Comparison

Swift Playground vs mBlock

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

Head to head
About

Swift Playground

Learn to code and build real apps through interactive puzzles and challenges. Explore Swift and SwiftUI, Apple's powerful programming languages, with guided lessons and hands-on creation. Suitable for beginners of all ages, it offers a unique learning experience on iPad.

Highlights
  • Interactive coding puzzles
  • Build real apps with SwiftUI
  • Learn Swift programming
  • Explore 3D worlds
  • Smart coding assistance
  • Access iOS frameworks
Read full description

Swift Playground makes it fun to learn to code and build real apps. You solve interactive puzzles in the guided “Get Started with Code” and learn the basics of building apps in “Get Started with Apps.” You experiment with a wide range of challenges and samples that let you explore unique coding experiences. Swift Playground doesn’t require any coding experience — it’s perfect for anyone just starting out, from eight to one-hundred-and-eight. The whole time you are learning Swift and SwiftUI, the powerful programming technologies created by Apple and used by professionals around the globe to build many of today’s most popular apps. And because it’s built to take advantage of iPad and the real iOS SDK, Swift Playground provides a one of a kind learning experience. Lessons Built-in • Apple-created lessons guide you through the core concepts of programming by using code to solve puzzles • See your code run in a beautiful, interactive 3D world that you can rotate with a finger and pinch to zoom • Animations introduce each new coding concept at a high-level before you dive into the puzzles • Glossary and built-in help pages give detailed information about available commands, frameworks, and terminology Explore and Create • Interactive coding shows the results of your code instantly, alongside your work • Step through code in playground books to highlight each line as it runs • Books provide a head start to create your own playgrounds that use graphics, sound, and touch • App Gallery walks you through the building blocks of apps, like tabbed navigation and receiving input from device sensors Build Apps on iPad • Create real apps on iPad using SwiftUI • See your code changes reflected live while you type • Type quickly and accurately with inline code suggestions • Extend your app with an ecosystem of Swift packages • Navigate your code with project-wide search Smart Coding Assistance • Touch and hold to grab any command and move it around to change the order of your code • Drag a brace with your finger to wrap a block of code inside a loop or conditional statement • Drag and drop snippets of commonly-used code directly into your playground • Fix common code errors with helpful inline suggestions • Stay organized with automatic code formatting Real Swift, SwiftUI, and iOS Code • Learn the same powerful Swift programming language used by the pros to create apps in the App Store • Build dynamic, elegant apps using SwiftUI, a modern way to create user interfaces • Access iOS frameworks such as SpriteKit for 2D games, SceneKit for 3D graphics, UIKit, and more • Your code has direct control of iPad hardware, including the gyroscope, accelerometer, camera, and touch events Share or Publish • Send your projects to friends and family using Messages, Mail, AirDrop, or other Share Sheet extensions • Bring your app projects to Xcode on Mac and back again • Submit your completed apps to the App Store with App Store Connect

About

mBlock

This app enables students to learn coding through a block-based interface or Python. It supports creating games, animations, and programming robots, incorporating AI, IoT, and data science for advanced computer science education.

Highlights
  • Graphical programming with drag-and-drop blocks
  • Python programming support
  • Create games and animations
  • Program robots
  • AI, IoT, and data science features
  • Cloud storage for projects
Features
Read full description

With mBlock, students can easily create games, animations, and program robots by dragging and dropping blocks, or through writing Python. Moreover, mBlock comes with AI, IoT, data science features for cutting-edge computer science learning, making it the perfect helper for coding educators and learners. Features: - Graphical programming: The app allows users to create projects with the most popular graphical programming language and program robots to do things as they can imagine. It makes programming as easy as blocks building. - Game-based learning: Children learn to code in completing tasks and know how it feels to accomplish something.      - Cloud storage: Users can store their projects in the cloud, syncing the projects across devices. It’s safe and convenient. - Compatible with Makeblock robots: mBot, mBot Ranger, Codey Rocky, Neuron - Support multiple languages: Chinese, Traditional Chinese, English, Japanese, Polish, and Korean. Contact us: - For more information, please visit the official website: https://www.mblock.cc - Contact us via email: support@makeblock.com - Join Facebook group: Makeblock Talk & Share

Screenshots

mBlock4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Swift Playground at 3.7 against mBlock's 3.1. Swift Playground also leads on ratings volume (1.8K vs 152) and review sentiment (46% vs 34%). mBlock's advantage is device support (3 vs 1) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.0). 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Swift Playground holds the better App Store score, 3.7 against 3.1. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Swift Playground has 1.8K ratings behind it against 152, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 46% of Swift Playground's written reviews are positive against 34% of mBlock's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 28, 2026 and September 17, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Swift Playground versus mBlock: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSwift PlaygroundmBlock
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.7 (1.8K ratings) — better3.1 (152 ratings)
Positive reviews45.7% of reviews — better33.9% of reviews
Number of ratings1.8K — better152
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS18.015.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size1.4 GB170 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAppleMakeblock Co., Ltd.

