# bartender.live vs Cocktailarium

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Cocktailarium at none against bartender.live's 1. Cocktailarium also leads on iOS requirement (15.1 vs 17.0). bartender.live's advantage is update cadence (every 8 days vs monthly) and ratings volume (388 vs 18). On price, rating, ads and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. bartender.live sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Cocktailarium asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for bartender.live against 4.8 for Cocktailarium. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: bartender.live has 388 ratings behind it against 18, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 77% of bartender.live's written reviews are positive against 67% of Cocktailarium's.

bartender.live ships an update every 8 days, Cocktailarium monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 21, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | bartender.live | Cocktailarium |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.8 (388 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bartenderlive/id1309377225/reviews) | **[4.8 (18 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/cocktailarium/id1660649888/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **388** | 18 |
| Positive reviews | **76.7% of reviews** | 66.7% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 8 days** | Monthly |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 76 MB | 65 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **15.1** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 17+ | 17+ |
| Developer | [Jacket Industries, LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1126517950) | [Giancarlo Pigati](https://appshunter.io/developer/1660649890) |

## 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


### Cocktailarium

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/cocktailarium/id1660649888)

Discover and learn to craft cocktails with a vast recipe library and personalized bar inventory. Explore curated collections, create your own drink lists, and get ingredient suggestions based on what you have on hand.

**Highlights:** Extensive recipe library (350+), Search by name, ingredient, mood, and tags, Personalized 'My Bar' inventory tracking, Ingredient-based recipe suggestions, Shopping list creation, Curated cocktail collections, Bilingual (English/Spanish)

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

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is bartender.live free?

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

### Is Cocktailarium free?

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

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

Cocktailarium is rated higher. bartender.live averages 4.8 out of 5 from 388 ratings, while Cocktailarium averages 4.8 from 18 ratings.

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

Neither bartender.live nor Cocktailarium shows ads.

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

bartender.live ships an update every 8 days, and Cocktailarium monthly. Most recently, bartender.live was updated on October 21, 2026 and Cocktailarium on October 15, 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.*