Pixie Grid vs Zen Shikaku
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side โ with what reviewers say about each.
Pixie Grid
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Pixie Grid is a cozy picture-reveal logic puzzle. Solve the nonogram, and your finished grid blooms into a warm, hand-illustrated picture โ a small gift you made yourself. No lives. No energy gates. Just you, the clues, and a calm place to think. Free to play, with ads โ remove them anytime. HOW NONOGRAMS WORK โข The numbers beside each row and column are run-lengths โ how many cells to fill in a row, in order โข A clue of "3 1" means a run of 3 filled cells, a gap, then 1 filled cell โข Use logic to work out which cells must be filled and which stay empty โข Fill the grid correctly and the hidden picture is revealed โข Tap to fill, hold to mark, drag to paint a line โ undo as much as you like A COZY CAMPAIGN โข Work through a relaxing campaign across 5 difficulty tiers โข From a gentle 5ร5 all the way up to a 15ร15 Expert chew โข Every puzzle has one solution and is solvable by pure logic โ no guessing, fair by design โข Earn up to 3 mastery stars per level for a flawless solve (no mistakes, no hints) โ it rewards clean solving, never speed A NEW PICTURE EVERY DAY โข One cozy daily puzzle, the same picture for everyone โข Share a spoiler-free result with friends โ it never gives the picture away โข Keep a gentle, backfillable streak; miss a day and simply solve it later, no punishment โข A 30-day login reward calendar โ play any day to claim it QUESTS & REWARDS โข Optional daily and weekly quests with little bonus objectives โ ignore them completely if you like โข Earn Credits as you play, from stars, quests, and your login streak โข Collect procedural background skins to make the game your own NO-FAIL, NO-RUSH โข No mistake counter, no game over โ undo freely โข Choose a relaxing no-error-check mode or a gentle assist โข No forced timer on the board; an optional time-challenge mode is there if you want it, and it is off by default PLAYS YOUR WAY โข Dark mode for candle-lit evening solving โข Dynamic Type, VoiceOver, colorblind-safe, and reduce-motion friendly FAIR & HONEST โข Free to play, supported by ads โ remove ads anytime with a one-time purchase โข Optional Credits buy only comfort (extra hints, a reveal-line helper) and cosmetic skins โ never an unfair advantage โข Every single level is 100% solvable for free โ no pay-to-win โข No loot boxes, no randomized purchases, no energy gate, no lives, no subscription โข Credits are stored on your device; unspent Credits stay with this install โข Restore Purchases is always available Pixie Grid is the calm daily ritual the nonogram has been missing โ warm, fair, and yours. Sit down, pour a cup of tea, and reveal today's picture.
Zen Shikaku
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Every puzzle has exactly one solution, and you can always reach it by pure logic. You will never have to guess. And no ads interrupt you while you're solving. Divide the grid into rectangles. Each number tells you the area of the rectangle it belongs to. Simple to learn, endlessly deep. โ WHAT MAKES IT DIFFERENT โ โข No ads while you're solving. Ads appear only after you finish a puzzle, and not even every time. Your thinking is never interrupted. โข No walls. No energy bars, no keys, no tokens, no level packs to buy. โข Play offline. Puzzles are generated on your device โ no connection needed, ever. โข Verified before you see it. Every board is checked for a unique solution and for being solvable without guessing. โ HOW TO PLAY โ Drag from a number to draw a rectangle. The rectangle must contain exactly one number, and its area must equal that number. The board is done when every cell belongs to exactly one rectangle. โ NO PRESSURE โ No timers. No lives. No way to lose. Take as long as you like, and use a hint whenever you want one โ there is never a penalty for it. โ ACCESSIBILITY โ Color is never the only way to tell things apart. Every rectangle is defined by its borders and its number, so the puzzle reads the same whether or not you distinguish colors. The palette is chosen to stay distinguishable for protanopia, deuteranopia and tritanopia โ with nothing to turn on.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Zen Shikaku at every 5 days against Pixie Grid's every 3 weeks. Zen Shikaku also leads on iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). On price, ads, 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
Both are free to download. Pixie Grid sells 5 one-off in-app purchases and Zen Shikaku sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Pixie Grid ships an update every 3 weeks, Zen Shikaku every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 18, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Pixie Grid | Zen Shikaku |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Every 5 days โ better |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPod โ better |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 15.0 โ better |
| Further details โ not scored | ||
| Size | 6 MB | 104 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Leon Karas | Chengdu Zen and Bit Technology Co., Ltd. |
In-app purchases
Pixie Grid
- 100 Credits$0.99
- 350 Credits$2.99
- 800 Credits$5.99
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- Remove Ads$5.99
- 1500 Credits$9.99
Zen Shikaku
- Remove Ads Forever$4.99
Questions
Is Pixie Grid free?
Is Zen Shikaku free?
Do Pixie Grid or Zen Shikaku have ads?
Which is updated more often, Pixie Grid or Zen Shikaku?
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