BridgeTricks vs BBO
BridgeTricks is our own product. Every other app is described from its own site and store listing, checked on 18 October 2026.
On Bridge Base Online you sit down at a table and play, with friends, strangers or robots, in casual games and in club events at any hour. BridgeTricks has no tables at all. It is a training site that takes single decisions out of the game, such as which card to lead or how to play one suit, and checks each choice with a solver.
At a glance
| BridgeTricks | BBO | |
|---|---|---|
| How you train | One decision at a time: an opening lead, a suit combination, a bid | Whole deals with people or the GIBBO robots, plus the Bridge Master problems |
| What your result is measured against | Leads: double dummy analysis over 4,000 layouts. Suit play: the exact odds of every line | The other players in the same game or tournament, with double dummy figures in the hand records |
| Opening leads | The Lead Trainer: every card graded at IMPs and matchpoints, with a daily set, practice, survival, rush and duels | No lead trainer, you lead when you defend in normal play |
| Declarer play | The Suit Trainer for suit combinations, with a free suit solver that shows the exact chance of every play | Bridge Master: declarer problems in 5 levels, each deal built around one technique, with the solution explained |
| Bidding | Write your system in the Bidding Architect, drill it with flashcards, plus 100-hand bidding drills on 46 conventions and systems | Free bidding tables with your partner and an online convention card, but no scored bidding drills |
| Playing with other people | Duels on the same puzzles, leaderboards and a community chat, but no table play | The biggest online bridge club: casual tables, free and paid tournaments, ACBL games, BBO points events and Vugraph |
| Free plan | Daily sets and duels without limit, 3 practice hands a day in each trainer, free solvers, calculators, guides and lessons | Basic: 6 deals a day in eligible free games, with ads. Bidding tables, Vugraph and kibitzing are unlimited, and Bridge Master is open to free members |
| Paid plans | Pro $7 a month or $60 a year, Master $12 a month or $99 a year | No Ads $3.99 a month, Premium $5.99 a month in the first year and $9.99 a month after that, plus BB$ for paid events |
| Where it runs | In any browser on a computer or phone, plus iOS and Android apps with the double dummy solver | Web, iPhone, iPad and Android. The separate BBO Trainer app also runs on Mac and Windows |
Prices and features checked on 18 October 2026. Sources: BBO membership announcement, BBO Premium FAQ, BBO membership help, BBO and ACBL games, Bridge Master help, GIBBO announcement, BBO Trainer, the BBO and BBO Trainer App Store listings, their Google Play listings, and BridgeTricks pricing. BBO plan prices are from its membership pages, BB$ and BBO Trainer prices from the App Store, all in US dollars.
How BBO works
BBO is an online bridge club. You can play with a partner, join strangers at a table or play with robots. Premium includes robots at your own tables, and on Basic you rent them with BB$. Since December 2025 the robots run GIBBO, a neural network upgrade of the older GIB robot that keeps the same bidding system. Paid tournaments, ACBL games, BBO points events and Virtual Clubs are paid for in BB$, the site's own money, and never use your daily deals. You do not need a paid plan to play ACBL games.
For practice inside BBO there is Bridge Master, a set of declarer problems by Fred Gitelman in five levels of difficulty. If you take a wrong line, the defenders defend perfectly and beat you, and a solution explains the right line. There are also bidding tables where you and your partner bid deals together, and Vugraph, where you can watch top events live for free.
BBO Trainer is a separate app for iPhone, iPad, Android, Mac and Windows. It offers hand analysis, a Daily Challenge and one-on-one games against GIB or real opponents, with no tournaments or masterpoints. You sign in with your BBO account. The first month is free, and after that it costs $9.99 a month in the App Store. Without paying you keep the Daily Challenge of 8 deals a day, Mini Bridge and 4 practice deals a day.
How BridgeTricks works
The Lead Trainer uses a double dummy solver, a program that works out the best result when all four hands are in view. You see your hand and the auction and choose a lead, and then the hidden hands are dealt 4,000 times to fit the bidding. Every card you could have led gets a score at IMPs and at matchpoints, so you see how much your choice cost or gained.
The Suit Trainer grades declarer play in a single suit against the exact chances of every line, which makes it a good partner to the whole-deal problems of Bridge Master. Both trainers have a daily set that everyone plays, practice, survival and rush modes, and duels with a rating. The free double dummy solver lets you enter any deal, even one from a BBO game, and play it out card by card.
For bidding, the Bidding Architect holds your full system. On Pro or Master you can share it with your partner, who reads it free and sees your changes as you make them, and any part of it can become a set of flashcards. The Bridge Lab deals hands to your rules and compares contracts over thousands of deals.
Free plans and prices
BBO gives every member a free period of Premium, from one month up to one year depending on their history, with no card needed and no automatic charge at the end. Joining on the web adds one more free month. Every plan pays for BB$ events separately. In the App Store, 10 BB$ cost $16.99.
BridgeTricks keeps its daily sets, duels and solvers free without a limit. A free account also gets 3 practice hands and 3 arcade runs a day in each trainer, 7 starter credits for the Bridge Lab, given once and 500 nodes in the Bidding Architect. Pro raises the daily limits to 10 and Master removes them. Players under 26 pay half price, and the same amounts are charged in euros in Europe.
Which one to choose
Pick BridgeTricks if
- you want to get better at opening leads or suit play
- you want to see the exact best play, checked over thousands of layouts
- you and your partner want to write down and learn your own system
- you want a free solver for deals you played somewhere else
Pick BBO if
- you want to play with real people, at any hour
- you want ACBL games, masterpoints and tournaments
- you want to watch top events on Vugraph
- you want robots to fill the table when friends are busy
They do different jobs, and many players will want both: BBO to play, and BridgeTricks to work on the decisions that cost them on BBO.
Common questions
Short answers to what readers ask most.
- Is BBO still free?
- Yes, with limits. Since August 2026 the free Basic plan gives 6 deals a day in eligible free games, with ads. Premium removes the limit for $5.99 a month in the first year and $9.99 a month after that.
- Do I need BBO Premium to play ACBL games?
- No. ACBL games, paid tournaments and BBO points events are paid for in BB$ on every plan and never use your daily deals.
- Does BBO have an opening lead trainer?
- No. You lead when you defend in normal play, but there is no mode for practicing leads on their own. BridgeTricks has the Lead Trainer for that.
- Can I play a full deal with other people on BridgeTricks?
- No. You can duel other players on the same lead or suit problems, but there are no tables where four people play a deal. BBO is the place for that.
- What is the difference between Bridge Master and the Suit Trainer?
- Bridge Master gives you a whole deal to declare, built around one technique, against perfect defense. The Suit Trainer looks at a single suit and shows the exact chance of every way to play it.
More comparisons
- BBO alternatives in 2026Nine alternatives to Bridge Base Online, from free robot games and club games with video to bidding and lead practice, with platforms and prices.
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