# Puzzle Day vs Merge Maestro

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Puzzle Day at none against Merge Maestro's 1. Merge Maestro's advantage is rating (4.8 vs 4.6) and ratings volume (138 vs 11). On price, review sentiment, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Merge Maestro sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Puzzle Day asks for nothing beyond the download.

Merge Maestro holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Merge Maestro has 138 ratings behind it against 11, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 89% of Puzzle Day's written reviews are positive against 91% of Merge Maestro's.

Puzzle Day ships an update weekly, Merge Maestro every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on October 6, 2026 and October 9, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Puzzle Day | Merge Maestro |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.6 (11 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/puzzle-day/id982328362/reviews) | **[4.8 (138 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/merge-maestro/id6670491302/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 11 | **138** |
| Positive reviews | 88.9% of reviews | **91.4% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Weekly** | Every 9 days |
| Monetization | **Ad-supported** | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 147 MB | 94 MB |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 | **12.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | [Simple Machine, LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/440559596) | [DAVID HS TING](https://appshunter.io/developer/1766514584) |

## What reviewers say

### Puzzle Day

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/puzzle-day/id982328362)

Discover a growing collection of unique, bite-sized puzzles added weekly. Enjoy daily challenges, quick gameplay, and no account required. Support the developer by watching ads.

**Highlights:** Unique daily and weekly puzzles, Multiple puzzle types (Numby, Pathwords, Burbs, Hoots), Daily challenge mode, No account or login required, Quick and satisfying gameplay, New puzzles added regularly

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

**In-app purchases:** none


### Merge Maestro

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/merge-maestro/id6670491302)

Combine hundreds of unique emoji tokens in a puzzle-like, rogue-like experience. Discover creative combinations of tokens and powers to fuse unique strategies and overcome increasingly challenging levels. Enjoy a twist on puzzle, rogue-like, and arcade gameplay.

**Highlights:** Hundreds of unique emoji tokens, Combo-driven gameplay, Puzzle-like rogue-like mechanics, Discover creative token combinations, Fuse unique strategies, Challenging levels

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

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Full Access | $2.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Engaging and fun gameplay
- 🚀 Great value for a free-to-play game
- 💡 Unique and creative mechanics
- 👍 Thoughtful game design

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Crashes on startup for some users
- 🐛 Issues with medal tracking

**Reported bugs**

- Crashes on startup
- Medal tracking issues

**Requested features**

- Endless mode
- UI/text scale options


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Puzzle Day free?

Puzzle Day is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Merge Maestro free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Puzzle Day or Merge Maestro?

Merge Maestro is rated higher. Puzzle Day averages 4.6 out of 5 from 11 ratings, while Merge Maestro averages 4.8 from 138 ratings.

### Do Puzzle Day or Merge Maestro have ads?

Neither Puzzle Day nor Merge Maestro shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Puzzle Day or Merge Maestro?

Puzzle Day ships an update weekly, and Merge Maestro every 9 days. Most recently, Puzzle Day was updated on October 6, 2026 and Merge Maestro on October 9, 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.*