# Pinochle Pro vs Spades

The clearest difference is iOS requirement: Spades at 16.0 against Pinochle Pro's 26.0. On price, rating, review sentiment and ratings volume there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Pinochle Pro sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Spades sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for Pinochle Pro against 4.7 for Spades. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 593 and 645 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 40% of Pinochle Pro's written reviews are positive against 45% of Spades's.

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 weeks. Both last shipped on October 23, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Pinochle Pro | Spades |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.6 (593 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pinochle-pro/id567644839/reviews) | **[4.7 (645 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/spades-expert-ai/id1556139708/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 593 | **645** |
| Positive reviews | 39.7% of reviews | **45.2% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks | Every 2 weeks |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 28 MB | 38 MB |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | **16.0** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Black Panther Software LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/559955615) | [NeuralPlay, LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1536040863) |

## What reviewers say

### Pinochle Pro

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pinochle-pro/id567644839)

Experience classic Pinochle with animated characters that react to gameplay. Challenge advanced AI opponents, customize your game, and track your progress with detailed statistics. Earn rewards and achievements as you master this strategic card game.

**Highlights:** Advanced AI opponents, Animated characters, Customizable gameplay, Detailed statistics, Engaging rewards and achievements

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Remove Ads | $7.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Realistic and intelligent AI partner bidding and play
- 🎮 Engaging gameplay that keeps users addicted
- 🧮 Automatic meld calculation feature
- 👥 Customizable player characters
- 📱 Accessible for screen reader users (VoiceOver)

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent game freezes and crashes
- 📺 Excessive and inappropriate advertisements
- 💳 Payment issues and failed transactions
- 🎨 Poor quality and unappealing graphics
- 🤖 AI partner makes illogical card passes

**Reported bugs**

- Game freezes when bidder has no meld
- App crashes mid-game after bidding phase
- Only allows one hand at a time instead of full game
- Cards disappear during gameplay
- Cannot see cards being played or count trump

**Requested features**

- Option to pass 4 cards instead of 3
- Clear trump indicator for both bidder and opponents
- Reward for running the board (taking every trick)
- Allow playing hands without meld to block opponents
- Option to disable passing cards feature


### Spades

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/spades-expert-ai/id1556139708)

Master the classic trick-taking card game with an intelligent AI. Learn strategies, play with custom rules, and analyze your gameplay. Enjoy offline play and track your progress with detailed statistics.

**Highlights:** AI guidance for learning, Built-in card counter, Trick-by-trick review, Offline play, Customizable rules, Six AI difficulty levels, Detailed statistics

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Remove Ads | $12.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🎮 Engaging and fun card game experience
- 🎯 Challenging AI difficulty levels available
- 📚 Good for learning Spades rules and strategy
- 🚀 Fast-moving gameplay

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🤖 AI partner makes illogical and counterintuitive plays
- 🤖 AI fails to understand basic strategy and teamwork
- 🤖 AI doesn't cover partner's nil bids effectively
- 🤖 AI overtrumps unnecessarily and plays against its own team
- 🎲 Unfair nil hand distribution to opponents

**Reported bugs**

- Cards dealt out of sequence
- Unfair penalty scoring between player team and AI team
- AI partner plays trump cards when bidding nil or blind nil
- AI throws away winning cards and aces unnecessarily
- AI leads with lowest cards when it should lead strategically

**Requested features**

- Improved AI that plays with better strategy and human-like logic
- AI that properly understands and covers nil bids
- Statistics tracking and saving functionality
- Silent advertisement option for public play
- Better card layout and UI organization


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Pinochle Pro free?

Pinochle Pro is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Spades free?

Spades is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Pinochle Pro or Spades?

Spades is rated higher. Pinochle Pro averages 4.6 out of 5 from 593 ratings, while Spades averages 4.7 from 645 ratings.

### Do Pinochle Pro or Spades have ads?

Both Pinochle Pro and Spades show ads.

### Which is updated more often, Pinochle Pro or Spades?

Pinochle Pro ships an update every 2 weeks, and Spades every 2 weeks. Most recently, Pinochle Pro was updated on October 23, 2026 and Spades on October 23, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*