself be guided by the introductory lessons included. The lessons are SHORT and EASY. Right from the start, you begin playing by moving pieces, and you learn the rules of the game while having fun. The first 40 lessons are free. Once you know the rules, you start playing real games! The coach shows you the moves a Grandmaster would pick. Not just one move, but THE 4 BEST MOVES. Sounds too simple? But think about it... How did you learn to speak as a child? Did you take grammar and spelling lessons? Of course not. You listened to the adults talk and then you went for it! Because that's how you learn! This app allows you to do just that, AND IT WORKS! From the very first games, you start learning effortlessly. You immediately enjoy playing, and after a while you notice that the right moves come to mind naturally, as if they were obvious. Gradually, you deactivate the suggestions and play by yourself. At the end of each game, the coach shows you the good and bad moves you've made. You can better understand what happened, and you can even try out other moves to improve. If this sounds unbelievable, you should read the user reviews for our app. It has one of the highest satisfaction ratings on the App Store, in all countries. FOR BEGINNERS, THIS APP... • contains introductory chess lessons that are suitable even for children. The first 40 are free. • shows you all the possible moves of a piece when you touch it. • explains why certain moves are forbidden. • can suggest 4 to 6 excellent moves at any one time. The green button lets you show or hide these suggestions. • can tell you when you can mate your opponent, so you can look for the winning move by yourself. • can warn you when your opponent is about to play a dangerous move. • provides many trainer levels of increasing difficulty. • knows and applies perfectly all the official rules of chess. • is a very competent teacher of a very high level. • analyzes your games and shows you how to improve. FOR EXPERTS: • Both USCF and FIDE rating scales are supported. • This app has one of the strongest chess engines for mobile devices (3040 USCF Elo). • On current devices, as incredible as it sounds, it plays at the world champion level. • The chess engine displays its thinking, up to 20 moves ahead. • You can analyze a game by replaying it. The app indicates bad moves by coloring them red. The 4 best moves in each position are shown in green. • This app supports variations: you can test other moves and then return to your original game. OTHER FEATURES INCLUDE: • The coach can comment on the game as you play (optional). • When the game is over, the coach can analyze it and show you how to improve. • Several beautiful visual themes are included, which you can customize. • 4 playing styles are included, from «cautious» to «suicidal», which you can combine with all available levels. • Includes an opening book of more than one million moves. • Many customization options are available (graphics, sounds, engine output…). • ...and much more... privacy policy: http://www.chesstiger.com/iphone/About_privacy_en.html terms of use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Really Bad Chess
This app reimagines chess with completely randomized pieces, offering a fresh strategic challenge. It's perfect for both seasoned players seeking a new puzzle and beginners looking to learn the fundamentals in a fun, accessible way.
- Randomized chess piece sets
- AI opponent challenges
- Ranked, Daily, and Weekly modes
- Freeplay practice mode
- Local multiplayer (with IAP)
- Alternate color palettes (with IAP)
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Really Bad Chess is just like chess, but with totally random pieces. Try 8 Knights, 4 Bishops, and 3 pawns — why not? As heard on NPR's Weekend Edition 5 out of 5 Stars "An essential puzzle experience for anyone even remotely interested in strategy games" - TouchArcade Whether you play chess daily, or quit just after learning the rules, this small twist will open the door to an entire new world of chess. ------WHATS IN THE “BOX”? The free version of Really Bad Chess lets you compete vs. an AI in Ranked, Daily, or Weekly Challenges. Improve your skills using the included Freeplay mode. A single in-app purchase unlocks Versus Mode so you can compete against your friends locally! It also removes ads, displays captured pieces, and adds soothing alternate color-palettes to choose from. ------REALLY BAD PRESS "Makes chess fun even if you’re really bad" - The Verge "Feels more modern than chess has ever felt" - Applenapps "Really Bad Chess takes a really bad idea and somehow manages to make it a lot of fun." - Pocket Gamer "Really good fun" - MacLife ------A WORD FROM THE DEVELOPER Chess is one of those