Native · Offline · Coaching-first
A Lishogi alternative
that fits in your pocket and works on a plane.
Lishogi is the free, open-source web home of international shogi — online play, server analysis, puzzles, all in the browser, all free. Shogiful is a different animal: a native iPhone, iPad, and Mac app built purely around improvement. YaneuraOu runs on your device, every mistake is explained in plain English, Western piece sets remove the kanji barrier, and training is generated from your own games. No browser, no connection, no account.
How does Shogiful compare to Lishogi?
A platform and a coach. Here's where each one fits.
What it is
Shogiful: Native single-player training app — play AI opponents, get coached, train your weaknesses.
Lishogi: Free open-source web platform — online matchmaking, server analysis, puzzles, tournaments.
Lishogi: Free open-source web platform — online matchmaking, server analysis, puzzles, tournaments.
Native app vs browser
Shogiful: Native on iPhone, iPad, and Mac — one Universal Purchase, Mac keyboard shortcuts, no browser tab.
Lishogi: Web only; no official native iOS app.
Lishogi: Web only; no official native iOS app.
Analysis & coaching
Shogiful: On-device YaneuraOu plus a coaching layer — mistakes classified into shogi-specific categories and explained in sentences.
Lishogi: Server-side engine analysis with an evaluation graph — you interpret it yourself.
Lishogi: Server-side engine analysis with an evaluation graph — you interpret it yourself.
Offline support
Shogiful: Fully offline — engine, puzzles, opponents, training all on-device.
Lishogi: Requires a connection for play and analysis.
Lishogi: Requires a connection for play and analysis.
Kanji barrier
Shogiful: Western piece sets with movement indicators, progressive kanji introduction, piece guide in every game.
Lishogi: Western-friendly notation and piece-set options too — genuinely good for non-Japanese players.
Lishogi: Western-friendly notation and piece-set options too — genuinely good for non-Japanese players.
Pricing
Shogiful: Free tier; Premium $1.99/mo, $9.99/yr, or $19.99 lifetime.
Lishogi: Entirely free, donation-funded, no premium tier at all.
Lishogi: Entirely free, donation-funded, no premium tier at all.
| Feature | Shogiful | Lishogi |
|---|---|---|
| Platform | Native iPhone + iPad + Mac | Web browser |
| Works offline | Yes — everything on-device | No |
| Online human play | No (intentional) | Yes — free matchmaking + tournaments |
| Engine analysis | On-device YaneuraOu, every game | Server-side analysis |
| Plain-language mistake explanations | Yes — shogi-specific coaching sentences | No — evaluation graph |
| Training from your own games | Yes — spaced repetition on detected weaknesses | No — general puzzle library |
| Tsume puzzles | Yes — bundled, SRS-scheduled | Yes — puzzle section |
| Account required | No | Optional for casual play |
| Open source | No (engine is open-source YaneuraOu) | Yes — fully |
| Pricing | Free; Premium from $1.99/mo; $19.99 lifetime | Free, donation-funded |
| Best for | Structured offline improvement with a coach in your pocket | Free online play and community shogi |
Honest verdict — Lishogi is free and excellent
Pick Shogiful if you want…
- A native app on iPhone, iPad, and Mac that works fully offline
- Mistakes explained in sentences, not an evaluation graph
- Training generated from your own games with spaced repetition
- Western piece sets with progressive kanji learning
- No account, no tracking, $19.99 lifetime cost ceiling
Pick Lishogi if you want…
- Free online play against humans, worldwide, right now
- Tournaments, studies, and a community
- A fully open-source platform with no payment tier at all
- To play from any device with a browser
If you only ever play online in a browser, stick with Lishogi — it's superb. Shogiful earns its place when you want native, offline, and coached.
About Shogiful
Questions
FAQ
Is there a native iPhone or Mac app like Lishogi?
Lishogi is a web platform without an official native iOS app. Shogiful is the closest native equivalent for the training side: a native iPhone, iPad, and Mac app with on-device YaneuraOu analysis, plain-language mistake explanations, tsume puzzles, and adaptive training — fully offline, no account.
How is Shogiful different from Lishogi?
Lishogi is a platform — online play, server analysis, puzzles, tournaments, free and open-source. Shogiful is a coach — it analyzes every game, classifies your mistakes into shogi-specific categories, explains each one in sentences, and builds a spaced-repetition training queue from your actual weaknesses.
Is Shogiful free like Lishogi?
Shogiful has a permanent free tier (all opponents, 2 analyses/day, 3 puzzles/day, no ads); Premium is $1.99/month, $9.99/year, or $19.99 lifetime. Lishogi is entirely free and donation-funded — if cost is the only criterion, Lishogi wins. Shogiful's case is the native offline experience and the coaching layer.
Can I play shogi offline with Shogiful?
Yes — completely. The engine, analysis, coaching, puzzles, and all 10 AI opponents run on your device. Lishogi requires a connection; Shogiful keeps working on a flight.
Does Shogiful have puzzles like Lishogi?
Yes — a verified tsume-shogi library scheduled with spaced repetition, mixed with exercises generated from the mistakes in your own games. An expanded ~500-problem library is on the public roadmap.
Can I use both Lishogi and Shogiful?
Yes — play humans on Lishogi, train offline in Shogiful. KIF import, which would let you bring Lishogi games into Shogiful's analyzer, is under consideration on the roadmap.
Try it
Open Shogiful
Native, offline, and built to make you better. No account required.