Verithiathe honest score on any app
Updated July 2026 · real, multi-region App Store reviews
Head-to-head

Candy Crush Saga vs Royal Match

Candy Crush Saga 4.7★ · Free + IAP 60
Winner Royal Match
Royal Match 4.7★ · Free + IAP 75

Royal Match is generally preferred for its lack of ads and more consistent gameplay experience, while Candy Crush Saga is plagued by frequent interruptions and perceived paywalls.

Full reviews: Candy Crush Saga · Royal Match

Both Candy Crush Saga and Royal Match are popular match-3 puzzle games, but user reviews indicate a significant difference in player experience. Candy Crush Saga is heavily criticized for its excessive ads, pop-ups, and aggressive monetization tactics, leading to frustration and app uninstalls. Royal Match, while also having monetization challenges at higher levels, is praised for its ad-free experience and engaging gameplay, despite some users feeling misled by its advertising.

Head to head

Features & Gameplay tieR5R11R14R16
Candy Crush Saga Candy Crush Saga is described as a fun and addictive puzzle game with plenty of levels and satisfying gameplay, easy to pick up and play R5R11R14. However, some users find the levels too difficult at higher stages, forcing purchases R16R22R43. Recent updates have removed bonus plays and made the game less enjoyable for long-time players R43.
Royal Match Royal Match is considered a fun and entertaining game that helps users relax . It offers progressively challenging levels and can be played without Wi-Fi . However, many users feel the game becomes too hard at higher levels, requiring purchases to progress . There's also widespread disappointment that the actual gameplay doesn't match the mini-game scenarios shown in advertisements R73R79R81R85.
Ease of Use & User Experience edge: Royal MatchR1R3R5R6
Candy Crush Saga Candy Crush Saga's user experience is severely hampered by constant pop-up ads, promotional offers, and event notifications, making it feel like a burden to play R3R5R6. Some ads freeze the app or cannot be closed, forcing users to restart R1. The game also has issues with crashing and freezing, leading to lost progress and power-ups R7R28.
Royal Match Royal Match is largely praised for having no ads, which significantly contributes to a calmer and more enjoyable playing experience R77R95R110. However, some users report glitches and the app closing unexpectedly, especially after updates, leading to lost progress . The game also has a reputation for being difficult to progress without spending money, with rewards often being perceived as insufficient .
Price & Value tieR2R3R7R16
Candy Crush Saga Candy Crush Saga is free to play but heavily pushes microtransactions and in-app purchases, with users feeling forced to buy items to pass difficult levels R2R3R7R16. The game has also removed opportunities for free extra moves via ads, further incentivizing purchases R43.
Royal Match Royal Match is also free to play but is frequently criticized for becoming a 'greedy machine' at higher levels, making it nearly impossible to progress without spending money on extra moves or power-ups . Users feel that the cost of in-game items is too high .
Support & Reliability tieR7R18R24R28
Candy Crush Saga Candy Crush Saga users report issues with the app freezing and crashing, leading to lost progress and wasted power-ups, with no compensation R7R28. Some users also mention missing rewards R18R24.
Royal Match Royal Match users have reported issues with the game charging purchases to their account even when they haven't played for weeks . There are also complaints about customer service, with one user stating their request to delete personal data was not fulfilled after three weeks and that the option to chat with customer service was removed . Some users also report glitches and the app closing unexpectedly .
Pick Candy Crush Saga if

Pick Candy Crush Saga if you are looking for a classic, challenging match-3 game and are willing to tolerate frequent ads and in-app purchase prompts R5R11R14.

Pick Royal Match if

Pick Royal Match if you prioritize an ad-free match-3 experience and enjoy progressively challenging levels, even if it means hitting paywalls at higher stages R77R95R110.

Evidence note: Both apps have a large volume of reviews, with a recent negative skew for both, primarily due to monetization and ad issues. The free-vs-paid asymmetry is relevant as both are free with IAP, and much of the negativity stems from the friction of free-tier limitations and aggressive monetization tactics.

Frequently asked

Does Royal Match have ads?
No, Royal Match is widely praised by users for having no ads, which significantly enhances the playing experience R77R95R110.
Is Candy Crush Saga pay-to-win?
Many users feel that Candy Crush Saga forces them to purchase items or boosters to pass difficult levels, especially at higher stages, making it feel like a 'pay-to-win' game R16R22R43R46.
Are the Royal Match ads misleading?
Yes, a significant number of Royal Match users report that the game's advertisements are misleading, showing mini-game scenarios (like saving the king) that are rarely, if ever, present in the actual gameplay R73R79R81R85.

What reviewers actually said

Built only from these 120 real reviews (foreign ones translated). Superscripts jump to the quote here. Apple has no per-review links, so [ref] opens that app's reviews on the App Store.

