Comparison

Zapiano vs HelloSQL

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side β€” with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Zapiano

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Inside the Zapiano app, you can: Access all of your videos in one easy to use app Receive push notifications with the latest news and updates Access to all of your videos without having to remember your password Save your favorite posts so you can quickly find them later END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

HelloSQL

Features
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SQL tends to make sense while you're reading about it, then fall apart the moment you try to write it yourself. HelloSQL is for the writing part. You read a problem, write a query, and run it. The results show up as a table, and if they're right, it's marked correct right away. Grading looks at what your query returns, not how it's written, so your query doesn't have to match ours. There are 120 exercises, and most of them look like everyday reporting tasks. For example: "List payments from largest to smallest. If two amounts are the same, put the older one first." The practice data is built around an online store's orders, employee attendance, and billing for a subscription service. What's free and what isn't The first 30 exercises are free, and you don't need an account. They cover SELECT, WHERE, ORDER BY, and LIMIT. The other 90 move on to aggregate functions, GROUP BY, HAVING, INNER JOIN, LEFT JOIN, CASE, subqueries, CTEs, and window functions. You unlock all of them with one in-app purchase. There's no subscription and nothing recurring. When you're stuck Each exercise has three hints, and you open them one at a time. The first gives you only the idea. If that's not enough, the second shows the shape of the query, and the third tells you which tables and columns to use. We set it up this way so you don't have to jump straight to the answer. There's also a sample solution with an explanation, and you can tap any underlined term in a problem to see what it means. Coming back to it Your drafts save automatically, so you can close the app halfway through a query and finish it later. Missed exercises and bookmarks are kept together so you can try them again. Anything you get wrong comes back the next day. Exercises you get right come back too, after 3 days, then a week, then 3 weeks. The editor suggests SQL keywords and column names as you type, and you can look at the tables and their data at any point. It works on iPhone and iPad, in light or dark mode. If you've gone through a course or a book and want to actually use what you learned, this is a good next step. It also works as a warm-up before a SQL test or a technical interview. Before you download β€’ The practice data is set in Japan, so some names, places, and text values are in Japanese. A few exercises ask you to type Japanese text into your query, such as WHERE city = '東京'. The exercise shows you the exact text to use. β€’ You can practice and check answers offline. You only need a connection to buy or restore the unlock. β€’ There are no ads. Exercise 1 is a single line that pulls every customer's name. It's a good place to start.

Screenshots

Zapiano4 screens
HelloSQL3 screens

Verdict

The call

Zapiano and HelloSQL are too close to call on the numbers: across 6 compared parameters β€” price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases among them β€” neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.

Scored on Price Β· Rating Β· Positive reviews Β· Number of ratings Β· Update frequency Β· Ads Β· In-app purchases Β· Monetization Β· Best chart rank Β· Devices Β· Requires iOS

CostPrice Β· In-app purchases Β· Ads Β· Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Zapiano ships an update fortnightly, HelloSQL every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.

ScorecardNo meaningful differences
Zapiano versus HelloSQL: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterZapianoHelloSQL
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyFortnightlyEvery 2 weeks β€” better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS16.6 β€” better17.0
Further details β€” not scored
Size49 MB6 MB
Age rating4+4+
Developeractiv music GmbHRyota Kumagawa

In-app purchases

None

Zapiano

No in-app purchases

None

HelloSQL

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Zapiano free?
Zapiano is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is HelloSQL free?
HelloSQL is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Zapiano or HelloSQL have ads?
Neither Zapiano nor HelloSQL shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Zapiano or HelloSQL?
Zapiano ships an update fortnightly, and HelloSQL every 2 weeks. Most recently, Zapiano was updated on October 24, 2026 and HelloSQL on October 15, 2026.

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