Comparison

Match 3* vs Sand Unblock

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

Head to head
About

Match 3*

Score points by matching three or more identical shapes in a row. This tile-matching game offers a simple yet engaging puzzle experience.

Highlights
  • Match three or more identical shapes
  • Score points
  • Simple puzzle gameplay
  • Engaging matching mechanics
Features
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Score as many points as possible by matching three or more identical shapes in a row.

About

Sand Unblock

Features
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Every level starts as a picture made of sand. One move later, it is a waterfall. Sand Unblock is a sliding-block puzzle with real falling sand. A drawing made of thousands of coloured grains rests on a wall of blocks. Drag the blocks out of the way, open a clear path, and the whole picture pours down through a steel funnel that sorts every grain by colour into its own glass bottle. Fill the bottles to the last grain and the level is yours. HOW IT PLAYS - Drag any block in any direction. Blocks never overlap and never leave the board. - Sand cannot pass through a block, and it never rests on one: it slides to the nearest edge and falls. - Open a full column from top to bottom and the whole picture rushes through at once. - The funnel sorts the grains by colour. One bottle per colour, filled perfectly flat. - A level is won only when 100% of the sand is bottled. 50 LEVELS, 50 PICTURES Flags, a rainbow, a heart, a rocket, a smiley, a goldfish: each level has its own sand painting, and each one ends up neatly sorted into bottles. The first levels take a single move. Later boards pack up to ten blocks and ask for a little planning, but never more than a handful of moves. It is a game for unwinding, not for getting stuck. NO STRINGS - No ads. Not one. - No purchases, nothing locked behind a paywall. - No account, no sign-in, no e-mail. - Plays offline, on the underground, on a plane, in a tunnel. Made for one hand and short sittings. Every level fits in a minute or two, and watching the sand fall is half the fun.

Screenshots

Match 3*2 screens
Sand Unblock3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Sand Unblock at weekly against Match 3*'s fortnightly. Match 3*'s advantage is device support (3 vs 1) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). On price, ads and in-app purchases 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Match 3* ships an update fortnightly, Sand Unblock weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 6 level
Match 3* versus Sand Unblock: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMatch 3*Sand Unblock
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings1 — better—
Update frequencyFortnightlyWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS15.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size0 MB13 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAlexander BersonThibault Leduc

In-app purchases

None

Match 3*

No in-app purchases

None

Sand Unblock

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Match 3* free?
Match 3* is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Sand Unblock free?
Sand Unblock is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Match 3* or Sand Unblock have ads?
Neither Match 3* nor Sand Unblock shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Match 3* or Sand Unblock?
Match 3* ships an update fortnightly, and Sand Unblock weekly. Most recently, Match 3* was updated on October 30, 2026 and Sand Unblock on October 31, 2026.

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