Beartooth for iPhone vs Meshtastic
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Beartooth for iPhone
This application connects to a specialized handheld device, enabling communication without cellular service. It offers push-to-talk voice calls and text messaging for groups or individuals, extending connectivity for outdoor adventures.
- Push-to-talk voice communication
- One-on-one and group text messaging
- Topographic maps for explorers
- Connects to Beartooth handheld device
- Works without cell service
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Official iPhone application for Beartooth devices. Beartooth is a handheld device that works with your smartphone to keep you connected when there is no cell service. Voice - Push-to-talk means quick communication between you and your crew up to 5 miles away. Text - One-on-one or group texts to any Beartooth users up to 10 miles away. Maps - The topographic Beartooth maps are made for the explorer.
Meshtastic
This app enables off-grid, decentralized communication via a low-power mesh network. Send text messages in areas lacking cellular or WiFi service.
- Off-grid communication
- Decentralized mesh network
- Low-power LoRa radio support
- Text messaging
- No cellular/WiFi required
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Meshtastic® is an open source, off-grid, decentralized, mesh network built to run on low-power Lora radios letting you send text messages in areas without reliable cellular or WiFi service.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Meshtastic at 4.1 against Beartooth for iPhone's 2.8. Meshtastic also leads on ratings volume (824 vs 9) and review sentiment (44% vs 30%). Beartooth for iPhone's advantage is iOS requirement (13.0 vs 17.5). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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.
Meshtastic holds the better App Store score, 4.1 against 2.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Meshtastic has 824 ratings behind it against 9, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 30% of Beartooth for iPhone's written reviews are positive against 44% of Meshtastic's.
Beartooth for iPhone ships an update every 3 weeks, Meshtastic every 10 days. The most recent releases landed on October 1, 2026 and October 11, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Beartooth for iPhone | Meshtastic |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 2.8 (9 ratings) | 4.1 (824 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 30.2% of reviews | 44.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 9 | 824 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Every 10 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod, Apple Watch | iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch — better |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 — better | 17.5 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 64 MB | 95 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Beartooth Radio INC | Meshtastic LLC |
Customer experience
Beartooth for iPhone
Meshtastic
User reviews
Beartooth for iPhone
From 9 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Easy to use
- 🗺️ Great map feature
- 🗣️ Excellent voice quality
- 💡 Innovative concept
- 🚀 Setup is simple
Room to improve
- 🐛 Does not work
- 💸 Overpriced
- 🔋 Poor battery life
- 🔌 Connection issues
- 📉 Limited range
Meshtastic
From 824 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Well-made app
- 🚀 Polished and intuitive interface
- 🚀 Powerful features for off-grid communication
- 👍 Great community and responsive developers
- 👍 Continuously improving with updates
Room to improve
- 🐛 Bluetooth connectivity issues
- 🐛 Unreliable messaging and node connections
- 🐛 Crashes and stability problems
- 🔋 High battery consumption
- 👎 Lacking feature parity with Android version
Bugs and requests
Beartooth for iPhone
Reported bugs
28 issues- App crashes when scanning for other users
- App crashes when scanning for contacts
- Device does not stay connected via Bluetooth
- Device disconnects after half an hour
- Firmware update didn't work with iPhone
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- One device will update, one will not
- App no longer compatible with Wi-Fi only iPads
- App crashes when you scan for other users
- App no longer shows battery of Beartooth
- App causes Apple Watch to continuously reboot
- App will not stay connected to Beartooth
- App impacts Airpods connectivity
- App gives error messages when attempting to check firmware, battery life, signal and output power
- One device constantly disconnects its Bluetooth connection
- Battery life abysmal
- Cannot connect
- Cannot maintain connection
- Out of the box, not able to connect to iPhone
- App isn't functional on 11.0.1
- One radio stays paired and the other drops Bluetooth connectivity
- Drafting a message is buggy and not usable
- App crashes when you scan for contacts
- Manually adding contacts doesn't appear to work
- App crashes every single time that I try to scan for other devices
- Device information for my device won't load
- Firmware update says Error
- Signal and battery level never update
- When I turn off the Beartooth, I need to restart the whole Bluetooth connection process
Requested features
6 requests- iPad compatibility
- Adjust power settings to be more user friendly
- Update dull colors on the app, offer color selection options
- Improve UI and interface simplicity and function
- Add dark mode option
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- Allow users to select other color options for the app
Meshtastic
Reported bugs
4 issues- Canned messages configuration issues
- Location sharing and traceroute functions not working
- Settings screen bugs and crashes
- Inconsistent behavior when switching between devices
Requested features
5 requests- Offline maps support
- Ability to customize notifications
- More sorting and filtering options for nodes
- Apple Watch and Shortcuts integration
- Improved documentation and user guidance
In-app purchases
Beartooth for iPhone
No in-app purchases
Meshtastic
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Beartooth for iPhone free?
Is Meshtastic free?
Which has better reviews, Beartooth for iPhone or Meshtastic?
Do Beartooth for iPhone or Meshtastic have ads?
Which is updated more often, Beartooth for iPhone or Meshtastic?
Other comparisons
