Comparison

Clean Crosswords vs Devarai® Crosswords II

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

Head to head
About

Clean Crosswords

Enjoy a classic crossword experience designed for iOS devices. This app offers 1,800 puzzles with clues directly in the grid for easy viewing and play. It provides weeks of challenging fun in a clean, British English format.

Highlights
  • 1,800 crossword puzzles
  • Clues in puzzle grid
  • Classic British English
  • Designed for iPhone and iPad
  • Challenging fun
Features
Read full description

Designed for iPhone and iPad and the new iOS and written in classic British English, Clean Crossword is different and possibly the best crossword ever published for iOS devices. The clues are shown right in the puzzle grid, making puzzles easy to view and play for weeks of challenging fun.

About

Devarai® Crosswords II

Explore a virtual exhibition of international crossword art, featuring puzzles from leading authors in multiple languages. Enjoy an engaging interface, track your progress, and compete on leaderboards. A subscription unlocks full access to this expanding world of crosswords.

Highlights
  • International crossword art exhibition
  • Puzzles by leading authors
  • Multi-language support
  • Leaderboard and competition system
  • Progress tracking and statistics
  • Hands-free clue reading and dictation
Features
Read full description

This app contains the first international virtual exhibition space for crossword art. We showcase the best-crafted American-style crossword puzzles made by the world’s leading crossword authors working in a variety of languages (with a focus on English, Italian, Spanish and German). This app is being regularly updated with a goal to provide an inventory of all of the world’s leading crossword authors, ranked and featured. There are many puzzles available to all to play for free. Just click on a crossword author, then click on the puzzle numbers in blue. For full access, there is a subscription system. You can fill out the puzzles with an easy, engaging interface. An ever-expanding world of crosswords is open to you! Our website features a leaderboard system and various leagues in which you can advance if you are successful during the weekly competitions. Your statistics and streaks are tracked so you can monitor your progress and select new puzzles to tackle suitable to your level. The website works well on tablet and mobile, with one of the most popular approaches being to use it on an iPad, filling out the puzzles by hand with an Apple Pencil. You can even go “hands-free” and ask our software to read you the clues aloud and use dictation software to fill in your answers. Devarai offers a multidimensional experience, providing not only world-class puzzles but also a beautiful aesthetic and even custom-composed music from Devarai’s own record label, Nightdaisy. Devarai’s unique approach is to showcase, for the first time, the crossword authors themselves, providing them with a platform to be the front men (and women) for their creations. In the Middle Ages, artists did not sign their work and their roles were largely anonymous. The art they created was important, but no one much bothered with the creators. The world of crosswords is largely similar today, but all that should change. During the Renaissance, the artists themselves came to the fore, with patrons wishing to commission a work by a specific artist, not just wanting a good version of the work. This is Devarai’s approach, lifting the art of the crossword puzzle out of the Middle Ages and launching a crossword Renaissance in which the authors are the stars. And you, the solvers, reap the benefits! Terms of use: https://crosswords.devarai.com/legal/terms

Screenshots

Clean Crosswords4 screens
Devarai® Crosswords II4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Devarai® Crosswords II at 5.0 against Clean Crosswords's 4.5. Devarai® Crosswords II also leads on iOS requirement (12.0 vs 16.0). Clean Crosswords's advantage is ratings volume (1.9K vs 1). On price, update cadence, 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. Clean Crosswords sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Devarai® Crosswords II sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $4.49 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Devarai® Crosswords II holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Clean Crosswords has 1.9K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Clean Crosswords ships an update every 4 months, Devarai® Crosswords II every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Clean Crosswords versus Devarai® Crosswords II: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterClean CrosswordsDevarai® Crosswords II
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (1.9K ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews65.8% of reviews—
Number of ratings1.9K — better1
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsEvery 3 months — better
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS16.012.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size229 MB16 MB
Age rating4+17+
Developerthe binary familyDevarai

Customer experience

Clean Crosswords

All ratings1,926 ratings
Positive88.8%
Neutral6.4%
Negative4.8%
Written reviews243 reviews
Positive65.8%
Neutral14.0%
Negative20.2%

Devarai® Crosswords II

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Clean Crosswords

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Incorrect word definitions or answers
  • Arrows pointing to wrong cells
  • Puzzle progress not saving properly
  • Ads causing app crashes or freezes

Requested features

5 requests
  • Dark mode option
  • Progress tracking and statistics
  • Ability to replay completed puzzles
  • More variety in puzzle difficulty levels
  • Better integration of American English

Devarai® Crosswords II

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Clean Crosswords

One-time1
  • Remove Ads$7.99
4 purchases

Devarai® Crosswords II

Subscriptions4
  • One-month subscription$4.491 Month
  • Three-month subscription$9.993 Months
  • Six-month subscription$15.996 Months
Show 1 more
  • One-year subscription$25.991 Year

Questions

Is Clean Crosswords free?
Clean Crosswords is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Devarai® Crosswords II free?
Devarai® Crosswords II is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Clean Crosswords or Devarai® Crosswords II?
Devarai® Crosswords II is rated higher. Clean Crosswords averages 4.5 out of 5 from 1.9K ratings, while Devarai® Crosswords II averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Clean Crosswords or Devarai® Crosswords II have ads?
Both Clean Crosswords and Devarai® Crosswords II show ads.
Which is updated more often, Clean Crosswords or Devarai® Crosswords II?
Clean Crosswords ships an update every 4 months, and Devarai® Crosswords II every 3 months. Most recently, Clean Crosswords was updated on November 1, 2026 and Devarai® Crosswords II on November 3, 2026.

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