# Groups vs Seating Plan (companion app)

The clearest difference is update cadence: Groups at every 3 months against Seating Plan (companion app)'s every 7 months. Seating Plan (companion app)'s advantage is iOS requirement (15.1 vs 17.4). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Groups sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and Seating Plan (companion app) sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Groups ships an update every 3 months, Seating Plan (companion app) every 7 months. The most recent releases landed on September 17, 2026 and September 20, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Groups | Seating Plan (companion app) |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.9 (146 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/groups-random-team-generator/id1160022250/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **146** | — |
| Positive reviews | 90.0% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 3 months** | Every 7 months |
| Monetization | Freemium | — |
| Size | 24 MB | 37 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.4 | **15.1** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [William Taylor](https://appshunter.io/developer/1066424218) | [Mega Seating Plan](https://appshunter.io/developer/1728916327) |

## What reviewers say

### Groups

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/groups-random-team-generator/id1160022250)

This app helps educators create balanced and effective student teams using an advanced algorithm. It offers features like gender balancing, exclusion of incompatible students, and random student selection to promote participation. Easily import student data and export group compositions for classroom use.

**Highlights:** Advanced team-building algorithm, Gender balancing for groups, Exclude incompatible student pairs, Random student picker, Export and print group compositions, Bulk import students, Cross-device sync via iCloud

**Features:** Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (4)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Groups Pro Monthly | $2.99 | per month |
| Groups Pro Yearly | $14.99 | per year |
| Color Themes | $0.99 | one-time |
| Groups Pro | $39.99 | one-time |


### Seating Plan (companion app)

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/seating-plan-companion-app/id6503652608)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Mega Seating Plan Silver | $2.99 | per month |
| Mega Seating Plan Silver | $24.99 | per year |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Groups free?

Groups is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Seating Plan (companion app) free?

Seating Plan (companion app) is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Do Groups or Seating Plan (companion app) have ads?

Neither Groups nor Seating Plan (companion app) shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Groups or Seating Plan (companion app)?

Groups ships an update every 3 months, and Seating Plan (companion app) every 7 months. Most recently, Groups was updated on September 17, 2026 and Seating Plan (companion app) on September 20, 2026.

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