# Noel vs Christmas Countdown & Widget

The clearest difference is ratings volume: Christmas Countdown & Widget at 2.5K against Noel's 84. Christmas Countdown & Widget also leads on review sentiment (93% vs 80%) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). On price, rating, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Noel sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month and Christmas Countdown & Widget sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Noel against 4.8 for Christmas Countdown & Widget. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Christmas Countdown & Widget has 2.5K ratings behind it against 84, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 80% of Noel's written reviews are positive against 93% of Christmas Countdown & Widget's.

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 27, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Noel | Christmas Countdown & Widget |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.7 (84 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/noel-christmas-countdown/id1161557247/reviews) | **[4.8 (2.5K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/christmas-countdown-and-widget/id1541858661/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 84 | **2.5K** |
| Positive reviews | 80.0% of reviews | **93.3% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Every 3 weeks |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 132 MB | 2 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **15.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Paul Roden II](https://appshunter.io/developer/693041126) | [Benoit Deguine](https://appshunter.io/developer/982019700) |

## What reviewers say

### Noel

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/noel-christmas-countdown/id1161557247)

This app helps you embrace the holiday spirit with a countdown to Christmas, festive recipes, gift ideas, and activity planning. Enjoy carols with built-in music sheets and track your holiday preparations.

**Highlights:** Christmas countdown clock, Advent widget, AI gift ideas, Recipe list, Activity list, Christmas music sheets

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Family Sharing

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Noel Premium | $3.99 | per month |
| Noel Premium | $29.99 | per year |


### Christmas Countdown & Widget

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/christmas-countdown-and-widget/id1541858661)

Track the exact days, hours, and sleeps until Christmas Eve with a live home screen widget. Customize with festive themes and enjoy snowfall animations to bring the holiday spirit to life.

**Highlights:** Live home screen widget, Real-time countdown (days, hours, sleeps), Customizable themes (red, green, blue), Snowfall animations, Compact size (under 1MB)

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

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1 Gift | $1.99 | one-time |
| Premium | $2.99 | one-time |
| 3 Gifts (or 1 big!) | $4.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🎄 Great Christmas countdown app
- 🕰️ Accurate countdown
- 💻 Useful widget
- 🎨 Customizable themes
- 🎅 Captures Christmas spirit

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional countdown issues
- 🔍 Widget doesn't show full countdown details
- 🔧 Some features not fully functional

**Reported bugs**

- Countdown not always accurate
- Widget not working on some devices
- App freezing or crashing

**Requested features**

- Add Apple Watch support
- Include more countdown details in widget
- Implement Christmas mini-games
- Provide notification options
- Add more customization options


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Noel free?

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

### Is Christmas Countdown & Widget free?

Christmas Countdown & Widget is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Noel or Christmas Countdown & Widget?

Christmas Countdown & Widget is rated higher. Noel averages 4.7 out of 5 from 84 ratings, while Christmas Countdown & Widget averages 4.8 from 2.5K ratings.

### Do Noel or Christmas Countdown & Widget have ads?

Neither Noel nor Christmas Countdown & Widget shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Noel or Christmas Countdown & Widget?

Noel ships an update every 3 weeks, and Christmas Countdown & Widget every 3 weeks. Most recently, Noel was updated on October 26, 2026 and Christmas Countdown & Widget on October 27, 2026.

---

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