Best Not A Substitute Any More Apps & Games

225+ iOS apps & games curated and reviewed

4.6 avg rating
19 free apps & games
Updated June 2026

Out of 225+ Not a substitute any more apps on iOS, 19 are free and the rest sit in the paid tier. This page sorts them so you can compare both sides before you commit.

Top Picks for Not A Substitute Any More

CodyCross: Crossword Puzzles#1

CodyCross: Crossword Puzzles by Fanatee, Inc.

A New Word Game Experience!
Editor's Choice
🎮 Games
4.7😊(284K ratings)
FreeAdsIn-App Purchases
#35in Games
CodyCross: Crossword Puzzles screenshot 1
CodyCross: Crossword Puzzles screenshot 2
CodyCross: Crossword Puzzles screenshot 3
CodyCross: Crossword Puzzles screenshot 4
CodyCross: Crossword Puzzles screenshot 5
CodyCross: Crossword Puzzles screenshot 6

Engage in a unique word game experience with themed crossword puzzles and trivia. Solve clues, guess words, and learn fun facts as you progress through levels. Improve your vocabulary and spelling skills with daily challenges.

What We Love

  • 🚀 Great game, very addictive
  • 👍 Fun and challenging puzzles
  • 💡 Variety of themes and topics
  • 🧠 Helps improve memory and vocabulary

Room to Improve

  • 🔍 Some clues are too obscure or niche
  • 🔁 Repetitive questions and answers
  • ⏱️ Slow loading times and performance issues
Crosswords With Friends#2

Crosswords With Friends by Zynga Inc.

A new crossword puzzle daily!
Strong Contender
🎮 Games
4.5😐(62K ratings)
FreeAdsIn-App Purchases
#18in Games
Crosswords With Friends screenshot 1
Crosswords With Friends screenshot 2
Crosswords With Friends screenshot 3
Crosswords With Friends screenshot 4

Engage your mind with daily crossword puzzles featuring themes from current entertainment, pop culture, and sports. Compete with friends, earn rewards, and access a vast archive of puzzles. Offers mini and midi puzzles alongside themed daily challenges.

What We Love

  • 🎮 Fun and challenging puzzles
  • 🧠 Keeps the brain active
  • 🕰️ Great daily routine
  • 💻 Decent crossword game

Room to Improve

  • 💰 Difficult to earn free coins
  • 🛑 Too many ads and paywalls
  • 🇺🇸 Heavily American-centric
NYT Games: Wordle & Crossword#3

NYT Games: Wordle & Crossword by The New York Times Company

Play Word & Logic Game Puzzles
Worth Considering
🎮 Games
4.8😊(289K ratings)
FreeAdsIn-App Purchases
#1in Games
NYT Games: Wordle & Crossword screenshot 1
NYT Games: Wordle & Crossword screenshot 2
NYT Games: Wordle & Crossword screenshot 3
NYT Games: Wordle & Crossword screenshot 4
NYT Games: Wordle & Crossword screenshot 5
NYT Games: Wordle & Crossword screenshot 6

Engage your mind with a daily collection of popular word, number, and logic puzzles. Enjoy classic challenges like Wordle and The Crossword, alongside new brain teasers. Track your progress and compete with friends.

What We Love

  • 🚀 Excellent brain teasers
  • 👍 Part of daily routine
  • 👍 Great for the brain
  • 👍 Perfectly acceptable way to waste time

Room to Improve

  • 🐛 Buggy, crashes frequently
  • 🐛 Leaderboards and stats issues
  • 🐛 Keyboard issues

More Not A Substitute Any More apps to explore

4
Crossword Puzzle Redstone
Crossword Puzzle Redstone
Crossword Puzzle Redstone
Crossword lovers dream app
Free

Solve thousands of free crossword puzzles with various difficulty levels and themes. Enjoy a polished interface, smart hints, and offline play. Improve your vocabulary and challenge yourself daily with puzzles from top constructors.

