Comparison

ChessBase Mobile Chess vs ChessRecall

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

Head to head
About

ChessBase Mobile Chess

Access a vast chess game database, save and analyze your own games, and practice openings. This app offers advanced notation and sharing features, with a free tier and optional premium upgrades for more extensive cloud storage and search capabilities.

Highlights
  • Access 13+ million chess games
  • Save and sync personal game databases
  • Analyze games with built-in engine
  • Live opening book statistics
  • Create and practice opening repertoires
  • Advanced game notation and sharing
  • PGN file compatibility
Features
Read full description

ChessBase Mobile is the training, playing, and analysis platform for chess players who track their progress by the numbers. ChessBase Mobile is built by ChessBase, the company behind the standard desktop software used by world champions and club players alike for over 30 years. Solve tactics puzzles rated by difficulty and watch your Elo rise or fall with every attempt. No participation trophies, your rating reflects exactly where you stand. The tactics database draws from positions in real games, not synthetic exercises, so the patterns you train are the patterns you encounter at the board. Puzzle Fight puts you head-to-head against another player in a timed series of 24 tactical positions. Both players solve the same puzzles simultaneously. The one who solves more, faster, wins - and gains Elo. Structured competition, not a casual minigame. Play live games in Blitz and Rapid formats against opponents worldwide. Premove support, legal moves shown as you pick up a piece, clean interface, no clutter. Follow live tournaments as they happen: standings, schedules and player profiles, grouped into current, upcoming and finished events. Watch games live with engine analysis and an evaluation bar. The ChessBase Online Database contains over 14 million games. Search by player, position or opening, and filter by correspondence, classical, rapid or blitz. Review grandmaster games, study endgame structures, track opening trends - the same database used by professionals, accessible from your phone. Cloud analysis with several engines, including Fritz and Lc0. Engines included in your membership are marked as Included. For deeper analysis, scalable cloud servers are available, from Large to Gargantuan, paid per minute in ducats. Lc0 brings neural network evaluation for positions where classical engines struggle. The engine panel shows evaluation, depth, and principal variation. Build and maintain your opening repertoire in the cloud. 300 opening overviews with repertoire suggestions help you get started with new systems. A live opening book provides up-to-date statistics for every position. Three practice modes let you drill your variations until they stick. Annotate your games with comments, symbols, variations, arrows, and markings. Save games and analyses in cloud databases that synchronise across all your devices. Share positions and games via link, image, GIF, FEN, QR code, or PGN. Upload and download PGN files for full compatibility with desktop software. AI Kibitzer provides live commentary during games and puzzles with personality. Chess-legend anecdotes, opinions, the occasional bad joke. Like a friend with too much chess trivia sitting next to you. Audio output included. Available in 27 languages. Customisable board colours, piece sets, and notation display. Light and dark mode across all screens, or set to follow your device preference. No ads. No energy systems. No artificial gating. Open the app, train, close the app. Free to use, all functions are available at no cost. ChessBase Premium unlocks expanded cloud storage and unlimited database search results. Free: search the online database (max 50 games displayed), up to 10 cloud databases (10 MB total), cloud clipping for up to 10 games. Premium: unlimited database search, up to 200 cloud databases (500 MB total), cloud clipping for up to 400 games. Privacy policy: https://en.chessbase.com/pages/security Terms of use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

ChessRecall

Master chess openings with spaced repetition and interactive practice. Build a stronger repertoire by studying, practicing, and reviewing lines at the optimal time. Track your progress and analyze positions with Stockfish.

Highlights
  • Spaced repetition for openings
  • Interactive chessboard practice
  • Explore and organize opening lines
  • Stockfish analysis
  • PGN import/export
  • Progress tracking
  • Personalized training routine
Features
Read full description

ChessRecall helps you master chess openings through spaced repetition, interactive practice, and smart progress tracking. Build a stronger opening repertoire by studying the lines you want to remember, practicing them on a chessboard, and reviewing them at the right time. Whether you are learning your first openings or refining a complete repertoire, ChessRecall turns opening study into a focused training routine. KEY FEATURES • Train chess openings with spaced repetition Review the lines that need attention and reinforce them before you forget. • Practice on an interactive chessboard Train move by move and build long-term memory for your opening repertoire. • Explore opening lines Navigate variations, study positions, add comments, and organize your repertoire. • Stockfish analysis Evaluate positions and understand the quality of different moves. • PGN import and export Bring your own opening lines into the app and keep your repertoire organized. • Progress tracking Follow your streaks, weekly activity, opening mastery, milestones, and training statistics. • Built for serious chess improvement Use ChessRecall as your personal chess opening trainer for daily practice, review, and preparation. Chess openings are easier to remember when you study them consistently. ChessRecall combines opening training, spaced repetition, analysis, and progress tracking to help you build a repertoire that lasts. Start training your chess openings today. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://chess-recall.com/privacy/

Screenshots

ChessBase Mobile Chess4 screens
ChessRecall4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: ChessBase Mobile Chess at 41% against ChessRecall's 0%. ChessRecall's advantage is update cadence (every 6 weeks vs every 3 months). On price, ads, 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. ChessBase Mobile Chess sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $3.99 per month and ChessRecall sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ChessBase Mobile Chess ships an update every 3 months, ChessRecall every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 5, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
ChessBase Mobile Chess versus ChessRecall: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterChessBase Mobile ChessChessRecall
PriceFreeFree
Rating2.9 (18 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews40.6% of reviews — better0.0% of reviews
Number of ratings18 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsEvery 6 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemiumFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.615.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size1 MB192 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperChessBase GmbHIvan de Jesus Rodriguez Tovar

Customer experience

ChessBase Mobile Chess

All ratings18 ratings
Positive44.4%
Neutral5.6%
Negative50.0%
Written reviews32 reviews
Positive40.6%
Neutral0.0%
Negative59.4%

ChessRecall

Written reviews1 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral100.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

1 purchases

ChessBase Mobile Chess

Subscriptions1
  • ChessBase Premium (Monthly)$3.991 Month
2 purchases

ChessRecall

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly Premium$4.991 Month
  • Yearly Premium7 Days trial$29.991 Year

Questions

Is ChessBase Mobile Chess free?
ChessBase Mobile Chess is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is ChessRecall free?
ChessRecall is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do ChessBase Mobile Chess or ChessRecall have ads?
Neither ChessBase Mobile Chess nor ChessRecall shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ChessBase Mobile Chess or ChessRecall?
ChessBase Mobile Chess ships an update every 3 months, and ChessRecall every 6 weeks. Most recently, ChessBase Mobile Chess was updated on November 5, 2026 and ChessRecall on October 31, 2026.

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