Comparison

Crossword vs Cross Boss

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

Head to head
About

Crossword

Enjoy over 750 professional crossword puzzles designed for casual play. This app offers a clean, ad-free experience with features like pinch zooming and landscape mode to enhance your word-solving sessions.

Highlights
  • 750+ professional puzzles
  • 45 free puzzles
  • Pinch zooming grid
  • Landscape mode with clue list
  • Cheats and answer checking
  • No ads
Features
Read full description

A brand new crossword puzzle every day, plus 750+ professional puzzles for your coffee break. These are casual level puzzles suitable for all. DAILY PUZZLES A brand new crossword published every day. Build a streak by playing daily, earn coins, and unlock puzzles at your own pace. Four weeks of daily puzzles are available to catch up on. SUBSCRIBE FOR FULL ACCESS Subscribe for unlimited access to every daily puzzle and all archive packs, with no coins needed. Available as monthly, quarterly, or annual plans. 750+ ARCHIVE PUZZLES Fifteen packs of professional crosswords suitable for all levels. Great for a quick coffee break or a longer session. EARN COINS & STREAKS Open the app each day to earn bonus coins. The longer your streak, the bigger the bonus. Spend coins to unlock daily puzzles, or watch a short ad for extra coins whenever you choose. Features: - a brand new crossword every day - daily login bonus with streak rewards - earn coins by playing daily, or watch a short ad for extra coins - unlock puzzles with coins, or subscribe for unlimited access - great for iPads and iPhones - pinch zooming grid - landscape mode with clue list - hints, highlight mistakes and answer checking - Backup and restore If you're looking for US-style grids, why not try our 'Crossword US' apps. The Terms of Use (EULA) can be found here: https://www.teazel.com/crossword_terms/ios_terms_en.html

About

Cross Boss

This app transforms traditional crosswords into a competitive two-player word game. It adds tactical elements to the familiar crossword format, allowing you to challenge friends or random opponents. Enjoy a vast library of puzzles and engage with opponents through chat.

Highlights
  • Two-player competitive word game
  • Tactical game elements
  • Challenge friends or random opponents
  • Play over the net or locally
  • In-game chat
  • Over 200 high-quality crosswords
Features
Read full description

Cross Boss – transforms regular crosswords into an exciting word game! The game is based on the crosswords we all know and love. However, we’ve spiced them up with a whole new set of tactical game ingredients, which make Cross Boss a competitive social game for two. Trying it out is a no-brainer for all word gamers and crossword solvers! With Cross Boss in your iPhone you can: * Challenge friends or try your luck against random opponents. * Play over the net or use the same mobile for both players. * Encourage or trash talk your opponent in the chat. * Enjoy over 200 high quality crosswords, created by the best specifically for Cross Boss. * Delight in the spectacular savings of downloading and playing for free. * Liberally share the fun with your friends via Facebook or email. Now show the world who is the boss! Download and challenge someone already today!

Screenshots

Crossword4 screens
Cross Boss4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Crossword at none against Cross Boss's shown. Crossword also leads on rating (4.6 vs 4.2) and ratings volume (5.5K vs 59). On price, review sentiment, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Crossword sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month and Cross Boss sells 2 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Crossword holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Crossword has 5.5K ratings behind it against 59, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 82% of Crossword's written reviews are positive against 75% of Cross Boss's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Crossword ships an update every 5 months, Cross Boss every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and November 1, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Crossword versus Cross Boss: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCrosswordCross Boss
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (5.5K ratings) — better4.2 (59 ratings)
Positive reviews82.3% of reviews — better75.0% of reviews
Number of ratings5.5K — better59
Update frequencyEvery 5 monthsEvery 3 months — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemiumFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS15.615.6
Further details — not scored
Size13 MB71 MB
Age rating12+12+
DeveloperTeazelKEP Games

Customer experience

Crossword

All ratings5,531 ratings
Positive92.2%
Neutral5.9%
Negative2.0%
Written reviews344 reviews
Positive82.3%
Neutral7.3%
Negative10.5%

Cross Boss

All ratings59 ratings
Positive83.1%
Neutral3.4%
Negative13.6%
Written reviews68 reviews
Positive75.0%
Neutral8.8%
Negative16.2%

User reviews

Crossword

From 5.5K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Enjoyable crossword experience
  • 👍 Excellent value and great trivia
  • 👍 No ads, great puzzles
  • 👍 Fantastic brain workout
  • 👍 Accessible for dyslexic users

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional spelling errors in puzzles
  • 🐛 Keyboard issues on some devices
  • 🐛 Puzzles can be too difficult for some users
  • 🐛 Some clues are too obscure or British-centric

Cross Boss

From 59 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Fun competitive crosswords
  • 💡 Great game concept
  • 👍 Easy to learn UI
  • 😊 Addictive and fun
  • 👍 Good for brain exercise

Room to improve

  • 😠 Too many ads
  • 😠 Ads are intrusive
  • 😠 Ads are game breaking
  • 😠 Subscription for ad-free
  • 😠 Greedy IAP model

Bugs and requests

Crossword

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Purchased content not restoring properly on new devices
  • Keyboard not working correctly in some cases

Requested features

3 requests
  • Option to adjust puzzle and clue size
  • Ability to sync progress across devices
  • More free puzzles or a free trial period

Cross Boss

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Notifications stopped working
  • App crashes constantly
  • No keyboard to type word after unlocking clue
  • App not working with iOS 9

Requested features

5 requests
  • Option to force forfeit or extend game time
  • More puzzles by 'Mark'
  • Single player mode with normal crossword
  • Option to start game with all clues revealed
  • Pro version for ad removal

In-app purchases

10 purchases

Crossword

Subscriptions1
  • Monthly$1.991 Month
One-time9
  • pack of Crosswords (Pack 1)$0.99
  • pack of Crosswords (Pack 2)$0.99
  • pack of Crosswords (Pack 3)$0.99
Show 6 more
  • pack of Crosswords (Pack 4)$0.99
  • pack of Crosswords (Pack 5)$0.99
  • pack of Crosswords (Pack 6)$0.99
  • pack of Crosswords (Pack 10)$0.99
  • pack (Pack 14 of 50 puzzles)$0.99
  • full set of Crossword packs$3.99
2 purchases

Cross Boss

One-time2
  • Statistics$1.99
  • No ads for six months$2.99

Questions

Is Crossword free?
Crossword is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Cross Boss free?
Cross Boss is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Crossword or Cross Boss?
Crossword is rated higher. Crossword averages 4.6 out of 5 from 5.5K ratings, while Cross Boss averages 4.2 from 59 ratings.
Do Crossword or Cross Boss have ads?
Cross Boss shows ads; Crossword does not.
Which is updated more often, Crossword or Cross Boss?
Crossword ships an update every 5 months, and Cross Boss every 3 months. Most recently, Crossword was updated on November 6, 2026 and Cross Boss on November 1, 2026.

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