Comparison

Close Cities vs Puzzle Parlor

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

Head to head
About

Close Cities

Build beautiful cities on diverse worlds by solving unique puzzles. This relaxing game guides you through 160 levels with a simple tap or drag interface, requiring no architectural knowledge. Conquer each world's challenges and travel through time with its calming soundtrack.

Highlights
  • Build cities on empty maps
  • Solve 160 unique puzzle levels
  • Intuitive tap and drag controls
  • No architectural knowledge needed
  • Travel through different worlds
  • Relaxing music and pace
Features
Read full description

Close Cities is a relaxing puzzle game in which you will have to build cities in different worlds over time. Find a road and start there. Solve all 160 levels and become a Close Cities legend! UNIQUE PUZZLES You will start each level with an empty map that you will have to fill with beautiful cities. Choose the right road, choose the area and tap or drag with your fingers! DOES NOT REQUIRE KNOWLEDGE OF ARCHITECTURE Close Cities offers a fun experience even if you don't know the difference between a square and a bevel. The game's tutorial will show you everything you need to know at a relaxed pace. CONQUER ITS 160 LEVELS Each world has its king and 16 levels that you must solve to build his empire. TRAVEL THROUGH TIME During the course of the game you will discover different worlds over time with relaxed music to let you go.

About

Puzzle Parlor

Enjoy a curated collection of daily and classic puzzle games without ads or in-app purchases. Track your progress with streaks and sync across devices. A simple, family-made experience for puzzle enthusiasts.

Highlights
  • Daily new puzzles
  • Classic puzzle games
  • No ads or dark patterns
  • Streak tracking
  • Optional cloud sync
  • Dark mode
Features
Read full description

Puzzle Parlor is a small, lovingly-curated collection of puzzle games - a few new dailies each morning, a stack of classics for whenever you want to keep going, and exactly zero ads, dark patterns, or "buy unlimited hints" buttons. DAILY PUZZLES (NEW EVERY DAY) - Fiver - five guesses, five letters - Crossjam - trace letters, build words - Sudoku - classic 9x9, easy / medium / hard rotation through the week - Cypherly - crack a daily quote, one letter at a time CLASSICS (ALWAYS AVAILABLE) - 2048 - Solitaire - Minesweeper - Match - the memory / concentration game NICETIES - Streaks per game - Solve any classic without signing in - Optional cloud sync if you want the same progress on phone and tablet - Daily email digest (optional, one tap to subscribe) - Dark mode OPTIONAL SUPPORTER SUBSCRIPTION If the app's brought you a few good mornings, you can chip in with a $14.99/year Supporter subscription. You'll get a small sun emblem next to your name. Nothing in the app is paywalled - Supporter is a tip-jar, not a content gate. More thank-yous as the project grows. Subscription auto-renews yearly at $14.99 until cancelled. Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. Manage or cancel anytime in your device Settings > Apple ID > Subscriptions; no refunds for the unused portion of a term. Privacy Policy: https://puzzleparlor.fun/#/privacy Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Built by a family for our own family - we play it, the kids help pick the puzzles, and we keep it simple because that's why we wanted it in the first place. Privacy-respecting by default: no ads, no third-party tracking, no data brokers. Email is collected only if you sign in (magic-link, no password) or subscribe to the daily digest, and we never share it. Site: https://puzzleparlor.fun Made by: Lazybrains

Screenshots

Close Cities4 screens
Puzzle Parlor4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Puzzle Parlor at none against Close Cities's shown. Puzzle Parlor also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 69%) and rating (5.0 vs 4.8). Close Cities's advantage is ratings volume (362 vs 4). On price, update cadence, in-app purchases 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. Close Cities sells 4 one-off in-app purchases and Puzzle Parlor sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $14.99 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Puzzle Parlor holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Close Cities has 362 ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 69% of Close Cities's written reviews are positive against 100% of Puzzle Parlor's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 3 weeks. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Close Cities versus Puzzle Parlor: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterClose CitiesPuzzle Parlor
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (362 ratings)5.0 (4 ratings) — better
Positive reviews69.4% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings362 — better4
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 3 weeks
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size158 MB6 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperJuan Manuel Altamirano ArgudoDAVID ISAAC SCHUSTER

Customer experience

Close Cities

All ratings362 ratings
Positive94.8%
Neutral2.2%
Negative3.0%
Written reviews36 reviews
Positive69.4%
Neutral0.0%
Negative30.6%

Puzzle Parlor

All ratings4 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Close Cities

One-time4
  • Hints - Small Pack$0.99
  • Hints - Medium Pack$2.99
  • Remove Ads + Hints$2.99
Show 1 more
  • Hints - Big Pack$5.99
1 purchases

Puzzle Parlor

Subscriptions1
  • Puzzle Parlor Supporter$14.991 Year

Questions

Is Close Cities free?
Close Cities is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Puzzle Parlor free?
Puzzle Parlor is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Close Cities or Puzzle Parlor?
Puzzle Parlor is rated higher. Close Cities averages 4.8 out of 5 from 362 ratings, while Puzzle Parlor averages 5.0 from 4 ratings.
Do Close Cities or Puzzle Parlor have ads?
Close Cities shows ads; Puzzle Parlor does not.
Which is updated more often, Close Cities or Puzzle Parlor?
Close Cities ships an update every 3 weeks, and Puzzle Parlor every 3 weeks. Most recently, Close Cities was updated on October 24, 2026 and Puzzle Parlor on October 24, 2026.

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