Comparison

Chess Lab vs ChessMate

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

Head to head
About

Chess Lab

Analyze chess games with a powerful AI engine, practice against 30 difficulty levels, or watch live top-tier matches. Save and replay games, import PGNs, and customize your board view for a premium experience.

Highlights
  • AI-powered game analysis
  • 30 difficulty levels for CPU play
  • Local 2-player mode
  • Lichess spectating with channel selection
  • Save and replay games
  • PGN import
  • Customizable 2D/2.5D board views
Features
Read full description

Open the app and your previous channel is right there. Watch world-class games in your spare time. Save interesting matches and analyze the positions. Chess Lab: Arasan Engine is a chess app that combines a world-class chess engine and Lichess spectating into one beautiful, intuitive interface. โ–ช Play instantly with "Web Invite" - No download or account creation required for your opponent. - Just send an invite link, and they can join immediately from their smartphone or PC browser. โ–ช Diverse game modes - Web Invite Match: Easy private matches via URL. - Offline CPU Match: Play against the powerful Arasan engine (featuring the latest v26.1 / NNUE v8). Practice with 30 levels of adjustable strength. - Local 2-Player Match: Play face-to-face on a single device. โ–ช Watch world chess on your smartphone. Lichess Spectating - Watch top world games right in the app, just like watching TV or manga on your phone. - Channel selection (Top Rated / Bullet / Blitz / Rapid / Classical), thumbnail/list display, and item count (10/20/30) support. - Displays board, moves, clock, playback controls, and termination reason. Rewind moves to review. - Your previous tab and channel open automatically, putting world games right in front of you during spare moments. - Save interesting games to history to use for your own learning. โ–ช Extensive analysis & replay features - Powered by Arasan: Built-in UCI engine that calculates highly accurate evaluations and best moves. - Real-time Analysis: Displays evaluation bar and eval graph in real-time during games. Recalculate past games with "Analyze Position" and save the graph. The graph uses a dynamic scale that excludes mate scores and clamps at a maximum of ยฑ15 pawns. - Candidate Moves Display: Shows top candidate moves on the board with arrows, ghost pieces, and evaluation labels. The 1st move is blue, and subsequent moves are color-coded green โ†’ yellow โ†’ red based on Loss (difference from the 1st move). Toggle visibility with the "Candidates" button. - Interactive History: Step playback, fast-forward, jump to any position, and a "Rewind" (back to start) button for efficient review. - Visualized Insights: Automatically highlights large evaluation changes (blunders). Color-codes long-thinking moves (red/yellow) to visualize time management. - PGN Import: Import external game data (PGN). โ–ช Premium board experience - 2.5D & 2D Display: Switch between a tilted 2.5D perspective and a classic 2D board. - Piece Design Toggle: Choose between text pieces and detailed image pieces. - Full Promotion Support: Accurately select Queen, Rook, Bishop, or Knight when promoting a pawn. - Pause & Resume: Automatically saves unfinished games so you can resume later. โ–ช Improved menu & settings - Redesigned bottom menu into a 3-tab layout: "Match / History / Lichess". The header switches according to the selected tab. - Tab selection state is saved, so the previous tab opens automatically on the next launch.