Customer experience

Swift Playground

All ratings1,836 ratings
Positive64.4%
Neutral9.3%
Negative26.4%
Written reviews552 reviews
Positive45.7%
Neutral10.7%
Negative43.7%

mBlock

All ratings152 ratings
Positive48.7%
Neutral9.2%
Negative42.1%
Written reviews186 reviews
Positive33.9%
Neutral14.0%
Negative52.2%

User reviews

Swift Playground

From 1.8K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Great for learning coding
  • 👍 Fun and engaging way to learn
  • 🚀 Helpful for beginners
  • 👍 Visually appealing

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes frequently
  • 🐛 Buggy and glitchy
  • 🐛 Slow performance
  • 🐛 Keyboard issues
  • 🐛 Unreliable code execution

mBlock

From 152 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Good for coding robots
  • 👍 Works well with Codey Rocky
  • 👍 Great for learning programming
  • 👍 Similar to Scratch
  • 👍 Bluetooth connection works

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Does not support mBot2/mBot Neo
  • 🐛 Connection issues (Bluetooth)
  • 🐛 App is glitchy
  • 🐛 Upload mode not working on iPad
  • 🐛 Live mode not working

Bugs and requests

Swift Playground

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Inability to download or open lessons
  • Crashes when running code
  • Disappearing code and loss of progress
  • Unresponsive keyboard and cursor issues

Requested features

5 requests
  • Support for more programming languages
  • Ability to collaborate with others
  • Better file management
  • More advanced IDE features
  • Improved code completion and error handling

mBlock

Reported bugs

26 issues
  • mBot2/mBot Neo not supported
  • Bluetooth connection fails or is unstable
  • App crashes or freezes
  • Upload mode not functional on iPad
  • Live mode unresponsive
Show 21 more
  • Sprites cannot be moved correctly
  • Key blocks not functioning as expected
  • Saving and syncing issues lead to data loss
  • Cannot upload programs
  • Firmware update required via PC, not Bluetooth
  • Translation errors in blocks and interface
  • Tutorials are glitchy or do not work
  • Fixed rotation issues
  • No zoom in/out for blocks
  • iPad development appears to be halted
  • Cannot grant Bluetooth permissions on iPad
  • Parts of the app interface disappear
  • Cannot create variables on specific devices
  • Incompatibility with older iOS versions
  • Some sensors are not controllable via the app
  • Quad RGB sensor library is not fully translated
  • Costume editor lacks copy-paste and image/sound import
  • Line follower functionality not working
  • Code execution results in no robot action
  • App requires re-login frequently
  • Web version updates break iPad version compatibility

Requested features

18 requests
  • Add mBot2/mBot Neo support
  • Improve Bluetooth connectivity
  • Add local storage for programs
  • Implement zoom functionality
  • Add more examples for Codey Rocky
Show 13 more
  • Enable Arduino coding in the app
  • Improve translation of blocks and interface
  • Add copy-paste functionality in costume editor
  • Allow adding photos and sounds in costume editor
  • Fix variable creation on iPhone X/iPad
  • Update Scratch 3 features
  • Add more sprites/photos
  • Improve tutorial functionality
  • Add dark mode
  • Enable firmware updates via Bluetooth
  • Improve compatibility with older Makeblock controllers
  • Add full French language support
  • Allow sharing projects

In-app purchases

None

Swift Playground

No in-app purchases

None

mBlock

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Swift Playground free?
Swift Playground is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is mBlock free?
mBlock is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Swift Playground or mBlock?
Swift Playground is rated higher. Swift Playground averages 3.7 out of 5 from 1.8K ratings, while mBlock averages 3.1 from 152 ratings.
Do Swift Playground or mBlock have ads?
Neither Swift Playground nor mBlock shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Swift Playground or mBlock?
Swift Playground ships an update every 2 months, and mBlock every 2 months. Most recently, Swift Playground was updated on September 28, 2026 and mBlock on September 17, 2026.

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