# Star Realms vs Card Thief

The clearest difference is ads: Star Realms at none against Card Thief's shown. Star Realms also leads on update cadence (every 10 days vs every 4 months) and ratings volume (4.5K vs 1K). Card Thief's advantage is review sentiment (70% vs 57%) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.0). On price, rating, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Star Realms sells 10 one-off in-app purchases and Card Thief sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for Star Realms against 4.7 for Card Thief. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 4.5K and 1K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 57% of Star Realms's written reviews are positive against 70% of Card Thief's.

Star Realms ships an update every 10 days, Card Thief every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on November 4, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Star Realms | Card Thief |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.6 (4.5K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/star-realms/id893447125/reviews) | **[4.7 (1K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/card-thief/id1186226470/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **4.5K** | 1K |
| Positive reviews | 57.0% of reviews | **69.9% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Every 10 days** | Every 4 months |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 509 MB | 161 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | **12.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 12+ | 12+ |
| Developer | [White Wizard Games](https://appshunter.io/developer/893447128) | [Arnold Rauers](https://appshunter.io/developer/538013421) |

## What reviewers say

### Star Realms

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/star-realms/id893447125)

Engage in thrilling space combat with this popular deckbuilding game. Build your deck, outmaneuver opponents, and conquer the galaxy. Offers both single-player campaigns and multiplayer battles.

**Highlights:** Deckbuilding gameplay, Player vs Player combat, AI battles, Campaign mode, Online multiplayer, Pass and Play mode

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

**In-app purchases (10)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Crisis: Bases and Battleships Set | $1.99 | one-time |
| Crisis: Events Set | $1.99 | one-time |
| Crisis: Heroes Set | $1.99 | one-time |
| Crisis: Fleets and Fortresses | $1.99 | one-time |
| Command | $1.99 | one-time |
| Gambit Set | $3.99 | one-time |
| Cosmic Gambit | $3.99 | one-time |
| Full Version | $4.99 | one-time |
| Colony Wars | $4.99 | one-time |
| Frontiers | $4.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Great game
- 👍 Excellent implementation
- 💡 Lots of content and features
- 🚀 Fast and smooth gameplay
- 👍 Challenging AI

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
- 🐛 Issues with online play and connectivity
- 🐛 Unbalanced AI difficulty
- 💰 Expensive in-app purchases
- 🐛 Confusing UI and navigation

**Reported bugs**

- Game freezes and crashes on launch
- Online games getting stuck or timing out
- Inability to scrap or play certain cards
- Incorrect card behavior and interactions

**Requested features**

- Add undo/rewind functionality
- Improve offline/single-player experience
- Implement better matchmaking and player communication
- Provide more detailed game statistics and analytics


### Card Thief

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/card-thief/id1186226470)

A solitaire-style stealth game where you play as a master thief. Sneak through darkness, steal treasure, and escape without getting caught. It offers deep strategy and roguelike replayability in short, engaging sessions.

**Highlights:** Solitaire-style stealth gameplay, 4 unique heists, Unlockable equipment cards, Hireable thieves with special rules, Mini deck-building mechanics, Daily Heist mode with leaderboards, Roguelike replayability, Offline play

**Features:** Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Unlock Card Thief | $4.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Great game
- 👍 Fun and unique stealth mechanics
- 👍 Very fun for offline gaming
- 👍 New favorite card game
- 👍 Creative and addictive game

**What reviewers complain about**

- ❓ What is the goal?
- 🐛 Issueee
- 🐛 Buggy
- 🐛 Crashes on load
- 🐛 Cannot select path

**Reported bugs**

- Crystals which you can get when playing are useless
- Notch covers game information on iPhone X+
- Ads error prevents chest opening
- Hideout heists have unrealistically high scores
- Can't open hideout, game crashes

**Requested features**

- More enemies or traps to deal with
- More equipment to try out
- 4x4 layout rather than 3x3
- Endless mode
- Multiplayer compatibility


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Star Realms free?

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

### Is Card Thief free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Star Realms or Card Thief?

Card Thief is rated higher. Star Realms averages 4.6 out of 5 from 4.5K ratings, while Card Thief averages 4.7 from 1K ratings.

### Do Star Realms or Card Thief have ads?

Card Thief shows ads; Star Realms does not.

### Which is updated more often, Star Realms or Card Thief?

Star Realms ships an update every 10 days, and Card Thief every 4 months. Most recently, Star Realms was updated on November 4, 2026 and Card Thief on November 3, 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.*