About

ChessMate

Features
Read full description

ChessMate is live online chess and serious training in one clean, focused app. Play rated games against real opponents, warm up against an always-available practice opponent, and sharpen your tactics with a library of more than 1,000 rated puzzles. LIVE ONLINE MULTIPLAYER Jump into a live rated game in seconds. Choose bullet, blitz, rapid, or classical, tap Find Game, and matchmaking pairs you with another player in real time. Every rated game counts towards your Elo, so each win moves you up the ladder. CHESSMATE COACH Never wait for an opponent. When the queue is quiet, ChessMate Coach โ€” your always-available practice opponent โ€” steps in so you can start a live game straight away. Perfect for warming up before a rated match or fitting in a quick game at any hour. DAILY PUZZLE Start each day with a fresh tactical puzzle. The daily puzzle is free for everyone and rotates every 24 hours, so there is always a new problem waiting when you open the app. PUZZLE LIBRARY Work through more than 1,000 rated tactical puzzles covering forks, pins, skewers, discovered attacks, and the other patterns that decide most games at club level. Each puzzle is rated from beginner to master, so you are always challenged at the right level. PLAY THE COMPUTER Prefer a solo game? Play against the computer at a level that suits you whenever you want a game entirely on your own terms. GAME ANALYSIS Review your games move by move after you play. Spot the turning points, learn from your mistakes, and bring the lessons into your next game. LEADERBOARD See where you stand against the wider ChessMate community. The global leaderboard ranks players by rating, so you always know who is climbing and how far you have to go. ELO RATINGS Track separate Elo ratings for bullet, blitz, rapid, and classical play, plus an overall rating that summarises your form. Your profile keeps a record of every rated game so you can watch yourself improve over time. CLEAN, MODERN INTERFACE ChessMate has a focused, distraction-free interface with a tasteful dark mode, a familiar piece set, and accessibility-friendly contrast. Everything is one tap away from the main board. SIGN IN WITH APPLE ChessMate supports Sign in with Apple alongside email-and-password accounts. You stay in control of your data, and account deletion is one tap away from the Settings screen. SUBSCRIPTION TIERS ChessMate is free to download and play. Optional auto-renewing subscriptions support development and unlock additional content as it becomes available: Gold โ€” 1-month subscription, ยฃ2.99/month Gold โ€” 12-month subscription, ยฃ29/year (โ‰ˆยฃ2.42/month) Platinum โ€” 1-month subscription, ยฃ4.99/month Platinum โ€” 12-month subscription, ยฃ49/year (โ‰ˆยฃ4.08/month) Diamond โ€” 1-month subscription, ยฃ9.99/month Diamond โ€” 12-month subscription, ยฃ99/year (โ‰ˆยฃ8.25/month) Payment will be charged to your Apple ID account at confirmation of purchase. Subscriptions automatically renew unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Your account will be charged for renewal within 24 hours prior to the end of the current period. Subscriptions may be managed and auto-renewal turned off in your Apple ID Account Settings after purchase. PRIVACY ChessMate does not sell your data and does not show third-party ads. You can delete your account, including all rating history and gameplay data, directly from the Settings screen. Download ChessMate today โ€” play live, solve the daily puzzle, and watch your rating climb. Terms of Use (EULA): https://chessmate.wolftechnologies.co.uk/terms.html Privacy Policy: https://chessmate.wolftechnologies.co.uk/privacy.html

Screenshots

Chess Lab4 screens
ChessMate4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: ChessMate at none against Chess Lab's shown. ChessMate also leads on iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.6). Chess Lab's advantage is update cadence (every 4 days vs every 2 weeks). On price, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

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

CostPrice ยท In-app purchases ยท Ads ยท Monetization

Both are free to download. Chess Lab sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and ChessMate sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Chess Lab ships an update every 4 days, ChessMate every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 8, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences ยท 5 level
Chess Lab versus ChessMate: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterChess LabChessMate
PriceFreeFree
Positive reviews33.3% of reviewsโ€”
Update frequencyEvery 4 days โ€” betterEvery 2 weeks
AdsYesNo โ€” better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesโ€”
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod โ€” better
Requires iOS17.615.0 โ€” better
Further details โ€” not scored
Size64 MB11 MB
Age rating4+4+
Developerkoji ozonoWolf Technologies Ltd

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Chess Lab

One-time1
  • Chess Lab Pro$2.99
6 purchases

ChessMate

Subscriptions6
  • Gold Monthly7 Days trial$2.991 Month
  • Platinum Monthly7 Days trial$4.991 Month
  • Diamond Monthly7 Days trial$9.991 Month
Show 3 more
  • Gold Yearly7 Days trial$29.991 Year
  • Platinum Yearly7 Days trial$49.991 Year
  • Diamond Yearly7 Days trial$99.991 Year

Questions

Is Chess Lab free?
Chess Lab is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is ChessMate free?
ChessMate is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Chess Lab or ChessMate have ads?
Chess Lab shows ads; ChessMate does not.
Which is updated more often, Chess Lab or ChessMate?
Chess Lab ships an update every 4 days, and ChessMate every 2 weeks. Most recently, Chess Lab was updated on November 8, 2026 and ChessMate on October 31, 2026.

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