# Life Lists vs Cairn

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Life Lists at none against Cairn's 1. Life Lists also leads on device support (4 vs 2) and iOS requirement (16.0 vs 18.0). Cairn's advantage is update cadence (every 3 days vs weekly). On price and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Cairn sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Life Lists asks for nothing beyond the download.

Life Lists ships an update weekly, Cairn every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Life Lists | Cairn |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.7 (1.8K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/life-lists-notes-and-habits/id1187192202/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **1.8K** | — |
| Positive reviews | 74.0% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Weekly | **Every 3 days** |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Size | 142 MB | 18 MB |
| Requires iOS | **16.0** | 18.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [DG Apps, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/881345071) | [Shrey Pinnada](https://appshunter.io/developer/6811047463) |

## What reviewers say

### Life Lists

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/life-lists-notes-and-habits/id1187192202)

This super organizer helps manage checklists, notes, habits, groceries, and budgets with an AI assistant. It offers automatic sorting for groceries, gentle habit reminders, and tools like timers and focus modes. Folders and a daily overview keep everything tidy and accessible across Apple devices.

**Highlights:** AI-powered list creation and organization, Automatic grocery sorting by aisle, Habit tracking with streaks and reminders, Comprehensive note-taking and journaling, Budget management and pro/con lists, Cross-device syncing with iCloud, Customizable folders and visual themes

**Features:** Apple Watch app, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 💻 Versatile and customizable
- 📚 Excellent for organizing lists
- 🎨 Visually appealing and clean design
- 🆓 Free app with no ads or in-app purchases
- 🤖 Helpful for users with ADHD or autism

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional crashes or bugs
- ⚠️ Sync and backup issues causing data loss
- 🔍 Lack of search functionality in long lists
- 🔔 Frequent rating prompts annoying to some users

**Reported bugs**

- Lists disappearing or getting corrupted
- Inability to paste text into list items
- Unexpected list item reordering
- Crash when trying to create new lists

**Requested features**

- Recurring reminders or to-do items
- Ability to sort lists manually
- Cross-device syncing and sharing
- Password protection for sensitive lists
- iPad and landscape mode support


### Cairn

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/cairn-your-second-brain/id6811047461)

**Features:** Family Sharing

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Cairn+ Lifetime | $14.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Life Lists free?

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

### Is Cairn free?

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

### Do Life Lists or Cairn have ads?

Neither Life Lists nor Cairn shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Life Lists or Cairn?

Life Lists ships an update weekly, and Cairn every 3 days. Most recently, Life Lists was updated on November 6, 2026 and Cairn on October 31, 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.*