# Barred Crossword vs Threadline

The clearest difference is ads: Threadline at none against Barred Crossword's shown. Threadline also leads on update cadence (fortnightly vs every 3 months). On price, in-app purchases, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Barred Crossword sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $4.99 per year and Threadline sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Barred Crossword ships an update every 3 months, Threadline fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 21, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Barred Crossword | Threadline |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.2 (21 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/barred-crossword/id953010888/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **21** | — |
| Positive reviews | 57.9% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | **Fortnightly** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Size | 99 MB | 55 MB |
| Requires iOS | **12.0** | 13.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 9+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Havos](https://appshunter.io/developer/309789068) | [Joel King](https://appshunter.io/developer/1875494842) |

## What reviewers say

### Barred Crossword

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/barred-crossword/id953010888)

This app offers an unlimited supply of automatically generated crosswords with customizable grids and difficulty. It supports multiple languages and features aids to help you solve puzzles, making it ideal for crossword enthusiasts.

**Highlights:** Unlimited auto-generated crosswords, Configurable grid size and difficulty, Multiple crossword grid types (Barred, British, Arrow), Thousands of clues, Multi-language support, Zoom and pan grid functionality, Save and reload games

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

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Supporter (no ads) | $4.99 | per year |


### Threadline

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/threadline-flow-puzzle/id6758916144)

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

**In-app purchases (10)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Easy Pack | $0.99 | one-time |
| 10 Hints | $0.99 | one-time |
| Medium Pack | $1.99 | one-time |
| 5 Skip Tokens | $1.99 | one-time |
| Hard Pack | $2.99 | one-time |
| Expert Pack | $4.99 | one-time |
| Master Pack | $7.99 | one-time |
| Legendary Pack | $19.99 | one-time |
| Mythic Pack | $19.99 | one-time |
| Godlike Pack | $24.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Barred Crossword free?

Barred Crossword is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Threadline free?

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

### Do Barred Crossword or Threadline have ads?

Barred Crossword shows ads; Threadline does not.

### Which is updated more often, Barred Crossword or Threadline?

Barred Crossword ships an update every 3 months, and Threadline fortnightly. Most recently, Barred Crossword was updated on October 21, 2026 and Threadline on October 15, 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.*