Comparison

Categories vs Scattered Categories

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

Head to head
About

Categories

A word game where players race against the clock to list creative words within specific categories. It's designed for group entertainment during parties, road trips, or casual home gatherings.

Highlights
  • Word listing by category
  • Timed challenges
  • Group play
  • Creative word generation
  • Party entertainment
Features
Read full description

Party on with 'Categories' – the ultimate word game for you and your friends! Test your wit and quick thinking as you race against the clock to come up with creative words in various categories. Whether you're at a party, on a road trip, or chilling at home, 'Categories' promises endless fun and entertainment for everyone. Download now and turn up the fun!

About

Scattered Categories

A fast-paced word game where players race against the clock to find creative answers within 12 categories, using a single randomly selected letter. Offers solo play, local multiplayer, and online challenges with AI-assisted scoring.

Highlights
  • 3-minute rounds
  • 12 categories
  • Randomly selected letter
  • Solo play
  • Pass-and-Play multiplayer
  • Game Center challenges
  • AI-assisted answer validation
Features
Read full description

Scattered Categories is the fast-thinking word game where speed, creativity and unique answers win. You have 3 minutes, 12 categories and 1 randomly selected letter. How many answers can you find before time runs out? PLAY YOUR WAY • Test yourself in Solo Play • Pass the phone around with Pass-and-Play • Challenge friends and other players through Game Center • Race against the clock in quick three-minute rounds EVERY ROUND FEELS DIFFERENT Choose from Easy, Medium and Hard lists covering 108 categories. The randomly selected letter makes every round a fresh challenge. FAIRER, SMARTER SCORING AI-assisted answer validation helps settle difficult answers, while duplicate answers in multiplayer score nothing. Creative thinking wins. OPTIONAL PREMIUM Unlock all nine lists, smarter AI scoring, enhanced multiplayer hosting and an advert-free experience with one lifetime purchase. No subscription. New players can also experience a complimentary Premium round, with the option to earn one final preview by watching a rewarded advert. Easy to learn. Hard to master. Fast thinking wins.

Screenshots

Categories4 screens
Scattered Categories4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Scattered Categories at none against Categories's 1. Categories's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 4 weeks). On price, rating, ratings volume and monetization model 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. Categories sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Scattered Categories asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Categories against 5.0 for Scattered Categories. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1 and 2 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Categories ships an update every 2 weeks, Scattered Categories every 4 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 4, 2026 and November 8, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Categories versus Scattered Categories: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCategoriesScattered Categories
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings)5.0 (2 ratings)
Positive reviews22.9% of reviews—
Number of ratings12 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeks — betterEvery 4 weeks
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhoneiPhone
Requires iOS17.0 — better18.6
Further details — not scored
Size29 MB11 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperNatanael JopStephanie McRitchie

Bugs and requests

Categories

Reported bugs

10 issues
  • App crashes upon joining game
  • App crashes when entering code
  • App crashes when changing nickname/avatar
  • App crashes when creating a game
  • App crashes when trying to spin the wheel
Show 5 more
  • Incorrectly validates answers
  • Randomly disconnects users during gameplay
  • Players not seeing answers
  • Game freezes mid-game
  • App crashes and needs reinstallation

Requested features

4 requests
  • Improve game stability
  • Fix scoring system
  • Ensure correct answer validation
  • Allow playing with random people

Scattered Categories

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Categories

One-time1
  • Ad-free access$1.99
None

Scattered Categories

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Categories free?
Categories is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Scattered Categories free?
Scattered Categories is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Categories or Scattered Categories?
Categories and Scattered Categories are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 1 and 2 ratings respectively.
Do Categories or Scattered Categories have ads?
Scattered Categories shows ads; Categories does not.
Which is updated more often, Categories or Scattered Categories?
Categories ships an update every 2 weeks, and Scattered Categories every 4 weeks. Most recently, Categories was updated on November 4, 2026 and Scattered Categories on November 8, 2026.

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