Thousands of free crossword puzzlesFour difficulty levelsThemed and themeless puzzles
🎮 Games
(113K)
free with in-app purchases
5
Dictionary.com: English Words
Dictionary.com: English Words
Dictionary.com: English Words
Dictionary, Thesaurus, Vocab
Free

Access over 2 million trusted definitions and synonyms for English words. Enhance your vocabulary with daily new words, example sentences, and audio pronunciations. This app provides grammar tips and editorial content to deepen your understanding of the English language.

2 million+ definitions and synonymsWord of the DayExample sentences
🔍 Reference
(328K)
free with in-app purchases
6
Crossword+
Crossword+
Crossword+
Daily Crosswords & Puzzles
Free

Start your day with two new themed crossword puzzles daily, ranging from classic literature to movie magic. Enjoy a satisfying yet gentle challenge, with helpful hints and auto-check features. Solve puzzles offline and adjust text size for a comfortable, ad-free experience.

Two new themed puzzles dailyOver 3,000 puzzles in archiveHelpful hints and AutoCheck
🎮 Games
(11K)
free with in-app purchases
7
USA TODAY PLAY Crossword+
USA TODAY PLAY Crossword+
USA TODAY PLAY Crossword+
Crossword, Sudoku & More
Free

Engage your mind daily with a variety of popular puzzles including crosswords, sudoku, and quick challenges. Track your progress, access a vast archive of past puzzles, and utilize hints to overcome difficult clues. Enjoy a personalized and engaging puzzle-solving experience.

Daily crossword puzzlesSudoku challengesQuick Cross puzzles
🎮 Games
(9K)
free with in-app purchases
8
Daily Themed Crossword Puzzles
Daily Themed Crossword Puzzles
Daily Themed Crossword Puzzles
Fun New Crossword Every Day!
Free

Engage your mind with daily themed crossword puzzles. Enjoy a new puzzle every day, covering diverse topics like movies, sports, and technology. Improve vocabulary and general knowledge while having fun.

New themed puzzle dailyHundreds of puzzles availableHints for difficult words
🎮 Games
(123K)
free with in-app purchases
9
Crosswords Classic
Crosswords Classic
Crosswords Classic
by Stand Alone, Inc.
$9.99

Play daily crossword puzzles from various newspapers directly on your device. Download new puzzles, get hints, track your progress, and even sync with a Mac version. Offers a vast library of puzzles and competitive features.

Daily puzzle downloadsHints and clue lookupsSolve time tracking
🎮 Games
(73)
free with in-app purchases
10
Wordalot – Picture Crossword
Wordalot – Picture Crossword
Wordalot – Picture Crossword
Best thing since crosswords
Free

Engage your mind with hundreds of picture-based crossword puzzles. Solve over 1,000 levels where visual clues guide you to the answers. This elegant and simple word game offers a fun challenge for word enthusiasts and a great way to exercise your brain.

Hundreds of picture crossword puzzlesOver 1,000 levelsClues are in the pictures
🎮 Games
(2.6K)
free with in-app purchases
11
Oxford Dictionary & Thesaurus
Oxford Dictionary & Thesaurus
Oxford Dictionary & Thesaurus
Thesaurus & Offline Vocabulary
Free

Access a vast collection of dictionaries and thesauruses with definitions, pronunciations, and etymology. Features include offline access, advanced search options, and personalized word lists. Ideal for students, professionals, and word enthusiasts.

15 Oxford DictionariesThesaurus integrationAudio pronunciations
🔍 Reference
(28K)
free with in-app purchases
12
Bonza Word Puzzle
Bonza Word Puzzle
Bonza Word Puzzle
A new type of crossword
Free

This app offers a unique crossword experience by blending word search, jigsaw puzzles, and trivia. Solve daily puzzles created by the community or design your own to challenge friends. It's a fresh take on word challenges for puzzle enthusiasts.

