# ContraBee vs SpellingB

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: ContraBee at none against SpellingB's 1. ContraBee also leads on iOS requirement (11.0 vs 18.2). SpellingB's advantage is update cadence (daily vs every 2 weeks) and review sentiment (50% vs 24%). On price, rating, ratings volume and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. SpellingB sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $3.99 per month. ContraBee asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.1 for ContraBee against 4.1 for SpellingB. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 8 and 10 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 24% of ContraBee's written reviews are positive against 50% of SpellingB's.

ContraBee ships an update every 2 weeks, SpellingB daily. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | ContraBee | SpellingB |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.1 (8 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/contrabee/id6478916549/reviews)** | [4.1 (10 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/spellingb-a-fun-spelling-bee/id6747096099/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | 8 | **10** |
| Positive reviews | 23.8% of reviews | **50.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks | **Daily** |
| Monetization | **Free** | Freemium |
| Size | 16 MB | 15 MB |
| Requires iOS | **11.0** | 18.2 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Lexi Games LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1734406255) | [Neil McGrogan](https://appshunter.io/developer/1519545314) |

## What reviewers say

### ContraBee

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/contrabee/id6478916549)

This app offers a daily word puzzle using the same letter hive as the New York Times Spelling Bee. It challenges players to find words without using the required center letter, encouraging a different approach to word discovery.

**Highlights:** Daily word puzzles, Uses NYT Spelling Bee letter hive, Excludes center letter, Encourages alternative word finding, Unique puzzle twist

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


### SpellingB

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/spellingb-a-fun-spelling-bee/id6747096099)

Test your vocabulary daily with a word-finding game. Use seven letters to discover as many words as possible, aiming for the "Queen Bee" status. Enjoy a clean, distraction-free experience with daily challenges and progress tracking.

**Highlights:** Unlimited daily play, Find words from 7 letters, Daily challenges, Clean design, Progress tracking, Earn Queen Bee status

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Premium | $3.99 | per month |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is ContraBee free?

ContraBee is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is SpellingB free?

SpellingB is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, ContraBee or SpellingB?

ContraBee is rated higher. ContraBee averages 4.1 out of 5 from 8 ratings, while SpellingB averages 4.1 from 10 ratings.

### Do ContraBee or SpellingB have ads?

Neither ContraBee nor SpellingB shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, ContraBee or SpellingB?

ContraBee ships an update every 2 weeks, and SpellingB daily. Most recently, ContraBee was updated on October 23, 2026 and SpellingB on October 24, 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.*