Hush or Good Sudoku? A fair comparison

Good Sudoku, by Zach Gage, is a free download with an optional Full Game Unlock. It is widely praised for features such as automatic notes, highlights, its Improve mode and daily challenges. It also offers global leaderboards and runs on more kinds of device than Hush does. For other head-to-head pages, see all app comparisons.

Choose Good Sudoku if leaderboards, Mac or Vision Pro support, or its Improve mode matter most to you. Choose Hush if you want no advertising, no data collection, a single purchase that includes Family Sharing, and an app that rates its puzzles by technique.

Quick comparison

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

Competitor details from public App Store listings and price databases, checked November 2026. Prices vary by region and can change. Sources: App Store – Good Sudoku by Zach Gage; TapSmart – Good Sudoku review.

Ads and price

Good Sudoku. The app is a free download. Its Full Game Unlock is an in-app purchase. TapSmart reported it at about $4 at launch in 2020, and says it unlocks statistics, color schemes, night colors and additional difficulties. Its App Store privacy label lists data used for third-party advertising, and its version history mentions an ad system. We could not verify whether ads appear inside the free version, or the current price.

Hush. There are no ads in any version. Easy and Medium are free without limit, and so is the daily puzzle. The optional Hush Plus costs $4.99 once, unlocks unlimited Hard and Expert puzzles and all colour moods, and includes Family Sharing.

Because we could not verify Good Sudoku’s current price, we cannot give a like-for-like cost. The App Store listing shows the current price and what it includes.

Difficulty and puzzles

Hush rates difficulty by technique. Easy needs only singles. Medium adds locked candidates and pairs. Hard adds triples, naked quads and the X-Wing. Expert needs at least one of Swordfish, XY-Wing or XYZ-Wing, which are explained in Swordfish and XY-Wing. Every puzzle has exactly one solution and never needs guessing. The supply of puzzles is practically endless.

For Good Sudoku, we could not verify how it rates or sorts its puzzles, so we cannot say whether its levels are based on the same techniques. TapSmart reports that the Full Game Unlock adds additional difficulties. Its daily challenges are also praised, but we could not verify their details.

Design and features

Good Sudoku is widely praised for automatic notes, highlights, the Improve mode and daily challenges. It has global leaderboards. It is available on iPhone, iPad, Apple-silicon Mac and Vision Pro.

Hush keeps its feature set small and calm:

• Notes and highlights. Notes tidy themselves when you place a number. Row, column, box and matching numbers are highlighted.
• Statistics without an account. Played, solved and flawless games, best and average time and a day streak, kept on your device.
• Keyboard play. Arrow keys move, digits enter numbers, N or Space toggles notes, Delete erases and Command-Z undoes.
• Play aids. Undo, hints, and “fill in all notes” are all available. There is no mistake limit.
• iPhone Duo and iPad. On iPhone Duo the app is compact when closed. Opened, the board sits on the left and a large number pad on the right. The iPad works in all orientations, with full hardware keyboard support.
• 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).
• Pause and save. You can pause at any time, and the game is always saved.

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, when you buy or restore Hush Plus.

Good Sudoku’s privacy label lists data used for third-party advertising, which is a different approach. We did not verify whether Good Sudoku works offline, so check its App Store details before you decide.

What you might miss with Good Sudoku

Good Sudoku has strengths that Hush does not match:

• Mac and Vision Pro. Good Sudoku runs on Apple-silicon Mac and Vision Pro. Hush is for iPhone, iPhone Duo and iPad only.
• Leaderboards. Good Sudoku offers global leaderboards. Hush does not have them.
• Improve mode and daily challenges. Players widely praise both. Hush has one daily puzzle and no challenge modes.
• A longer history. Good Sudoku launched in 2020. Hush is only now launching on the App Store.

If you want to compete with other players or work on a Mac, Good Sudoku is the better choice.

Where Hush is better

• No advertising and no data collection. Hush’s privacy label says “Data Not Collected”, with no tracking and no analytics.
• Fully offline play. Hush needs no account and no connection to play.
• Difficulty by technique. Each level is defined by the solving techniques it needs, with guides for each step.
• A single purchase, with Family Sharing. Hush Plus costs $4.99 once and includes Family Sharing.
• A layout built for iPhone Duo. The board and number pad work side by side when the device is opened.

The verdict

Good Sudoku is a strong choice if you want leaderboards, Mac or Vision Pro support, and the features players praise most. Hush is the better fit if you want no advertising, no data collection and fully offline play, with puzzles rated by the techniques they require. Try the free Easy and Medium levels in Hush before you decide. You can also read the Good Sudoku alternative guide, or compare with Hush vs Sudoku.com and sudoku without ads.