Games Like Where's Waldo
Crowd-searching games for iPhone and iPad, checked on the App Store.
Read more →I Spy Apps for Kids on iPhone and iPad
Search-and-find apps sorted by age, with the facts that matter for kids taken straight from each App Store listing: ads, purchases, data, and the age it's made for.
Checked on the US App Store: October 16, 2026
Searching "I spy" on the App Store doesn't help much. When we tried on October 16, 2026, the top results were hidden-object games, many of them made for teens and adults, and nothing from the I SPY books. The apps below are actually made for this, from age 3 up.
Short answer: ages 3 to 5, Pango Hide & Seek. Ages 4 and up, free with no ads, Oopsies. Whole family, Where's the Unicorn?.
Six things to check on the listing before you download
- Age rating. It's at the top of the listing. Some popular search games are rated 13+ or 18+.
- "Made for Ages". Apps in Apple's Kids category show the age band they're made for, like 0–5.
- "Contains Ads". Look in the Information section near the bottom.
- In-app purchases. The list shows every price. A "No Ads" or "Remove Ads" item means the free version has ads, and monthly prices mean a subscription.
- App Privacy. "Data Not Collected" is the best you'll see. "Data Used to Track You" means data may be used to track your child across other companies' apps and websites.
- Last update. Under Version History. An app untouched for years may still work, but nobody is fixing it.
The apps at a glance
| Game | Price | In-app purchases | Ads | Age rating | Runs on | Last update | Privacy label |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Oopsies
Our game | Free | None | No ads | 4+ | iPhone, iPad, Mac (M1+), Vision Pro | Oct 7, 2026 | Data Not Collected |
| Pango Hide & Seek | $6.99 | None listed | No ads label | 4+ (made for ages 0–5) | iPhone, iPad, Mac (M1+) | Jan 31, 2026 | Data Not Collected |
| Pango Hide & Seek: Fairy Tales | Free | $1.99–$15.99 (scenes, or the full version) | No ads label | 4+ (made for ages 0–5) | iPhone, iPad, Mac (M1+) | Jun 26, 2026 | Data Not Collected |
| Hidden Pictures Puzzle Town (Highlights) | Free, with subscriptions | Monthly subscriptions $1.99–$3.99 | No ads label | 4+ (made for ages 0–5) | iPhone, iPad, Mac (M1+) | May 3, 2021 | Data Not Collected |
| My Little Town: Toddler's Seek & Find | $3.99 | None listed | No ads label | 4+ (made for ages 0–5) | iPhone, iPad, Mac (M1+) | Sep 12, 2017 | No Details Provided |
| Hidden Pictures Puzzle Play (Highlights) | Free, with a subscription | Subscriptions: $3.99/month, $23.99–$29.99/year | No ads label | 4+ | iPhone, iPad, Mac (M1+), Vision Pro | Mar 25, 2022 | Data Linked to You (contact info, identifiers, usage data) |
| Where's the Unicorn? | Free | Unicorn Scenes Unlock: $2.99 | No ads label | 4+ | iPhone, iPad, Mac (M1+), Vision Pro | Aug 31, 2022 | Data Not Collected |
| Where's the Meerkat | Free | Pack of extra Meerkat games: $2.99 | No ads label | 4+ | iPhone, iPad, Mac, Vision Pro | Apr 21, 2020 | Data Not Collected |
| Little Things Forever | $4.99 | None listed | No ads label | 4+ | iPhone, iPad, Mac | Sep 26, 2026 | Data Not Collected |
We haven't tested these apps with kids for this page. What we say about them comes from their listings, so open a listing to see its screenshots before you choose.
Ages 4 and up: Oopsies
Oopsies is our game. It plays like a game of I spy with a crowd of silly characters: the top of the screen shows the Oopsie to find, and your child taps it in the crowd. No reading needed. Then each world changes the question: find the Oopsie that casts this shadow, find every Oopsie with glasses, find the one you only see a tiny bit of.
🥰 Frosti Floops
Oopsies are feeling cuddly.
👨👩👧 Family Reunion
Find every Oopsie of the family.
🔍 Peekaboo
Only a tiny bit of the Oopsie is showing.
Nobody fails a level. After 30 seconds without a find, the game gives a hint (in most worlds, the Oopsie giggles and glows). A wrong tap only adds 10 seconds to the timer, and the stopwatch button on the home screen hides the timer and that penalty for kids who'd rather not race. There are over 100 levels, it works offline, and there's nothing to buy. It's rated 4+ and isn't designed for 2- and 3-year-olds.
Ages 3 to 5
Pango Hide & Seek
Find Pango, hiding behind a rock or in a tree, in more than 15 animated worlds, then look for three secret objects in each. The description says it's for children from age 3, with no timer and no stress. No in-app purchases are listed.
Pango Hide & Seek: Fairy Tales
Fifteen scenes from fairy tales like Little Red Riding Hood and the Three Little Pigs, with hiding spots that change each time and a magnifying glass for hints. The download includes a first set of scenes; the rest are unlocked one by one or as a pack, purchases are protected by parental controls, and the description promises no ads.