games I always wished I enjoyed, but its commitment to beauty, elegance, and perfect balance always turned me away. Really Bad Chess removes these boring restrictions and flips chess on its head. As much as random pieces change the game in some ways, I was really surprised to notice how much the game remains the same, and how powerful some pieces are — you've never truly struggled against a pawn until you've struggled against a pawn in the back row. For chess pros, Really Bad Chess will give you a new type of challenge — the pieces & the moves are the same, but you'll have to throw out your openings and your understanding of normal patterns of play. For novice chess players (like most of us), Really Bad Chess greatly opens up the game. Instead of starting by studying openings, in your first games you'll get to discover the joy (and challenge!) of learning how to checkmate. I hope you have as much fun with Really Bad Chess as much as I did making it. -zach
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Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Chess without ads at 90% against Really Bad Chess's 46%. Chess without ads also leads on rating (4.7 vs 3.8) and ads (none vs shown). On price, update cadence, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Chess without ads sells 7 in-app purchases, starting at $0.49 per 7 days and Really Bad Chess sells 2 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Chess without ads holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 3.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Chess without ads has 38K ratings behind it against 1.6K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 90% of Chess without ads's written reviews are positive against 46% of Really Bad Chess's.
Chess without ads ships an update fortnightly, Really Bad Chess every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Chess without ads | Really Bad Chess |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (38K ratings) — better | 3.8 (1.6K ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 90.4% of reviews — better | 46.3% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 38K — better | 1.6K |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly — better | Every 3 weeks |
| Ads | No — better | 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 | 15.0 | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 44 MB | 125 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Christophe Théron | Zach Gage |
Customer experience
Chess without ads
Really Bad Chess
User reviews
Chess without ads
From 38K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Excellent chess training tool
- 🚀 Customizable difficulty levels
- 💡 Helpful move suggestions
- 👍 Clean and intuitive interface
- 🚀 No ads or distractions
Room to improve
- 🔒 Limited free version with paid upgrade
- 🐛 Occasional bugs and glitches
- 💡 Desire for more chess variants and modes
- 🔒 Aggressive prompts to upgrade to paid version
Really Bad Chess
From 1.6K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Addictive and fun gameplay
- 🤔 Unique and innovative concept
- 👍 Challenging and engaging
- ⭐ Great way to learn chess
Room to improve
- 🐛 Bugs and crashes
- 🕰️ Slow AI response times
- 💰 Paywalls for essential features
- 📺 Intrusive and excessive ads
- 🔁 Repetitive AI moves leading to stalemates
Bugs and requests
Chess without ads
Reported bugs
3 issues- Freezing on the login screen
- Incompatibility with older devices
- Inconsistent behavior when running out of free credits
Requested features
4 requests- Add more chess variants (3-check, king of the hill, etc.)
- Provide more detailed game analysis and feedback
- Improve the en passant move functionality
- Add online/multiplayer capabilities
Really Bad Chess
Reported bugs
3 issues- Pieces unable to move as per chess rules
- Game freezes and crashes
- Incorrect checkmate detection
Requested features
5 requests- Add draw conditions and stalemate rules
- Implement online/multiplayer mode
- Provide more difficulty settings
- Allow custom piece arrangements
- Sync progress across devices
In-app purchases
Chess without ads
- PRO, 1 week$0.497 Days
- PRO, 1 month$0.991 Month
- PRO, 3 months$1.993 Months
- Learn chess$4.99
- PRO, for life (SALE!)$9.99
- PRO, for life (regular price)$12.99
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- PRO FOR LIFE - TODAY ONLY$14.99
Really Bad Chess
- 100 Undos$0.99
- Full Game Unlock$3.99
Questions
Is Chess without ads free?
Is Really Bad Chess free?
Which has better reviews, Chess without ads or Really Bad Chess?
Do Chess without ads or Really Bad Chess have ads?
Which is updated more often, Chess without ads or Really Bad Chess?
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