# Thrive Carolinas vs Varsity Stack

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Thrive Carolinas at none against Varsity Stack's 3. Thrive Carolinas also leads on iOS requirement (14.0 vs 16.0). Varsity Stack's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (weekly vs every 7 months). On price and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Varsity Stack sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Thrive Carolinas asks for nothing beyond the download.

Thrive Carolinas ships an update every 7 months, Varsity Stack weekly. The most recent releases landed on September 27, 2026 and October 5, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Thrive Carolinas | Varsity Stack |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | — | **[4.9 (8 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/varsity-stack/id6759528940/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | — | **8** |
| Positive reviews | — | 100.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | Every 7 months | **Weekly** |
| Monetization | — | Freemium |
| Size | 119 MB | 41 MB |
| Requires iOS | **14.0** | 16.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | [Thrive Personalized Healthcare and Wellness](https://appshunter.io/developer/1804443535) | [Varsity Stack LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1879308431) |

## What reviewers say

### Thrive Carolinas

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/thrive-carolinas/id1214016905)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Apple Wallet

**In-app purchases:** none


### Varsity Stack

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/varsity-stack/id6759528940)

This app assists athletes in creating safe, sport-specific supplement plans. It simplifies complex choices by offering personalized recommendations and tracking progress. Features include certified product sourcing and adaptive guidance based on training.

**Highlights:** Personalized supplement recommendations, Certified-only product sourcing, Daily streaks and reminders, Adaptive training guidance, Team dashboards and leaderboards, Lock Screen Widgets

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Varsity Stack Pro Monthly | $2.99 | per month |
| Varsity Stack Pro Yearly | $14.99 | per year |
| Varsity Stack Pro | $19.99 | per year |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Thrive Carolinas free?

Thrive Carolinas is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Varsity Stack free?

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

### Do Thrive Carolinas or Varsity Stack have ads?

Thrive Carolinas shows ads; Varsity Stack does not.

### Which is updated more often, Thrive Carolinas or Varsity Stack?

Thrive Carolinas ships an update every 7 months, and Varsity Stack weekly. Most recently, Thrive Carolinas was updated on September 27, 2026 and Varsity Stack on October 5, 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.*