Hidden Pictures Puzzle Town (Highlights)
Highlights' Hidden Pictures puzzles for preschoolers, mixed with mazes and matching games inside a little town kids can decorate. It hasn't been updated since May 2021.
My Little Town: Toddler's Seek & Find
An interactive picture book with hand-drawn scenes and dozens of animations to find. It's old: the last update was in September 2017, and its privacy section says "No Details Provided", meaning the developer hasn't filled it in.
Older kids and the whole family
Where's the Unicorn? and Where's the Meerkat
Big, busy illustrated scenes based on search-and-find picture books: spot seven unicorns or ten meerkats in each, then a list of extra "star finds". They suit kids who like the Where's Waldo books. Both are a few years old (last updated August 2022 and April 2020).
Hidden Pictures Puzzle Play (Highlights)
The Hidden Pictures puzzles from Highlights magazine, with daily puzzles, puzzle races and a 14-day free trial. Its privacy label lists "Data Linked to You (contact info, identifiers, usage data)", and the listing mentions logging in to play on a phone, tablet or computer.
Little Things Forever
Mosaics made of thousands of little objects, with a list of things to find that changes every time. A good one to play side by side with a parent.
The popular free ones: what their listings say
These three came up again and again when we searched the App Store for hidden-object and seek-and-find games. We're not saying they're bad games. They're simply made for older players: they carry the "Contains Ads" label, sell ad removal, and two of them are rated 13+ and 18+.
| Game | Price | In-app purchases | Ads | Age rating | Runs on | Last update | Privacy label |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Oopsies
Our game | Free | None | No ads | 4+ | iPhone, iPad, Mac (M1+), Vision Pro | Oct 7, 2026 | Data Not Collected |
| Find The Cat - Hidden Objects | Free | $2.99–$8.99 (No Ads: $8.99, Cat Club: $3.99, hint packs) | Contains ads | 4+ | iPhone, iPad, Mac (M1+), Vision Pro | Sep 21, 2026 | Data Used to Track You |
| Scavenger Hunt! | Free | $0.99–$15.99 (Remove Ads: $7.99, boosters, bundles) | Contains ads | 13+ | iPhone, iPad, Mac (M1+), Vision Pro | Oct 8, 2026 | Data Used to Track You |
| Found It! Hidden Object Game | Free | $2.99–$19.99 (No Ads: $9.99, bundles, hint packs) | Contains ads | 18+ | iPhone, iPad, Mac (M1+), Vision Pro | Oct 7, 2026 | Data Used to Track You |
How to play I spy without an app
The original needs nothing at all. One player picks something everyone can see and says "I spy with my little eye something that is..." plus a clue. The others guess, and whoever gets it picks next. A few ways to make it fit the age:
- Colors for the youngest: "something that is red".
- Shapes: "something round", "something with corners".
- First sounds for early readers: "something that starts with the sound b".
- I hear with my little ear: a sound instead of a thing, great with eyes closed.
- In a picture book: any busy page works, and the guesser has to point.
- Faces in a crowd, Oopsies style: "someone with glasses and a hat". Works at a park or in a waiting line.
Want paper versions? Our free printables turn the Oopsies into search-and-find sheets.
Questions about I spy apps
Is there a free I spy app with no ads?
Oopsies is free with no ads and no in-app purchases. Pango Hide & Seek: Fairy Tales is a free download whose description promises no ads, but most scenes are in-app purchases ($1.99–$15.99 (scenes, or the full version)). Many free "hidden objects" apps carry the "Contains Ads" label, so check the listing first.
Which I spy app is best for a 3-year-old?
Look at apps whose listing says "Made for Ages 0–5": Pango Hide & Seek ($6.99, from age 3 per its description), Pango Hide & Seek: Fairy Tales (designed for ages 3 to 5) and Highlights' Hidden Pictures Puzzle Town. Oopsies is rated 4+ and isn't designed for 2- and 3-year-olds.
Is there an official I SPY app from the books?
Not that we found. A search of the US App Store on October 16, 2026 for "I spy" turned up hidden-object games, many of them made for teens and adults, and no app from the I SPY picture books.
Do these apps work without wifi?
Oopsies does: it works in airplane mode, and progress syncs when you're back online. The other listings don't say, so the safest test is at home: turn on airplane mode, open the app, and play a round before you rely on it in the car.
Can a child who can't read play these?
In Oopsies, yes: the Oopsie to find is shown as a picture, and in Family Reunion the trait to look for (glasses, a mustache, a hat) is a drawn icon, not a word. For the other apps, look at the screenshots on the listing to see how much text there is.
Try Oopsies: I spy, with a twist
Free for ages 4 and up on iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Vision Pro. No ads, no in-app purchases, and nothing your child can buy by accident.
Sources: the US App Store listing of each app, opened on October 16, 2026. "Last updated" is the date of the listing's latest version. Oopsies facts come from the game itself. Last edited October 16, 2026.
