Simple chess board vs Chess ◧
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Simple chess board
This app provides a digital chessboard with unrestricted piece movement and a configurable chess clock. Save and load board positions, undo/redo moves, and even use checker pieces. It's ideal for analyzing games or setting up custom scenarios.
- Free piece movement
- Undo/Redo functionality
- Board rotation
- Checker piece option
- Save/load positions
- Configurable chess clock
- Tweet current position
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A simple chess board and a chess clock without movement restrictions. Free movement as a real board. Current features are: • Move pieces freely, add or remove them. • Undo/Redo last movement. • Rotate board and/or pieces. • Use checkers game pieces. • Save/load positions for later use, or delete them when you don't need them anymore (swipe over them). Starting positions for chess and checkers are available. • Use a chess clock where you can configure initial time, move time increment, increment after a number of movement, hourglass time, ... • Set time independent for black and white if required. • Save/load time settings for later use. Already available some common times. • Tweet your current position.
Chess ◧
Engage in classic chess matches on your iPhone or iPad. Play against a computer with adjustable difficulty, challenge a friend in two-player mode, or utilize helpful features like move undo and hints. Enjoy an attractive user interface for a smooth gaming experience.
- Play against computer
- Two player mode
- Adjustable computer strength
- Undo moves
- Hint option
- Attractive UI
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FREE Chess game for the iPhone and iPad FEATURES - Play agains the computer - Two player mode - Change computer strength - Undo moves - Rotate board - Hint option - Attractive UI --------------------------------------------------- TAPMEDIA PRO SUBSCRIPTION - You will receive access to the apps in the TapMedia PRO bundle for the duration of the subscription. - Subscription length: Monthly (includes one week free trial). - Subscriptions with a free trial period will automatically renew to a paid subscription. - Payments will be charged to iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase. - Your account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period and identify the cost of the 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. - All prices are subject to change without notification. We occasionally run promotion prices as incentives or limited time opportunities for qualifying purchases made during the promotional time period. Due to the time sensitive and promotional nature of these events, we are unable to offer price protection or retroactive discounts or refunds for previous purchases in the event of a price reduction or promotional offering. - Any unused portion of a free trial period will be forfeited when the user purchases a subscription - You may cancel a subscription during its free period via the subscription setting through your iTunes Account. This must be done 24 hours before the end of the subscription period to avoid being charged. Please visit http://support.apple.com/kb/ht4098 Privacy Policy: http://tapmedia.co.uk/privacy.htm Terms of Use: http://tapmedia.co.uk/terms.htm
Screenshots
Verdict
Simple chess board and Chess ◧ both sit at 4.5 stars, but that hides the real split: 88% of Simple chess board's written reviews are positive against 53% of Chess ◧'s. Chess ◧'s advantage is ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (415 vs 68). On price, rating, update cadence 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
Both are free to download. Simple chess board sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Chess ◧ sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Simple chess board holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Chess ◧ has 415 ratings behind it against 68, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 88% of Simple chess board's written reviews are positive against 53% of Chess ◧'s.
Simple chess board ships an update every 10 months, Chess ◧ every 12 months. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 20, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Simple chess board | Chess ◧ |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.5 (68 ratings) — better | 4.3 (415 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 88.2% of reviews — better | 52.9% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 68 | 415 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 10 months — better | Every 12 months |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| 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 | 12.0 | 9.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 9 MB | 64 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 9+ |
| Developer | Luis Lopez | TapMedia Ltd |
Customer experience
Simple chess board
Chess ◧
User reviews
Simple chess board
From 68 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Simple and straightforward
- 👍 Great for study and practice
- 👍 No restrictions or 'help' functions
- 👍 Allows setting up custom positions
- 👍 Useful for playing through games
Room to improve
- 🤔 Pieces not bound by rules
- 🤔 Graphics can be distracting/ugly
- 🤔 Aggressive board colors
- 🤔 Clocks take up screen space
- 🤔 Pieces can shift unexpectedly
Chess ◧
From 415 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Simple and easy to play
- 👍 Highly entertaining
- 👍 Strong and flexible chess engine
- 👍 Gameplay is human-like
- 👍 Great for avoiding opening traps
Room to improve
- 🐛 Two player mode broken
- 🐛 Program is impenetrable for beginners
- 🐛 Hints lead to losing
- 🐛 Board color changed to brown
- 🐛 Too many ads
Bugs and requests
Simple chess board
Reported bugs
7 issues- Keyboard not appearing to enter text/save
- Cannot figure out how to save position
- Pieces shift on their own
- Kings and queens on wrong squares initially
- Save position fails with 'You must insert text' error
Show 2 moreShow fewer
- App froze mid-game
- Write a review tab has trouble
Requested features
20 requests- Add scoresheet functionality
- Export game for analysis
- Move counter
- Portrait view on iPad
- Board expansion to fill screen
Show 15 moreShow fewer
- Ability to turn board around
- More board color options
- Option to hide timers
- PGN save and import facility
- PGN export
- Chess notation feature
- Larger board size (optional timers)
- Change chess set for better viewing
- Fix 'write a review' tab issue
- Delete saved games/setups easily
- Better graphics
- More realistic piece movement enforcement
- Improve piece dragging and selection
- Make piece representations larger
- Add variations
Chess ◧
Reported bugs
5 issues- Two player mode doesn't work
- Choosing '2 Player' does nothing
- Many glitches
- Cannot move a piece and make a change with king and tower
- Slaughters battery life
Requested features
4 requests- Fix two player mode
- Option to change board color back to black and white
- Make the game easier for beginners
- Allow viewing opponent's pawns
In-app purchases
Simple chess board
- Remove ads$0.99
Chess ◧
- TapMedia PRO - 1 Month3 Days trial$4.991 Month
- Remove Ads$2.99
Questions
Is Simple chess board free?
Is Chess ◧ free?
Which has better reviews, Simple chess board or Chess ◧?
Do Simple chess board or Chess ◧ have ads?
Which is updated more often, Simple chess board or Chess ◧?
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