Comparison

OpenChess vs ChessLines

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

Head to head
About

OpenChess

Master chess openings by playing against a specialized AI. Explore specific defenses or move sequences, and gain insights into positional advantages and piece values. Improve your game from the very first moves.

Highlights
  • Learn specific chess openings
  • Play against AI focused on opening lines
  • Analyze positional advantages
  • Evaluate piece values and mobility
  • Understand pawn structure
  • Track defended and attacked pieces
Read full description

Learn chess openings with OpenChess: An Opening Explorer. Play against the computer, or play as both sides, and be shown the lines that are within any opening that you are interested in learning. Want to learn the Sicilian Defense or the Queen’s Gambit? Choose that category and play against that a computer that only follows lines within that opening category. Wany to focus on learning all of the openings that start with a specific move, such as pawn to “e4”? This category can also be selected, and you can play against a computer that only plays lines that start with “e4”. The chess engine in this app is not Stockfish, and it does not look very far ahead. It is meant to provide a decent base evaluation and allow the majority of the reason behind the evaluation of the current position to be shown to the user. The following information can be shown to the user: • Positional advantages for each piece type (pawn, knight, bishop, rook, queen and king) • Piece value advantages for each color • Mobility scores for each piece where mobility plays a big role (bishop, rook, queen, king) • Pawn advantages and disadvantages (passed pawns, isolated pawns, backwards pawns, doubled pawns) • Total value of pieces attacked by each color as well as total value of pieces defended by each color A lot of chess games are won and lost within the opening moves, this app was designed to help players learn solid openings that either help them gain a winning advantage out of the opening, or at the very least help them not lose due to the opening moves played. Terms of Service: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

ChessLines

Learn chess openings through interactive play and guided lessons. Practice moves with instant feedback or test your knowledge without hints. Build true understanding of chess strategies.

Highlights
  • Interactive move-by-move lessons
  • Instant feedback on mistakes
  • Hands-on learning by playing
  • Drill mode for memorization
  • Explanations for moves and strategy
Features
Read full description

Stop watching chess videos. Start playing the moves. ChessLines teaches you chess openings the way your brain actually learns — by doing. Every line is a hands-on lesson where you play the moves yourself, guided by a coach who explains what's happening and why. With Learn Mode your coach walks you through every move with explanations. Make a mistake and get instant feedback. Build real understanding, not just memorization. With Drill mode you get no hints. No explanations. Just you and the board. Test what you've learned and lock it into memory. Privacy Policy: https://getchesslines.com/privacy Terms of Use: https://getchesslines.com/terms

Screenshots

OpenChess4 screens
ChessLines2 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: ChessLines at every 3 days against OpenChess's fortnightly. OpenChess's advantage is iOS requirement (12.0 vs 26.2). On price, rating, ratings volume and ads 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. OpenChess sells 10 one-off in-app purchases and ChessLines sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

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

UpkeepUpdate frequency

OpenChess ships an update fortnightly, ChessLines every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on October 15, 2026 and October 8, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 7 level
OpenChess versus ChessLines: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterOpenChessChessLines
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (2 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings)
Number of ratings2 — better1
Update frequencyFortnightlyEvery 3 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS12.0 — better26.2
Further details — not scored
Size57 MB73 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperDavid BryantMaarten Lodewijk Slebos

Customer experience

OpenChess

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

ChessLines

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

10 purchases

OpenChess

One-time10
  • Tarrasch Defense Opening$0.99
  • Trompowsky Attack Opening$0.99
  • Scandinavian Defense Opening$0.99
Show 7 more
  • Three Knights Opening$0.99
  • Zukertort Opening$0.99
  • Van't Kruijs Opening$0.99
  • Vienna Game Opening$0.99
  • Ware Opening$0.99
  • Opening Explorer$4.99
  • OpenChess Premium$19.99
2 purchases

ChessLines

Subscriptions2
  • ChessLines Monthly$5.991 Month
  • ChessLines Yearly3 Days trial$29.991 Year

Questions

Is OpenChess free?
OpenChess is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is ChessLines free?
ChessLines is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, OpenChess or ChessLines?
OpenChess and ChessLines are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 2 and 1 ratings respectively.
Do OpenChess or ChessLines have ads?
Neither OpenChess nor ChessLines shows ads.
Which is updated more often, OpenChess or ChessLines?
OpenChess ships an update fortnightly, and ChessLines every 3 days. Most recently, OpenChess was updated on October 15, 2026 and ChessLines on October 8, 2026.

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