# Shoal & Stem: Fish Tank Log — Aquarium Intelligence > Aquarium journal app for tracking water parameters, tank health, and community interaction. (iPhone/iPad app by Shoal and Stem.) - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shoal-and-stem-fish-tank-log/id6767604177 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`) - Developer: [Shoal and Stem](https://appshunter.io/developer/1896491993) - Category: Lifestyle, Reference - Price: Free - Rating: 4.89/5 from 9 App Store ratings · 7 written reviews indexed - Age rating: 4+ - Requires: iOS 15.1 · 56 MB - Languages: American English - Released: 2026-05-19 - Data updated: 2026-10-25 - Monetization: free - User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shoal-and-stem-fish-tank-log/id6767604177/reviews.md ## What is Shoal & Stem? Shoal & Stem is aquarium intelligence built on a fish tank log. Finn, an AI sidekick, reads your tanks, water tests and journal, scores each tank's health, and suggests what to do next. A JOURNAL FOR EVERY TANK Log each tank with photos and short video clips, from the first fill to a grown-in scape. Track your fish, shrimp, snails and plants, mark the moments that matter, and keep any tank public or private. Put your tanks, and each tank's photos and clips, in the order you want. FINN, YOUR AQUARIUM SIDEKICK Ask Finn anything about fishkeeping and aquascaping. Finn reads your tanks, your water tests and your journal, so its answers fit your setup, and it checks the species it suggests against our catalog. Tell Finn what you did, like "did a 25% water change and added three otos", and it logs it for you. A HEALTH SCORE FOR EACH TANK Finn scores each tank across 7 factors, from stocking and water quality to maintenance, and explains what's behind the number. WATER TESTS AND YOUR TAP WATER Log readings by hand or scan a test strip with your camera, in ppm or degrees for GH and KH. See your city's tap water on My Tanks: chlorine or chloramine, ammonia, nitrate, copper, GH, KH and pH, compiled from public records. Save your own tap test as a tank's Source Water and Finn goes by your numbers. MAINTENANCE THAT KEEPS UP Schedules for water changes, dosing, feeding, tests and filter cleaning, with reminders. Pause a schedule, skip a day, name a food for each feeding day, and log partial water changes that count toward your target. SPECIES AND COMPATIBILITY A catalog of fish, shrimp, snails and plants with care ranges, tank mates and photos from the community. A COMMUNITY OF KEEPERS Follow tanks, react to journal entries, comment, and talk shop in the Tank Room. Read The Current, data stories from Finn built on public records. ON YOUR PHONE AND THE WEB Your tanks are the same in the app and at shoalandstem.com. ## Key features - AI-powered test kit scanning - Tank health scoring - Water change tracking and reminders - Photo journaling - AI aquascaping companion - Stocking calculator - Community browsing and interaction ## Is Shoal & Stem safe? Not enough ratings yet to assess Shoal & Stem. ## Is Shoal & Stem legit? Shoal & Stem: Fish Tank Log has limited verification signals. The AppsHunter Legitimacy Score for Shoal & Stem is 58 out of 100 points across 7 verification signals from App Store and developer data. ## Recent user reviews (7 of 7) All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shoal-and-stem-fish-tank-log/id6767604177/reviews.md ### 5/5 — Amazing app for fish keeping *2026-09-20* I never leave reviews but for something like this I have to. It’s a very ingenious app. I’ve been using for a couple of months and staying organized and keeping a record of my tanks has helped me a ton with this hobby. It has an AI integrated that has access to your tanks and journals of each tank, that way when you need to know something or ask something the AI is already up to date (if you use update your journal regularly) and you don’t need to explain a whole background story before getting to the actual problem/question. I really like this app! It should be more known in the community! ### 5/5 — Vary useful app *2026-08-23* I’m really enjoying using this app so far since I downloaded it yesterday I’ve added all my tanks already lol only problem is when I tried to add a profile picture it says unauthorized other than that though the app works perfectly and I really like it probably just a simple bug that they’ll fix eventually ### 5/5 — Amazing idea and app! *2026-07-18* First, real person here, not AI! I never write reviews but love this app so much. When I got into the hobby yearrrs ago , I was looking for an app to track maintenance and stuff for my tanks. I’m weirdly obsessive bout keeping track of them. I could only ever find habit trackers and stocking calculators but never anything so specific and all encompassing to the hobby. Randomly came across an ad on Reddit about this app and it’s EXACTLY what I was looking for! App devs are super responsive and fast to incorporate new ideas or fix any bugs. As someone in the tech industry, I know how much time this can take and I genuinely appreciate it! Great job! 