# Rain Bird vs U

The clearest difference is rating: Rain Bird at 4.7 against U's 3.0. Rain Bird also leads on ratings volume (70K vs 1). U's advantage is review sentiment (50% vs 31%) and iOS requirement (10.0 vs 13.0). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Rain Bird holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 3.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Rain Bird has 70K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 31% of Rain Bird's written reviews are positive against 50% of U's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 26, 2026 and June 1, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Rain Bird | U |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.7 (70K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/rain-bird/id1060727082/reviews)** | [3.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/u-sync/id1485733488/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **70K** | 1 |
| Positive reviews | 31.3% of reviews | **50.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Every 2 months |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 48 MB | 49 MB |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 | **10.0** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Rain Bird Corporation](https://appshunter.io/developer/958281909) | [Universal Lighting System](https://appshunter.io/developer/1485568087) |

## What reviewers say

### Rain Bird

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/rain-bird/id1060727082)

Control your sprinklers remotely from your mobile device. Automate watering schedules and adjust for weather conditions to conserve water and reduce costs. Compatible with various Rain Bird controller models.

**Highlights:** Remote sprinkler control, Customizable watering schedules, Automated weather adjustments, Water and money saving, Controller model compatibility

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Easy to program
- 🚀 Convenient remote control
- 👍 Versatile
- 👍 Must have
- 👍 Ease of mind

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Connectivity issues
- 🐛 Slow and clunky app
- 🐛 Date/time not updating
- 🐛 Unreliable system
- 🐛 Limited functionality

**Reported bugs**

- Constant connection errors
- App crashes frequently
- Date/time not syncing correctly
- Seasonal adjustment not working as expected
- Manual controls not functioning properly

**Requested features**

- Add water usage history and analytics
- Allow pausing of individual zones
- Improve manual control options
- Add weather integration and smart scheduling
- Improve notification system


### U

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/u-sync/id1485733488)

Control your smart lighting system with this app. Set custom schedules for different zones, turn lights on/off manually, and name your zones for easy management. It's a convenient interface for Universal Lighting Systems' Zone Control transformers.

**Highlights:** Set zone schedules, Manual zone control, Name custom zones, Individual zone timing, System on/off control

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Rain Bird free?

Rain Bird is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is U free?

U is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Rain Bird or U?

Rain Bird is rated higher. Rain Bird averages 4.7 out of 5 from 70K ratings, while U averages 3.0 from 1 ratings.

### Do Rain Bird or U have ads?

Neither Rain Bird nor U shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Rain Bird or U?

Rain Bird ships an update every 2 months, and U every 2 months. Most recently, Rain Bird was updated on September 26, 2026 and U on June 1, 2026.

---

*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*