PIEPS vs ARVA
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
PIEPS
Configure, check, and update your PIEPS or Black Diamond avalanche transceiver. Train your rescue skills with your phone as a remote control and register your device for additional services.
- Device configuration
- Functionality check
- Firmware updates
- Rescue skills training
- Remote control functionality
- Device registration
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- Configure your PIEPS or Black Diamond device according to your preferences. - Check the functionality of your PIEPS or Black Diamond device - Update your PIEPS or Black Diamond device to the latest firmware. - Train your emergency rescue skills. Use your phone as a remote control. - Register your PIEPS or Black Diamond device to get additional services
ARVA
Access avalanche risk bulletins for various European and American regions. Configure your ARVA NEO BT PRO device, perform diagnostics, and engage in training modules for avalanche safety and search procedures. Includes a trip preparation checklist.
- Avalanche risk bulletins
- NEO BT PRO device configuration
- Transceiver diagnostics
- Snow Safety Program training
- Group Check procedure guide
- Search training simulations
- Trip preparation checklist
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**** Avalanche Risk Bulletins **** To help you plan your itinerary, you can find the Avalanche Bulletins for your favorite American, French, Swiss, Austrian and Italian regions. These are updated as soon as they are published. Find the widgets so the Avalanche Bulletins show up on the home page of your smartphone. **** NEO BT PRO **** The ARVA app has been designed as a support tool for our NEO BT PRO, as it allows users to configure their device. The tool has various options, such as fine search distance, Standby mode time or an alarm to tell you your device has been on for too long. You can also choose between digital or analog sound when in digital mode. **** Update and diagnostics**** Carry out maintenance of your transceiver directly in the app via Bluetooth. **** Training**** The ARVA app also has a training function, as it includes our Snow Safety Program. You can use the app to open or revise basic theory on avalanche safety. **** Group Check**** The “Group Check” section helps you understand and, more importantly, master the Group Check procedure. You will find a detailed users’ guide in the app. **** Search training**** Use our “SEARCH” section to practice searching for burials. You can do this while connected, thanks to the NEO BT PRO and fleet management, or more simply using any other device. You can perform search training with single burials or multiple burial situations. This program provides very realistic training. **** Preparing for a trip **** The app has a “Trip” tab which includes a checklist to make sure you don’t forget anything when preparing for your trip. The checklist is comprehensive, from a review of your itinerary to the food you will need. Find other features in our ARVA app.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: PIEPS at none against ARVA's shown. PIEPS also leads on ratings volume (1K vs 1) and monetization model (free vs ad-supported). On price, rating, review sentiment and update cadence 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.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.9 for PIEPS against 5.0 for ARVA. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: PIEPS has 1K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 63% of PIEPS's written reviews are positive against 57% of ARVA's.
PIEPS ships an update monthly, ARVA every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 4, 2026 and October 1, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | PIEPS | ARVA |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.9 (1K ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 63.0% of reviews — better | 57.1% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 1K — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Monthly — better | Every 2 months |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Ad-supported |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 14.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 46 MB | 405 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Pieps GmbH | NIC IMPEX SA |
Customer experience
PIEPS
ARVA
Bugs and requests
PIEPS
Reported bugs
2 issues- App home screen going blank
- Incompatibility with certain beacon models
Requested features
2 requests- Support for more languages (e.g. Russian, Japanese)
- Improved security for app login/registration
ARVA
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
PIEPS
No in-app purchases
ARVA
No in-app purchases