Daily community-created puzzlesCustom puzzle creatorChallenge friends with custom puzzles
🎮 Games
(9.2K)
free with in-app purchases
13
Wordscapes - Word Game
Wordscapes - Word Game
Wordscapes - Word Game
Relaxing Word Puzzle Game
Free

Sharpen your mind with this addictive word puzzle game. Connect letters to find hidden words, solve anagrams, and complete crosswords amidst beautiful scenery. It's a relaxing yet challenging way to boost your vocabulary and unwind.

Connect letters to find hidden wordsAnagram and crossword puzzlesRelaxing scenery backgrounds
🎮 Games
(1.1M)
free with in-app purchases
14
Crossword Master - Word Puzzle
Crossword Master - Word Puzzle
Crossword Master - Word Puzzle
Guess words and match letters!
Free

Engage in a turn-based word game where you and an opponent collaboratively complete crosswords while aiming for the highest score. Solve puzzles, outsmart rivals, and enhance your vocabulary with this addictive brain exercise.

Turn-based competitive crossword gameplayClues within cells, including picture cluesWord crafting from a letter deck
🎮 Games
(140K)
free with in-app purchases
15
Crossword Clue Solver
Crossword Clue Solver
Crossword Clue Solver
The best Crossword Solver
Free

This app helps you solve crossword puzzles by searching for words based on clues or patterns. It offers a simple, quick, and effective way to overcome challenging word puzzles, requiring an internet connection to maintain an up-to-date wordlist.

Search by clueSearch by patternUp-to-date wordlist
🔍 Reference
(14K)
free with in-app purchases
16
Classic Crossword Puzzles
Classic Crossword Puzzles
Classic Crossword Puzzles
Play American Crosswords
Free

Engage with classic American crossword puzzles designed for all skill levels. Choose from six grid sizes and utilize helpful features like error display and hints to solve word challenges. Track your progress and compete on leaderboards.

Six grid sizes for all abilitiesDisplay errors for incorrect wordsShow word hints
🎮 Games
(6.7K)
free with in-app purchases
17
Merriam-Webster Dictionary
Merriam-Webster Dictionary
Merriam-Webster Dictionary
by Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Free

Access America's most respected dictionary, updated with new words and meanings. This app offers offline access, voice search, daily vocabulary challenges, and a thesaurus. It's designed for English language reference, education, and vocabulary enhancement.

Offline dictionary accessVoice search for wordsDaily Word of the Day
🔍 Reference
(320K)
free with in-app purchases
18
Crossword - by puzzling.com
Crossword - by puzzling.com
Crossword - by puzzling.com
The World's Biggest Puzzle
Free

Engage your mind with a vast collection of crossword puzzles and word games. Solve thousands of clues, complete daily challenges, and collect trophies across multiple game modes. Enjoy a new puzzle experience every day with this extensive library of brain-teasing fun.

Thousands of unique cluesHundreds of original puzzlesDaily themed puzzles
🎮 Games
(43K)
free with in-app purchases
19
Crossword Explorer+
Crossword Explorer+
Crossword Explorer+
Daily Trivia Crossword Puzzles
Free

Engage your mind with daily crossword puzzles and trivia. Access thousands of puzzles with new themes each day to expand your vocabulary and general knowledge. Play anytime, anywhere on your iOS device.

Daily new puzzlesThousands of puzzles availableVariety of daily themes
🎮 Games
(1.4K)
free
20
Word to Word®: Fun Brain Games
Word to Word®: Fun Brain Games
Word to Word®: Fun Brain Games
Puzzle Trivia Search & Connect
Free

Engage your mind with a popular word association game. Solve puzzles using knowledge of synonyms, trivia, idioms, and more. Enjoy offline play with no time limits, perfect for family fun and brain exercise.

Word association puzzlesSynonym and antonym challengesTrivia and fun facts
🎮 Games
(6.8K)
free with in-app purchases