Caribu vs. Cluemoo
Caribu is a video-calling app where family members read books, draw and play simple games together on the call (free with ads; Unlimited $9.99 a month). Cluemoo is a weekly cooperative mystery game for grandparents and grandkids, built from family stories. Choose Caribu for anytime calls with little ones; choose Cluemoo for a weekly case built on your own family.
| Compared | Caribu | Cluemoo |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A video-calling app with a library of children's books, drawing and coloring, and games like tic-tac-toe. | A cooperative mystery game built from the grandparent's stories, with a new case every week or every other week. |
| Ages | Rated 4+ on the App Store; the books and games lean toward young children. | Grandkids 4 to 17: picture puzzles for little ones, ciphers and logic for teens. |
| Price | Free with ads. Caribu Unlimited $9.99 a month or $79.99 a year (US App Store); a $2.99 day pass. | $35 for 3 months, $59 for 6 months or $99 for a year, paid once. Or one case for $9. |
| Renewal | App Store subscription; auto-renews unless turned off at least 24 hours before the period ends. | Nothing renews. When the weeks run out, you choose whether to buy more. |
| What you need | A Caribu account on each side; the call happens inside Caribu. | A phone, tablet or computer with a web browser on each side, plus any way to talk (FaceTime, WhatsApp, Zoom or a phone call). No app to install: each player taps their own link. |
| Your family in it | Shared books and games; the content is the same for every family. | Each case is built from the grandparent's own stories. |
| Ads | Free plan has ads; Unlimited removes them. | No ads, and no tracking on children's pages. |
What does each one do?
Caribu puts a video call and a shared screen together: you see each other while you turn the pages of the same picture book, color the same page or play a quick game. Cluemoo isn't a call app. Each week or every other week, the grandparent and grandkids get different halves of a mystery made from family stories, and solve it on whatever call they already use.
Where is Caribu better?
For toddlers and preschoolers on a whim. Caribu's library of books (its App Store page says thousands, in several languages) is ready the moment you call, with no planning, and the free plan costs nothing. If a grandparent mainly wants to read bedtime stories to a 3-year-old, Caribu does that and Cluemoo doesn't.
Where is Cluemoo better?
Once kids are past picture books, and whenever you want the call to be about your family. Cluemoo works for grandkids up to 17, needs no app on anyone's device, and turns Grandma's real childhood street or Grandpa's first job into the puzzle. Because each player holds clues the other needs, nobody just watches.
Can you use both?
Yes. A family could read a Caribu book on a weekday call and save a Cluemoo case for the weekend. They solve different problems: Caribu fills a call; Cluemoo gives the week a shared project.
Sources
Prices and features change. Each link shows the day we last checked it.