Comparison

Activate Home vs Pref

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Activate Home

Manage your building's access, communications, and services from your phone. Receive alerts for packages, reserve amenities, and connect with your property team and neighbors.

Highlights
  • Building access control
  • Visitor registration
  • Service request management
  • Amenity reservations
  • Package arrival notifications
  • Resident communication
  • Digital building key
Features
Read full description

Stay connected to everything happening in your building and the people within it. From building access, to communications from your property team, or package arrival alerts, it’s all at your fingertips with the Activate Home app. Download the app to: -Register visitors -Submit and manage service requests -Reserve amenities -Get notifications for package arrivals -Communicate with management and fellow residents -See upcoming events in your building -Give feedback through polls -Use your phone as a digital key to access the building -And so much more! *Note: features vary by building.

About

Pref

Features
Read full description

Everyone loves being remembered. How you take your coffee. Your birthday. Allergies and dietary restrictions. What you need to sleep comfortably. Favorite foods. Pref is the place to record your real world preferences — and share them with the people and businesses who care. It's fun to add your prefs, and you can ask piña the Pref assistant to answer questions about your friends, their dependents (kids, pets, adults), and their relationships. If you have someone's number saved in your phone, and they have yours saved, you're automatically friends. A few moments Pref is built for: -A friend wondering what to bring to your birthday dinner -Remembering your buddy's dog's name -A new babysitter asking what your kid needs to fall asleep -Figuring out what drinks to get for the wedding -Taking out a date for the first time -Hosting an important sales prospect -A memory care nurse meeting your dad for the first time -Planning a dinner party menu (no cilantro!) -Organizing the team offsite for coworkers -A hotel that actually wants to get it right -A petsitter who wants all the details before you head out Plus never forget a birthday again, with customizable birthday reminders for all your friends. Privacy first: phone numbers are hashed before they touch our server, audio and photos stay on your device, and there's nothing to sell. Read the full policy at prefpref.com/privacy. Pref is free. Someday we'll make money when businesses request your prefs, or when we help you choose businesses that respect your prefs.

Screenshots

Activate Home4 screens
Pref4 screens

Verdict

The call

Activate Home and Pref are too close to call on the numbers: across 5 compared parameters — price, ads, in-app purchases and device support among them — neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

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

ScorecardNo meaningful differences
Activate Home versus Pref: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterActivate HomePref
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.0 (413 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews29.8% of reviews—
Number of ratings413 — better—
Update frequencyMonthly—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPad — betteriPhone
Requires iOS16.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size261 MB9 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperRise Buildings, LLCBecker Capital Ventures LLC

Bugs and requests

Activate Home

Reported bugs

17 issues
  • Mobile key not working
  • “No response met from Salto SVN” error
  • Visitors disappearing
  • Packages checked out/in disappearing
  • “General error” when opening
Show 12 more
  • “No door found” error on elevators
  • App crashes on launch
  • Cannot login
  • Error when password submitted
  • Reset password link trackers not working
  • App does not open on iOS 13
  • Clicking edit on visitor profile doesn't work
  • Cannot log out
  • Incorrect apartment number on profile
  • App crashes during registration
  • App freezing or having other bugs
  • Red bubble notification remains after checking

Requested features

8 requests
  • Add phone key to Apple Wallet
  • Improve offline functionality for app launch/key access
  • Add a hard fob solution for non-smartphone users
  • Implement a buzz-in feature for visitors/deliveries
  • Allow users to see other's elevator reservations
Show 3 more
  • Allow users to stay signed in
  • Improve back button navigation in community posts
  • More reports for property managers

Pref

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Activate Home

No in-app purchases

None

Pref

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Activate Home free?
Activate Home is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Pref free?
Pref is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Activate Home or Pref have ads?
Neither Activate Home nor Pref shows ads.

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