  1. [R5] Candy Crush Saga 5/5 · US So you mf will stop asking me: Candy Crush is still a fun and addictive puzzle game with plenty of levels and satisfying gameplay. It’s easy to pick up and play for a few minutes or get lost in for much longer. The biggest downside is the constant pop-up ads and promotional offers. It feels like every time you finish a level, open the game, or return to the main screen, you’re hit with another of
  2. [R11] Candy Crush Saga 5/5 · US The only reason I’m going to get the game is that it is so much fun: The game is so much fun i think you should try it 👄🦷👄🦷👄🦷👄🦷🦷🦷👄👄👄👄🧠👁️👩🏿👩🏿👩🏿👩🏿👩🏿👩👩👩👨🏾‍🦱👨‍🦱👨🏼‍🦱
  3. [R14] Candy Crush Saga 5/5 · US Amazing: I love it ✨❤️ it’s amazing
  4. [R16] Candy Crush Saga 1/5 · US Level 18587 BORING AND STUPID: IMPOSSIBLE even with full boosts. I have played it dozens of times and can’t pass. THEY ARE FORCING YOU TO PURCHASE TO PLAY. SAD AND PATHETIC GAME. DONT WASTE YOUR TIME. 👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻
  5. [R1] Candy Crush Saga 1/5 · US Ads: I am ready to cancel this game! Stop the long and stupid ads. I don’t want anything that you are advertising! They freeze up my iPad, and don’t give me my boosts!!!
  6. [R3] Candy Crush Saga 3/5 · US El stinky but good.: Very nice character design , good to pass time, but I will always hate the constant push for micro transactions and paywalls- “watch an ad to replay!” Its annoying it’s a shame that candy crush has succumbed to this level too
  7. [R6] Candy Crush Saga 3/5 · US Too many ads: Said it all in the title
  8. [R2] Candy Crush Saga 5/5 · US Sooo good: This is really good but I have a few suggestions. 1. No money 2. Free boosters at whatever level Other that that, this game is perfect
  9. [R7] Candy Crush Saga 1/5 · US Bad game: Game keeps crashing when winning. Wants more money. Rip off.
  10. [R18] Candy Crush Saga 3/5 · US Pocket fm rewards: Where is my rewards? I have been playing to get rewards for pocket fm and have not received any.
  11. [R24] Candy Crush Saga 3/5 · US Where are my lives ?: I had hundreds of lives a week ago. They all disappeared and now I have 22 I realize I can only use 20 a day but it was nice to have that reserve. Please give my hard earned lives back
  12. [R28] Candy Crush Saga 1/5 · US Awful: Crashes every time I play on every level and waist my power ups and lives. And yes I’m running on the most current version
  13. [R77] Royal Match 5/5 · US great game: this game has no adds it calms me down and it's FUN to play i when you have to save the king and there’s no adds best game ever
  14. [R95] Royal Match 5/5 · US Top 3 ever: No forced or optional ads. Consistent updates, and the content is awesome. Im not a bot this games actually great
  15. [R110] Royal Match 5/5 · US No ads: I love it because there no ads and lots of fun
  16. [R22] Candy Crush Saga 2/5 · US Ya están difíciles: Ya están muy difíciles los mundos y a fuerzas quiere que compre corazones o bosters para pasarlos ya no te dan anuncios para poder agarrar más corazones
  17. [R43] Candy Crush Saga 2/5 · US Fed up!: After years of playing this game it has become seriously un fun lately, I’ve gone through some times before where it has been bad, but this is the worst! Every level takes days or weeks to get through and they have removed the chance for extra moves by watching ads. I guess the goal is to force me to use up my gold bars to win, but I only use them when there is a chance of winning somethi
  18. [R46] Candy Crush Saga 1/5 · US Unbalanced pay to win garbage: Waste of time
  19. [R73] Royal Match 2/5 · US adds are fake !?(･_･;?: I hate to admit that there’s no saving the king… 5 stars if the game becomes more like the add.
  20. [R79] Royal Match 2/5 · US Tired of false advertising: Just another Match 3 game. When I saw the ad, repeatedly it showed the king trying to escape on a time limit from multiple different scenarios which looked interesting. I finally relented and downloaded this only to find it’s the same garbage of building a castle and then exploding power ups to beat each new board as you see elsewhere. If that’s your thing I imagine
  21. [R81] Royal Match 3/5 · GB Nothing like the advert: Been play the game for a while now. Originally down loaded because the in game video show the game as kings nightmare but alas like many of these games they suck you in with a trailer that doesn’t resemble the actual game. Yes it is addictive but I would have preferred a game that resembles what was advertised- I’m sure some law is being broken here about false advertisin
  22. [R85] Royal Match 2/5 · US King...: You rarely play rescue

Synthesized from 120 recent App Store reviews · updated July 2026 · View on the App Store