# Star Chef™ vs Cooking Dash™

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Star Chef™ at 77% against Cooking Dash™'s 32%. Cooking Dash™'s advantage is rating (4.7 vs 4.4) and ratings volume (111K vs 10K). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Star Chef™ sells 11 one-off in-app purchases and Cooking Dash™ sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Cooking Dash™ holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Cooking Dash™ has 111K ratings behind it against 10K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 77% of Star Chef™'s written reviews are positive against 32% of Cooking Dash™'s, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly monthly. Both last shipped on September 25, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Star Chef™ | Cooking Dash™ |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.4 (10K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/star-chef-cooking-game/id594753075/reviews) | **[4.7 (111K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/cooking-dash/id978866413/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 10K | **111K** |
| Positive reviews | **76.5% of reviews** | 32.1% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Monthly |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | — | **#183** |
| Size | 304 MB | 205 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | **13.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | [99Games](https://appshunter.io/developer/293094071) | [Glu Games LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/284419051) |

## What reviewers say

### Star Chef™

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/star-chef-cooking-game/id594753075)

Build and manage your dream restaurant, from a cozy cafe to a five-star establishment. Cook diverse global cuisines, grow your own ingredients, and expand your culinary empire. Connect with friends and cater special events to become a renowned chef.

**Highlights:** Build and customize restaurants, Cook and serve global cuisines, Grow fresh ingredients in a backyard garden, Trade items in the Chef's Store and Food Truck, Cater events beyond your restaurant, Connect with friends and visit their restaurants

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (11)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Chef's Magic Goodie pack 1 | $0.99 | one-time |
| Fortune Bowl of Cash | $1.99 | one-time |
| Chef's Magic Goodie pack 2 | $1.99 | one-time |
| Combo Pack 1.99 | $1.99 | one-time |
| Big Plate of Cash | $2.99 | one-time |
| Large Stack of Coins | $2.99 | one-time |
| Goodie Booster Pack 1 | $3.99 | one-time |
| Lucky Basket of Cash | $4.99 | one-time |
| Grand Basket of Coins | $4.99 | one-time |
| Fat Sack of Cash | $9.99 | one-time |
| Hit the Jackpot | $19.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Fun and addictive game
- 💡 Relaxing gameplay
- 🚀 Great graphics and design

**What reviewers complain about**

- ⏱️ Extremely long cooking/waiting times
- 💰 High costs for new appliances and expansions
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
- 📢 Too many ads and in-app purchases

**Reported bugs**

- Game freezing or crashing on launch
- Inability to restore purchases on new devices
- Disappearing game progress and restaurant data

**Requested features**

- Ability to cancel or reject orders
- More efficient way to earn coins/currency
- Faster growth of ingredients
- Increased storage capacity


### Cooking Dash™

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/cooking-dash/id978866413)

**Currently charting:** #183 Top Grossing · Strategy (US App Store)

Experience fast-paced time management as you prepare, cook, and serve dishes in exotic restaurants. Earn profits, upgrade your kitchen, and become a celebrity chef. Compete in challenges and customize your character with outfits and pets.

**Highlights:** Fast-paced kitchen action, Prepare, cook, and serve dishes, Upgrade food and appliances, Collect outfits and pets, Compete in Series Finales and Trial of Style, Spin daily prize wheels

**In-app purchases (10)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Handful of Gold | $0.99 | one-time |
| Handful of Coins | $0.99 | one-time |
| Ticket Bundle Low | $1.99 | one-time |
| Handful of Gold | $2.99 | one-time |
| Handful of Coins | $2.99 | one-time |
| Starbucks Promo! | $4.99 | one-time |
| Stack of Coins | $4.99 | one-time |
| Bucket of Gold | $9.99 | one-time |
| Bucket of Coins | $9.99 | one-time |
| Case of Gold | $19.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Fun and addictive gameplay
- 👍 Variety of restaurants and recipes
- 🚀 Challenging levels and time management

**What reviewers complain about**

- 💰 Expensive to progress without spending money
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
- 🔍 Difficult to earn enough gold/currency
- 📥 Issues with video ads and rewards not working

**Reported bugs**

- Game crashes when trying to play certain levels
- Rewards and progress not saving properly
- Inability to connect to Facebook to save progress

**Requested features**

- Bring back free gold from watching ads
- Reduce cost of upgrades and new restaurants
- Improve customer service and bug fixes


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Star Chef™ free?

Star Chef™ is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Cooking Dash™ free?

Cooking Dash™ is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Star Chef™ or Cooking Dash™?

Cooking Dash™ is rated higher. Star Chef™ averages 4.4 out of 5 from 10K ratings, while Cooking Dash™ averages 4.7 from 111K ratings.

### Do Star Chef™ or Cooking Dash™ have ads?

Both Star Chef™ and Cooking Dash™ show ads.

### Which is updated more often, Star Chef™ or Cooking Dash™?

Star Chef™ ships an update monthly, and Cooking Dash™ monthly. Most recently, Star Chef™ was updated on September 25, 2026 and Cooking Dash™ on September 25, 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.*