🙌🙌🙌 ### 5/5 — Updated review *2026-07-13* I don’t know why it won’t edit my last review to add to the many good things to say about this app, but after using it consistently for two months I still have nothing bad to say about it and am continually impressed with all the features it offers for free. One of the things I’ve started to really appreciate (again, besides it being 100% free) is how fast the team implements bug fixes and even feature suggestion. They listen!!! I promise!!! I have already submitted a number of tickets for both bugs and features, and not only have they implemented them within 48 hours every time, but they also send you a personal note in app when they’ve made the change. I genuinely want this app to succeed and to contour being supported, so please spread the word and use it. Their online website also has many more features like a forum and a marketplace, so I really hope it takes off. And devs, please don’t give up hope. The app is still young, so please don’t become discouraged that traffic is still low. I believe in you! ### 5/5 — Look no further than Shoal & Stem *2026-07-11* To be honest I downloaded 5 different apps to track my Aquarium Parameters. The final was Shoal & Stem. The previous 4 all had paywalls or had a poor user interface. Then I arrived at Shoal & Stem. Immediately I noticed a difference and started putting in my parameters. Then I met Finn, an AI compendium of knowledge. Provides more accurate and precise info than my LPS, suggestions and even emails my tanks week in review. If they ever charge a subscription I will definitely subscribe. I love this app. I would definitely give it a try. Currently all the services are free without annoying adds or paywalls. ### 5/5 — Great Tool *2026-06-20* Very helpful to track the life of your aquarium and its changes. Super handy to have all the information in one spot. Love how in depth it is when giving tank specs. My one suggestion is that the species that can be added to your tank is very limited. Especially if you are a seasoned keeper who has less usual stock. I wish there was a function to manually write in and add species that aren’t in the drop down menu. ### 5/5 — Seems Good So Far! *2026-06-05* I'm new to aquarium keeping and saw an ad for this app on Reddit. The only reason I decided to get it was because I noticed that there were no in-app purchases or subscriptions or anything like that, it's 100% free! I've been using it for a few days and honestly I really hope it takes off. The online marketplace is currently empty (I think because the app is so new), but I think it would be a really cool place for buyers and sellers of aquarium stuff to connect. It has a nice UI, places to put photos of your tank and creatures, and you can check out other people's tanks along with their parameters and stock so you can see how they are doing. I have high hopes for this app and I really hope it does well. ## Frequently asked questions about Shoal & Stem ### What is Shoal & Stem? Shoal & Stem is a freshwater aquarium journal app designed for hobbyists. It helps you track water parameters, monitor tank health, log maintenance, and connect with other aquascapers. The app features AI-powered scanning for test kits and an AI companion for advice. ### How does Shoal & Stem scan test kits? Shoal & Stem uses AI to scan your test kit parameter pads directly with your camera. This eliminates the need to manually input numbers for readings like pH, ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, GH/KH, phosphate, copper, and iron. ### Does Shoal & Stem have ads? No, Shoal & Stem is completely free and does not contain advertisements. The developers have stated they do not sell user data or share it with advertisers. ### What devices does Shoal & Stem support? Shoal & Stem is available for iPhone and iPod devices. It is rated for ages 4 and up. ### How often is Shoal & Stem updated? The latest version of Shoal & Stem is 1.0.9, and it was last updated on June 20, 2026. This indicates a relatively active development cycle for the application. ### Can I archive old aquascapes in Shoal & Stem? Yes, Shoal & Stem allows you to archive retired tanks. This preserves their full journal, photos, and history even after the scape has been broken down. ### What kind of advice can Finn, the AI companion, provide? Finn can answer a wide range of aquarium-related questions, including plant melting, fish compatibility, water chemistry, and aquascaping techniques. It can analyze your real water readings, including copper and iron, to provide specific recommendations. ### What is the user sentiment for Shoal & Stem? Based on the provided data, Shoal & Stem has a very high rating of 4.8 stars from 4 ratings, suggesting positive user sentiment among its current users. ## Version history (last 5 releases) ### 1.0.19 — 2026-10-19 ARRANGE YOUR TANKS Tap Arrange on My Tanks and put your tanks in your own order: hold and drag, or use the arrows. Your profile shows them the same way, here and on the website. New tanks start at the top. PHOTOS AND VIDEOS IN ONE LIST Drag a tank's photos and clips into the order you want. The