# Hocus Puzzle vs Apprentice Witch Match 3

Hocus Puzzle and Apprentice Witch Match 3 both sit at 4.5 stars, but that hides the real split: 93% of Hocus Puzzle's written reviews are positive against 75% of Apprentice Witch Match 3's. Apprentice Witch Match 3's advantage is iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.0). On price, rating, ratings volume and update cadence there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Hocus Puzzle sells 9 one-off in-app purchases and Apprentice Witch Match 3 sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.5 for Hocus Puzzle against 4.6 for Apprentice Witch Match 3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 41 and 87 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 93% of Hocus Puzzle's written reviews are positive against 75% of Apprentice Witch Match 3's.

Hocus Puzzle ships an update fortnightly, Apprentice Witch Match 3 every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on August 26, 2026 and July 27, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Hocus Puzzle | Apprentice Witch Match 3 |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.5 (41 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hocus-puzzle/id952183548/reviews) | **[4.6 (87 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/apprentice-witch-match-3/id1356467692/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 41 | **87** |
| Positive reviews | **92.9% of reviews** | 75.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | **Every 2 weeks** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 265 MB | 257 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | **13.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 9+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Bigpoint GmbH](https://appshunter.io/developer/421914256) | [One Up Games Studio](https://appshunter.io/developer/1348244383) |

## What reviewers say

### Hocus Puzzle

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hocus-puzzle/id952183548)

Embark on a magical puzzle adventure to restore a dried-up river by mixing potions and casting spells. Explore enchanting worlds, defeat villains, and challenge friends on leaderboards. Collect costumes for powerful advantages in over 200 levels.

**Highlights:** Mix and match potions, Cast spells, Over 200 spellbinding levels, Challenge friends, Collect costumes, Leaderboards

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (9)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Welcome Pack | $0.99 | one-time |
| Gem Pack n°1 | $0.99 | one-time |
| Special Pack 5 | $1.99 | one-time |
| Special Pack 10 | $1.99 | one-time |
| Gem Pack n°2 | $3.99 | one-time |
| Win The Level | $4.99 | one-time |
| Gem Pack n°3 | $9.99 | one-time |
| Gem Pack n°4 | $16.99 | one-time |
| Gem Pack n°5 | $39.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Fun and addictive game
- 🎨 Great graphics and visuals
- 🕹️ Challenging but enjoyable gameplay
- 🕰️ Good time-passer
- 🎨 Cute and colorful design

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional bugs and glitches
- 💰 Expensive in-app purchases
- 🔍 Lack of support and explanation for higher levels
- 🔋 Can be draining on battery

**Reported bugs**

- Lottery wheel not working properly
- Game freezing during updates
- Losing progress after updates

**Requested features**

- More levels and content updates
- Ability to convert coins to gems
- Option to disable ads or in-app purchases


### Apprentice Witch Match 3

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/apprentice-witch-match-3/id1356467692)

Embark on a magical puzzle adventure as a beginner witch collecting enchanted ingredients. This game features unique match-3 mechanics with distinct rules for day, night, and graveyard levels, offering hundreds of challenging puzzles.

**Highlights:** Unique match-3 mechanics for different times of day, Hundreds of unique puzzle levels, Variety of boosters and powerups, Challenging obstacles like frozen items and spellbooks, Social features with Facebook connect and leaderboards, Bewitched graphics and sounds

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (4)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 30 Magic Gems | $1.99 | one-time |
| 100 Magic Gems | $3.99 | one-time |
| 300 Magic Gems | $9.99 | one-time |
| 1000 Magic Gems | $25.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Hocus Puzzle free?

Hocus Puzzle is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Apprentice Witch Match 3 free?

Apprentice Witch Match 3 is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Hocus Puzzle or Apprentice Witch Match 3?

Apprentice Witch Match 3 is rated higher. Hocus Puzzle averages 4.5 out of 5 from 41 ratings, while Apprentice Witch Match 3 averages 4.6 from 87 ratings.

### Do Hocus Puzzle or Apprentice Witch Match 3 have ads?

Both Hocus Puzzle and Apprentice Witch Match 3 show ads.

### Which is updated more often, Hocus Puzzle or Apprentice Witch Match 3?

Hocus Puzzle ships an update fortnightly, and Apprentice Witch Match 3 every 2 weeks. Most recently, Hocus Puzzle was updated on August 26, 2026 and Apprentice Witch Match 3 on July 27, 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.*