Nanoleaf vs Knocki
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Nanoleaf
Control and customize your smart lighting experience with this app. Design layouts, set schedules, and explore community-created scenes. Integrate with smart home assistants for hands-free control.
- Virtual Layout Assistant
- One-touch RGB presets
- Full customization
- Remote on/off and brightness control
- Group and room control
- Scene creation and discovery
- Voice command integration
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Design, set up, manage, and control your Nanoleaf lights all in one place. From the virtual Layout Assistant, to one-touch RGB presets, to full in-depth customization like you’ve never seen before, prepare for a lighting experience that is Smarter by Design. Simple Control Use the App to scan your lights’ pairing code and get set up in seconds, then enjoy your smart light-switch. Remotely turn your lights on and off, adjust brightness (trust us they go BRIGHT), and select your color Scenes from anywhere within your home. Group your lights together for joint control with Group Scenes (because we love a team player), or segment by room to keep your lights as organized as you wish your life could be. Complete Customization Create custom dynamic Scenes by selecting palettes and colors with the intuitive color wheel, adjusting ratios, and choosing animated motions. Try vibrant RGB hues to set a total vibe, or put the “fun” in functional lighting with the whole range of white color temperatures. Advanced Automations Set Schedules to automate your daily lighting needs, from gentle morning light-alarms, to gradually dimming nightly reminders that Holy **** it’s 2AM again, you need to wake up in 4 hours, PLEASE go to sleep. Now You’re Talking Connect your lights with your smart home assistant (HomeKit, Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, or Samsung SmartThings) and use voice commands to control them hands-free. Just say “Hey Siri, turn on my TGIF” Scene” and instantly enter full relaxation-mode at the end of a long week. Join the Community Explore the App’s “Discover” tab for a huge collection of incredible Scenes created by users like you. Well, like you, just more creative. But if you too are the creative type, share your own Scenes and show the community what you’ve got! There are endless Scenes to discover for every mood and occasion, all the way from “Ho Ho Holidays” to “Netflix and Chill”. + More With a virtual AR Layout Assistant, curated Scenes and Playlists, Cloud Control (requires Apple home hub), and additional product information, the Nanoleaf App really is your smart lighting one-stop-shop. The Nanoleaf App supports all Nanoleaf manufactured products including by not limited to: Light Panels, Canvas, Shapes, Essentials, Elements, Lines, Blocks, Sense+ Smart Switch and Matter Wi-Fi products. Enjoy it today on the ever superior iOS operating system.
Knocki
Turn any surface into a smart home controller. Create custom tap gestures to activate lights, music, and other connected devices. Works with popular smart home platforms.
- Transform surfaces into touch controls
- Control smart home devices
- Create custom tap gestures
- Works with Alexa, IFTTT, Philips Hue, and more
- Trigger task lists with gestures
- Works via WiFi independently of phone
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Transform entire walls or tables into touch controls for your favorite smart home functions. With just a few taps on a regular surface, you can control your lights, find your lost phone, and much more! Knocki works with Alexa, IFTTT, Philips Hue, Lifx, TP-Link, Sonos, Honeywell, Schlage, and more! The Knocki app lets you setup your Knocki device(s), connect to your smart devices and services, and create custom gestures (tap patterns) to trigger specific tasks or even groups of tasks all at once (called "task lists"). Once Knocki is set up, it works through WiFi, even if your phone isn't around. Popular Tasks include: - Tap your nightstand to turn off the lights. - Tap your coffee table to boot up the TV. - Tap your front door to lock the door and turn off all the house lights. - and much more! Explore what Knocki can do or get your own Knocki at http://knocki.com - Have questions? Reach out to us at support@knocki.com
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Nanoleaf at 4.2 against Knocki's 3.3. Nanoleaf also leads on ratings volume (45K vs 9) and update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 2 months). Knocki's advantage is review sentiment (31% vs 17%) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.4). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Nanoleaf holds the better App Store score, 4.2 against 3.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Nanoleaf has 45K ratings behind it against 9, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 17% of Nanoleaf's written reviews are positive against 31% of Knocki's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Nanoleaf ships an update every 2 weeks, Knocki every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 20, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Nanoleaf | Knocki |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.2 (45K ratings) — better | 3.3 (9 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 17.3% of reviews | 30.8% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 45K — better | 9 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks — better | Every 2 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.4 | 13.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 188 MB | 74 MB |
| Age rating | 9+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Nanoleaf | Haptic, Inc. |
Customer experience
Nanoleaf
Knocki
Bugs and requests
Nanoleaf
Reported bugs
5 issues- Lights randomly disconnecting
- Firmware updates failing or bricking devices
- Scenes not syncing properly across devices
- App crashes on launch or during use
- Delayed or unresponsive device controls
Requested features
5 requests- Improved app stability and reliability
- More intuitive scene creation and management
- Better integration with other smart home platforms
- Customizable animation speed and effects
- Ability to save and restore custom color presets
Knocki
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Nanoleaf
No in-app purchases
Knocki
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Nanoleaf free?
Is Knocki free?
Which has better reviews, Nanoleaf or Knocki?
Do Nanoleaf or Knocki have ads?
Which is updated more often, Nanoleaf or Knocki?
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