# Chessferatu vs Zenmate

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Zenmate at none against Chessferatu's 3. Zenmate also leads on ads (none vs shown). Chessferatu's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 6 weeks) and device support (4 vs 2). On price there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Chessferatu sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Zenmate asks for nothing beyond the download.

Chessferatu ships an update every 2 weeks, Zenmate every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 22, 2026 and October 17, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Chessferatu | Zenmate |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[5.0 (4 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/chessferatu/id6767737492/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **4** | — |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | **Every 2 weeks** | Every 6 weeks |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Size | 354 MB | 4 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 17.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 9+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Half-Cocked Studios](https://appshunter.io/developer/1896504941) | [Timothy Nice](https://appshunter.io/developer/1717668220) |

## What reviewers say

### Chessferatu

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/chessferatu/id6767737492)

Learn and practice chess openings through a gamified experience with eerie rivals and high-stakes decisions. Study, battle, and improve with focused play modes, detailed move analysis, and lifetime stats. Features a distinctive horror-inspired presentation for a unique training approach.

**Highlights:** Gamified chess learning, Offline capability, Study opening lines, Battle mode for openings, Detailed move analysis, Lifetime stats tracking, Horror-inspired presentation

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Unlock All Opponents | $4.99 | one-time |
| Remove Ads | $4.99 | one-time |
| Magic Keyring | $9.99 | one-time |


### Zenmate

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/zenmate-mindful-chess/id6776354031)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Chessferatu free?

Chessferatu is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Zenmate free?

Zenmate is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Do Chessferatu or Zenmate have ads?

Chessferatu shows ads; Zenmate does not.

### Which is updated more often, Chessferatu or Zenmate?

Chessferatu ships an update every 2 weeks, and Zenmate every 6 weeks. Most recently, Chessferatu was updated on October 22, 2026 and Zenmate on October 17, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*