Hush or Brainium Sudoku? Ads, levels and price side by side

Brainium Sudoku, published by Brainium Studios, is free to download. It supports iPhone, iPad, Android and Vision Pro, and it offers five difficulty levels from beginner to expert. Its listing says it contains advertising, and a Remove Ads purchase is available. For other head-to-head pages, see all app comparisons.

Hush is a calm, ad-free app for iPhone, iPhone Duo and iPad. Choose Brainium Sudoku if you want Android or Vision Pro support, or a free app with five levels from beginner to expert. Choose Hush if you want no ads, no mistake limit and difficulty defined by solving techniques.

Quick comparison

The table below shows the main differences. The sections after it explain each point and note where we could not verify a detail.

Competitor details from public App Store listings and price databases, checked November 2026. Prices vary by region and can change. Sources: App Pricing Lab – ⋆Sudoku in-app purchases; App Store – ⋆Sudoku listing and reviews.

Ads and price

Brainium Sudoku. The app is free. Its listing says it contains advertising, and a “Remove Ads” in-app purchase is listed at $11.99 in the US App Store, at the time of writing. Some reviews mention banner ads and ads before a game starts. Brainium’s help center has an article for players who paid to remove ads but still see them.

Hush. There are no ads in any version, so there is nothing to remove. Easy and Medium are free without limit, and so is the daily puzzle. The optional Hush Plus costs $4.99 once. It unlocks unlimited Hard and Expert puzzles and all colour moods, and includes Family Sharing.

The two apps are priced for different things. Brainium’s purchase removes ads. Hush has no ads, and its purchase unlocks the harder levels. Read more about why Hush has no ads.

Difficulty and puzzles

Brainium Sudoku lists five levels, from beginner to expert. A 2025 review says its difficulty levels were changed. We could not verify how Brainium rates its puzzles, so we cannot say whether its levels are based on specific solving techniques.

Hush has four levels, and each is defined by technique:

• Easy needs only singles. A gentle start is sudoku tips for beginners.
• Medium adds locked candidates and naked and hidden pairs. See locked candidates.
• Hard adds naked and hidden triples, naked quads, and the X-Wing.
• Expert needs at least one of Swordfish, XY-Wing or XYZ-Wing.

Every Hush puzzle has exactly one solution and never needs guessing. The supply of puzzles is practically endless.

Design and features

Brainium Sudoku is available on iPhone, iPad, Android and Vision Pro. A 2024 update removed a press-and-hold number pop-up that some players had missed. Its listing shows a rating of 4.6 in the Australian App Store.

Hush has no mistake limit, so a wrong entry does not end the game. Its features include:

• Notes that clean up. Notes tidy themselves when you place a number, and “fill in all notes” is available.
• Highlights. Row, column, box and matching numbers are highlighted.
• Settings that stay out of the way. Turn mistake marking, highlights, the timer or haptics off if you prefer a bare board.
• Statistics on your device. Solved games, flawless solves, best and average time and a day streak, with no account.
• Play aids. Undo, hints and pause are all available. The game is always saved, and the timer pauses when you leave the app.
• iPhone Duo and iPad. On iPhone Duo the app is compact when closed. Opened, the board sits on the left with a large number pad on the right. The iPad works in all orientations.
• Calm design. Hush is always light, with soft colors and gentle haptics. A finished row glows briefly. The four colour moods are Sage (free), Morning, Dune and Lavender (in Hush Plus).
• A daily puzzle. It is the same for everyone and new every day. An optional local reminder is available.

Privacy and offline play

Hush has no account, no sign-up and no email. Its App Store privacy label says “Data Not Collected”, and it has no tracking and no analytics. All puzzles ship with the app, so Hush plays fully offline. The only network use is Apple’s purchase system.

We did not verify Brainium Sudoku’s data practices or whether it works offline. Check its App Store privacy details before you decide.

What you might miss with Brainium Sudoku

Brainium Sudoku has strengths that Hush does not match:

• Android and Vision Pro. Brainium Sudoku runs on both. Hush is for iPhone, iPhone Duo and iPad only.
• A rating on the listing. Brainium Sudoku’s listing shows a 4.6 rating in the Australian App Store. We do not cite ratings for Hush.
• Five levels. If you want a level labelled beginner before the first technique-based level, Brainium offers that choice, and Hush starts at Easy.

If you need Android or a clearly labelled beginner level, Brainium Sudoku may suit you better.

Where Hush is better

• No ads in any version. Brainium Sudoku’s listing says it contains advertising.
• Difficulty by technique. Each Hush level is tied to the solving methods you can learn in the learn section.
• One purchase, no subscription. Hush Plus costs $4.99 once and includes Family Sharing.
• No data collection. Hush’s privacy label says “Data Not Collected”.
• A calm, light design. Hush is always light, with soft colors and gentle haptics.

The verdict

Brainium Sudoku is a good choice if you want a free app on Android or Vision Pro and are happy with ads. Hush is the better fit if you want no ads, a technique-based path to Expert, and an app for iPhone or iPad. If you are unsure, try Hush’s free Easy and Medium puzzles first. You can also read the Brainium Sudoku alternative guide or compare with Hush vs PeopleFun Sudoku.