first photo is the cover. Back to newest first puts them back. FASTER PHOTOS Photos load faster, full-screen photos open right away, and a clip shows its still while it starts. Uploads go two at a time and retry when the connection drops, and a journal photo that fails to upload is no longer dropped. FINN The chat opens on your newest message. Finn now checks the species it suggests against our catalog for your tank, knows today's date, and knows when your next water change is due. MORE Every aquatic plant now asks for a planting density, including plants you added before. The tap water card on My Tanks is one compact row. A private tank shows how to make it public. Journal entries keep their line breaks and "&" from the website. ### 1.0.18 — 2026-10-06 TAP WATER BY CITY See what's in your city's tap water right on My Tanks: chlorine or chloramine, ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, copper, GH, KH and pH, from EPA, state and utility records. Tap the card for what each number means for your fish, or choose private well for typical well readings in your area. Look up any US city under More, then Tools. THE CURRENT Data stories from Finn, built on public records. The first one looks at how much tap water varies between US cities. Find it under More. FINN KNOWS YOUR WATER Ask Finn about tap water in any US city and it answers from those records. When it suggests a water change, it says how to do it for your water. Save a tap test as a tank's Source Water and Finn goes by your own numbers. HARDNESS YOU CAN TRUST GH and KH show in the unit you use, ppm or degrees. If a number doesn't fit its unit, a note under the box offers a one-tap fix. Source Water takes ppm as well as degrees. MORE On someone else's tank, see their other tanks as thumbnails. My Tanks lists your newest tank first, with archived tanks in their own section. Your tank's Public or Private status shows on its card and switches in one tap. Tap your own reaction to take it back. Notifications say whether someone replied to your comment or commented on your entry, and open that entry. CLIPS Landscape clips fill the frame, portrait clips show full width in the feed, and a clip longer than ten seconds keeps your trim. ### 1.0.17 — 2026-09-26 React with more than a heart. Journal entries and forum posts now take reactions from a set of 24, from fish and shrimp to congrats and hugs. Tap yours again to take it back. Feeding schedules can now set a food for each day. When you log a feeding, that day's food is filled in, and your feeding history shows what you fed. Recording a clip in the app works again on iPhone. The first time you record, your iPhone asks for microphone access. Clips still play silently. Your Notifications tab now shows all your recent notifications, not just the newest one. The camera screen now scrolls, so every option is within reach on smaller phones. ### 1.0.16 — 2026-09-25 VIDEO IS HERE Add a 10-second clip to your tank or to any journal entry. Record one right in the app or pick one from your library. Clips play silently, and every clip is checked before anyone else can see it. - Tap any clip to watch it full screen - Make any journal clip your tank's showcase - Your clip shows up for you right away while it's being checked, and Finn lets you know if one can't be posted - Clips from the community now show up in Discover ALSO IN THIS UPDATE - Photo carousels on tank and journal pages no longer slide out of place - Fixed a crash on the New tank screen - Other fixes and improvements ### 1.0.15 — 2026-09-14 The forum is in the app: follow the latest conversations or browse by room, search, mention other keepers, and edit your own posts. Maintenance: skip a task, pause a schedule without losing its history, and smaller water changes now add up toward your scheduled amount. Journal: react to entries, jump from an entry to its tank, and browse the journal gallery in Discover. Plus species tips, new tanks that start with today's date, and a round of fixes. ## Apps similar to Shoal & Stem | App | Rating | Price | Category | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | [TankSync: Aquarium Log & Care](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/tanksync-aquarium-log-and-care/id6758121614) | 4.0 (1) | Free | Lifestyle | | [TankForge: Aquarium Care](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/tankforge-aquarium-care/id6759056082) | 5.0 (5) | Free | Lifestyle | | [ShrimpKeepers: Tank Tracker](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shrimpkeepers-tank-tracker/id6756177380) | 2.5 (2) | Free | Lifestyle | | [Aquarium Pulse](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/aquarium-pulse/id6755345600) | 3.3 (3) | Free | Lifestyle | | [Aquarium Tank Tracker: AquaLog](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/aquarium-tank-tracker-aqualog/id6755156178) | 3.7 (3) | Free | Lifestyle | | [Fish Tank Care & Water Tests](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/fish-tank-care-and-water-tests/id6786212178) | — | Free | Lifestyle | --- *Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-10-25.*