Mahjong Solitaire* vs Original Mahjong™
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Mahjong Solitaire*
A classic tile-matching solitaire game where players pair identical Mahjong tiles to clear the board. It features 60 levels with varying layouts and a straightforward objective: remove all tiles by finding matching pairs.
- Mahjong tile matching
- Solitaire gameplay
- 60 levels
- Different layouts
- Exposed tile mechanics
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Mahjong Solitaire is a solitaire matching game that uses a set of Mahjong tiles. Mahjong Solitaire contains 60 levels with different layouts. Mahjong Solitaire is 100% free game. There is NO pop-up or full screen ads. There is NO in-app-purchase. A tile that can be moved left or right without disturbing other tiles is said to be exposed. Exposed pairs of identical tiles (Flower and Seasons tiles in the same group being considered identical) are removed from the layout one at a time, gradually exposing the lower layers to play. The aim of the game is to clear the layout by pairing up all the tiles.
Original Mahjong™
Experience the classic tile-matching puzzle game on your mobile device. This app faithfully recreates the popular web version, offering relaxing gameplay with no limits. Enjoy the familiar challenge of Mahjong anytime, anywhere.
- Faithful recreation of popular web Mahjong game
- Relaxing gameplay
- Play on the go
- No gameplay limits
- Optional ad removal in-app purchase
- Optional statistics viewing in-app purchase
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• Top 3 Strategy Game in New Zealand • Top 10 Puzzle Game in Canada • More than 30 million web players around the world Finally available as an App, the No.1 Mahjong game in the world has arrived for iPad and iPhone. Original Mahjong™ takes the No.1 Mahjong game on the Web™ (from FreeMahjong.org), and brings it to the iPad and iPhone, exactly the way you are used to. Now you can play your favorite Mahjong game... on the go! We set out to create the exact same relaxing gameplay as the original web version, that has entertained tens of millions of people worldwide. We could have added more features... but why change a good thing? Original Mahjong™ Features... - Faithful recreation of the most popular Mahjong game in the world (Official release from freemahjong.org) - 100% FREE - no gameplay limits, app is (modestly) advertising supported - In-app purchase to remove ads if they bug you - In-app purchase to view statistics of all your games Our plan is to release new features gradually. We've been focussed on replicating the existing game perfectly, and making it reliable and bug free. If you do discover any bugs or issues, please let us know at help@originalmahjongapp.com, and we'll be glad to help. We sincerely hope you like our mobile app version of Mahjong, which is our first ever mobile app. Thanks... and enjoy! The Original Mahjong™ App Team http://www.originalmahjongapp.com
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Mahjong Solitaire* at 4.6 against Original Mahjong™'s 4.1. Mahjong Solitaire* also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 2) and review sentiment (66% vs 51%). Original Mahjong™'s advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 5 months) and iOS requirement (6.0 vs 13.0). On price, ads and device support 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
Both are free to download. Original Mahjong™ sells 2 one-off in-app purchases. Mahjong Solitaire* asks for nothing beyond the download.
Mahjong Solitaire* holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.1. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 353 and 98 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 66% of Mahjong Solitaire*'s written reviews are positive against 51% of Original Mahjong™'s.
Mahjong Solitaire* ships an update every 5 months, Original Mahjong™ every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 23, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Mahjong Solitaire* | Original Mahjong™ |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (353 ratings) — better | 4.1 (98 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 65.7% of reviews — better | 51.2% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 353 — better | 98 |
| Update frequency | Every 5 months | Every 2 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 | 6.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 9 MB | 153 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Lei Li | Affinity Media Inc. |
Customer experience
Mahjong Solitaire*
Original Mahjong™
User reviews
Mahjong Solitaire*
From 353 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Addictive gameplay
- 👍 Good way to relax
- 👍 Keeps mind occupied
- 👍 Entertaining for hours
- 👍 No-nonsense presentation
Room to improve
- 😠 Frequent progress resets
- 😠 Unwinnable levels
- 😠 Ads are intrusive
- 😠 Frustrating difficulty spikes
Original Mahjong™
From 98 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Fun and easy to play
- 🧠 Tests your brain
- 🎮 Great game
- ✨ Amazing original mahjong
- 📱 Works well on iPhone
Room to improve
- 😠 Annoying ads
- 🚫 Ads interrupt gameplay
- 😵 Offensive advertising content
- 📉 Difficult to win
- 📏 Sides of puzzles cut off
Bugs and requests
Mahjong Solitaire*
Reported bugs
4 issues- Progress resets to level 1
- Levels 49 and 60 are impossible
- Next level won't open
- Ads are present despite claims
Requested features
4 requests- More levels
- Purchase ad-free version
- Fix progress reset bug
- Fix unwinnable levels
Original Mahjong™
Reported bugs
4 issues- Sides of puzzles are cut off
- Stats functionality does not work
- Game reboots completely when switching apps
- Paid for ad-free but still charged
Requested features
6 requests- Viewing ability to see tiles underneath
- Replay of the same game
- Numbered games for record keeping
- Undo last move button
- Background music
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- Pause and return to game in progress
In-app purchases
Mahjong Solitaire*
No in-app purchases
Original Mahjong™
- Mahjong Remove Ads$0.99
- Mahjong Buy Stats$0.99
Questions
Is Mahjong Solitaire* free?
Is Original Mahjong™ free?
Which has better reviews, Mahjong Solitaire* or Original Mahjong™?
Do Mahjong Solitaire* or Original Mahjong™ have ads?
Which is updated more often, Mahjong Solitaire* or Original Mahjong™?
Other comparisons
