Braindom Alternatives Without the Weekly Membership

Braindom is several games in one: riddles, word games, color tricks, trivia and little mysteries where you work out who is lying. The best alternative depends on which part you liked. For the riddles, Brain Test, Brain Out and IQ Boost. For the words, NYT Games. For the who-is-lying deduction, a logic puzzle such as sudoku or a nonogram, where Sudoku Royale has no ads and no membership to sign up for.

Lahana Games' Braindom has been on the App Store since 2020 and has 167,101 US ratings. Its description says premium is a subscription that renews weekly and removes ads. Among the listed purchases is Diamond Membership at $6.99, next to a one-time Remove Ads at $2.99. The listing does not spell out which item is the weekly plan, so check the wording in the app before you start a trial.

The App Store facts

From each app's US App Store listing, checked October 26, 2026. Prices and paid items change, so check the listing before you buy.

What Braindom mixes, and where else to find each part

Braindom's listing names its puzzle types. Here is each one with the app that does it as its main job.

Paying for Braindom versus the alternatives

Braindom's listed paid items are Diamond Membership $6.99, Remove Ads $2.99, Brian's Choice $4.99, 500 Brain Points $2.99, Ultimo Pack $5.99. That mix of a membership, item packs and a one-time ad removal is typical of the riddle genre: Brain Test sells a weekly VIP plan and lamps, Brain Out sells keys and a Weekly Card. Our Brain Out alternatives page puts every riddle app's ad removal price side by side.

If the weekly membership is the reason you are leaving, two things help. Cancel in your Apple account settings at least a day before the renewal, as the listing says. And if you stay with any riddle game, the one-time ad removal is the purchase that does not renew.

Tracking: one difference worth checking

Braindom's App Store privacy label includes the heading "Data Used to Track You", which means the developer declares that some data is used to follow you across other companies' apps or websites. Every other app on this page except Sudoku Royale declares the same. Sudoku Royale's label has no tracking section. These labels are written by the developers themselves, so they tell you what each one admits to, not what an audit found. Our private sudoku app page explains how to read them.

The alternatives in more detail

Brain Test: the most similar game

Single-screen trick puzzles with a family friendly look, no timers and a long series behind it (Brain Test 2 adds story chapters). It has ads and sells lamps for hints. See our Brain Test alternatives for the whole riddle family.

IQ Boost

Closest to Braindom's "apply real-life logic" levels. Its listing promises nonstandard, colorful tasks with funny answers. It sells tip packs and ad removal and no membership appears among its listed items.

NYT Games: if the word puzzles were your favorite

The New York Times' app collects its word and logic games, Wordle and the crossword among them. Full access is part of a New York Times subscription. It is a different deal from Braindom: fewer jokes, and a subscription fee rather than item packs.

Sudoku Royale: if you liked working out who is lying

Braindom's listing describes levels where you work out who is lying and who is telling the truth. Sudoku is that same move, repeated across a whole grid: this cell cannot be 4 because of that row, so it must be 7. The difference is that the rules never change and never trick you, and every puzzle has exactly one answer you can prove.

Sudoku Royale is our app. It has six levels from Easy to Extreme, a Daily Challenge with streaks, and hints that point at the cell and name the technique without giving the answer. There are no ads, no purchases, no membership and no account required. It is not a variety pack: no riddles, words or trivia, only classic sudoku, on iPhone and iPad. If you are new to it, our sudoku techniques guide starts from the basics.

Nonogram.com

Picture logic from Easybrain: shade the right squares using the number clues and a drawing appears. It suits players who liked Braindom's visual levels. It is free with ads, sells coin packs and a one-time No Ads item.

Trying sudoku after Braindom: a first week

Sudoku can feel dry after a game full of jokes, so give it a fair start. Play two or three Easy puzzles first and notice that each number can be proven, never guessed. Then open the first Journey chapters, which teach scanning a box for the one place a digit can go. By the end of the week, try Medium and the Daily Challenge. If you get stuck in Practice, wait for the hint bulb rather than guessing: it tells you which technique to look for, which is the part that makes the next puzzle easier. If after a week the grid still feels like homework, that is a fair verdict, and Brain Test or IQ Boost will suit you better.

When Braindom is still the better pick

• You like not knowing what comes next. No single alternative here mixes riddles, words, colors and trivia the way Braindom does.
• Kids are playing too. Its listing pitches it as brain games for kids as well as adults. Hard sudoku is a lot to ask of a young child (see sudoku apps for kids).
• You play on Android. Braindom is on Android too; Sudoku Royale is not.

Picking one

Match the alternative to the part of Braindom you would miss. If it was the deduction, Sudoku Royale is free on the App Store with nothing to buy. For everything else in this space, see the brain games without ads and our sudoku app comparisons.