cdli tablet vs Massarrah
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
cdli tablet
Explore the rich cultural heritage of ancient Mesopotamia through text and images. Discover the origins of trade, mathematics, and astronomy, and learn about historical figures and texts.
- Ancient Mesopotamian texts and images
- Covers trade, mathematics, and astronomy
- Details Hammurapi's lex talionis
- Features Gilgamesh and Enkidu
- Daily updates
- Cuneiform studies themes
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“cdli tablet” is an iPad app focusing on the cultural heritage of ancient Mesopotamia by combining text and images of ancient Mesopotamia that span 3500 years of human activity and describe the roots of trade, mathematics, and astronomy in ancient times, that follow the application of lex talionis by Hammurapi, and that bring to life the exploits of Gilgamesh and Enkidu. The app combines images and short descriptions of the historical relevance of selected texts, dealing with these and other significant developments in the history of mankind, that have been prepared by specialists who have dedicated their professional lives to the study of ancient Mesopotamia. Entries are updated daily. The app will appeal to learning communities of all ages and levels of interest, introducing them to a variety of chosen themes in cuneiform studies and in the digital preservation and world-wide dissemination of the shared cultural heritage of ancient Mesopotamia. By opening lines of communication to the heritage of pre-scientific civilizations dead many millennia, we believe that modern culture achieves a deeper appreciation and understanding of its own roots. “cdli tablet” is sponsored by the Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (http://cdli.ucla.edu) based at UCLA’s Department of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures, and developed by Sai Deep Tetali, graduate student at UCLA Computer Science.
Massarrah
Learn humanity's oldest writing system, cuneiform, through guided lessons and interactive mini-games. Explore famous ancient tablets and track your progress with a gamified system. Designed for history buffs and language learners.
- Learn 44 authentic cuneiform signs
- Explore famous ancient tablets
- Spaced repetition for effective review
- Eight cuneiform mini-games
- Gamified progress tracking with streaks and achievements
- Offline core lessons and practice
- Historically accurate content
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Five thousand years ago, the people of ancient Mesopotamia pressed the first written words into wet clay. Massarrah teaches you to read them. Cuneiform is humanity's oldest writing system. With Massarrah you don't just admire it behind museum glass — you learn it, sign by sign, at your own pace. LEARN REAL CUNEIFORM Master 44 authentic signs across four guided levels — vowels, syllables, logograms, and numbers. Every sign comes with its meaning, pronunciation, and audio, so you learn to recognize it and read it. EXPLORE THE FAMOUS TABLETS Discover the Epic of Gilgamesh, the Code of Hammurabi, the Cyrus Cylinder and more — each presented with the story of what it says and why it still matters today. PRACTICE THAT STICKS Massarrah schedules every review with spaced repetition — proven learning science — right before you'd forget. Eight cuneiform mini-games turn daily practice into something you'll want to return to. TRACK YOUR JOURNEY Build a daily streak, earn XP, climb the scribe ranks, and unlock 84 achievements as your skill grows. Your progress, your pace. WALK 5,000 YEARS OF HISTORY Follow the story of writing itself — from the first pictographs of Uruk to the empires that carried cuneiform across the ancient world. THOUGHTFULLY BUILT • Core lessons and practice work offline — learn anywhere • Private by default — start learning anonymously, no account required • Historically accurate — content grounded in real scholarship • Accessible — designed for learners of all abilities Whether you love history, collect languages, study the ancient world, or are simply curious where writing began — Massarrah turns 5,000 years of human history into something you can hold, read, and understand. Begin your journey as a scribe.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Massarrah at 100% against cdli tablet's 55%. Massarrah also leads on rating (5.0 vs 3.3). cdli tablet's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 6) and ratings volume (6 vs 1). On price, ads and device support 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. Massarrah sells 6 one-off in-app purchases. cdli tablet asks for nothing beyond the download.
Massarrah holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: cdli tablet has 6 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 55% of cdli tablet's written reviews are positive against 100% of Massarrah's.
| Parameter | cdli tablet | Massarrah |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.3 (6 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 54.5% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 6 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Monthly | — |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPad | iPhone, iPad — better |
| Requires iOS | 7.1 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 6 MB | 86 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | University of California, Los Angeles | Alan Shami |
Customer experience
cdli tablet
Massarrah
In-app purchases
cdli tablet
No in-app purchases
Massarrah
- Clay Token Tip$0.99
- Reed Stylus Tip$2.99
- Clay Tablet Tip$4.99
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- Scribe's Seal Tip$9.99
- Lapis Lazuli Tip$24.99
- Royal Decree Tip$49.99





