# bartender.live vs Bartender

The clearest difference is ads: bartender.live at none against Bartender's shown. bartender.live also leads on update cadence (every 8 days vs every 20 months) and monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases). Bartender's advantage is iOS requirement (15.6 vs 17.0). On price, rating, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. bartender.live sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Bartender sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for bartender.live against 4.8 for Bartender. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: bartender.live has 388 ratings behind it against 23, so its average is the more settled of the two.

bartender.live ships an update every 8 days, Bartender every 20 months. The most recent releases landed on October 13, 2026 and October 1, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | bartender.live | Bartender |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.8 (388 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bartenderlive/id1309377225/reviews) | **[4.8 (23 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bartender-cocktail-drinks/id1583184686/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **388** | 23 |
| Positive reviews | 76.7% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Every 8 days** | Every 20 months |
| Monetization | **Free** | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 76 MB | 9 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **15.6** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 17+ | 17+ |
| Developer | [Jacket Industries, LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1126517950) | [NANOMAG](https://appshunter.io/developer/1478001054) |

## What reviewers say

### bartender.live

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bartenderlive/id1309377225)

Discover cocktail recipes based on ingredients you have. Browse over a thousand drinks, star favorites, and share creations. Learn drink histories and find new concoctions.

**Highlights:** Ingredient-based drink discovery, Browse 1000+ cocktail recipes, Favorite drinks for quick access, Share recipes with friends, Learn drink history, Discover new cocktails

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

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Top Shelf | $4.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Intuitive and easy-to-use interface
- 💡 Innovative 'In My Bar' feature to find drinks based on available ingredients
- 📚 Extensive database of cocktail recipes
- 🎯 Generic ingredient categories instead of brand-specific items
- ⏰ Daily drink reminder at 5pm

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🔍 Search function inconsistent and sometimes returns no results
- ❌ Limited ability to add personal recipes and notes
- 🐦 Twitter-only submission method for new recipes (inaccessible to many)
- 📋 Incomplete recipe database missing common drinks
- ⚠️ Quality control issues with some recipes (missing ingredients)

**Reported bugs**

- Search returns no results for valid queries (e.g., 'Gin Campari')
- 'New' tab in drinks list remains grayed out
- New drink notifications not accessible if alert is missed
- Missing ingredients in some recipe descriptions despite correct images
- Inconsistent notification delivery for daily drink feature

**Requested features**

- Search/filter by specific spirit or ingredient (e.g., mint, bourbon)
- Ability to add personal notes and modify recipes
- Quantity tracking for inventory items
- Filter drinks by number of missing ingredients (1-3 missing)
- Ingredient suggestions to unlock more drinks


### Bartender

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bartender-cocktail-drinks/id1583184686)

Discover and create a wide variety of cocktails with this app. Features include a random recipe generator, search by category or keyword, and the ability to save favorites. Perfect for home mixologists and party hosts.

**Highlights:** Random cocktail generator, Search recipes by category, Save favorite drinks, Keyword search for 500+ recipes, Offline recipe access

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly | $0.99 | per month |
| Annual | $9.99 | per year |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is bartender.live free?

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

### Is Bartender free?

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

### Which has better reviews, bartender.live or Bartender?

Bartender is rated higher. bartender.live averages 4.8 out of 5 from 388 ratings, while Bartender averages 4.8 from 23 ratings.

### Do bartender.live or Bartender have ads?

Bartender shows ads; bartender.live does not.

### Which is updated more often, bartender.live or Bartender?

bartender.live ships an update every 8 days, and Bartender every 20 months. Most recently, bartender.live was updated on October 13, 2026 and Bartender on October 1, 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.*