Comparison

ESP vs ServerBox

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

ESP

This utility app allows users to build and configure ESP-MESH networks, leveraging the ESP32 chip. It explores the capabilities of a Wi-Fi and Bluetooth hybrid protocol for innovative wireless networking solutions. The app supports various ESP32-based hardware devices for smart home applications.

Highlights
  • Build and configure ESP-MESH networks
  • Explore ESP-MESH protocol capabilities
  • Utilize ESP32 chip for networking
  • Support for ESP32-MeshKit devices
  • Smart home lighting solutions
Features
Read full description

ESP-Mesh App is a tool for building and configuring ESP-MESH networks. The tool helps explore the potential of the ESP-MESH protocol developed by Espressif. ESP-MESH can be thought of as an extension of the Wi-Fi protocol. It combines the advantages of both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth technologies to provide innovative solutions that make you re-think how wireless networks can be built using the same networking equipment. Since ESP-MESH has been designed for the ESP32 chip, you can use this protocol to network any hardware devices that incorporate ESP32, either available for purchase or created by you. Espressif offers a line of ESP-MESH hardware devices, called ESP32-MeshKit, to help you get started. This line is specifically designed with the goal to demonstrate the features of the ESP-MESH protocol. The number of available devices is steadily growing. Currently, ESP32-MeshKit includes: ESP32-MeshKit-Light - smart light bulbs. ESP32-MeshKit-Button - remote control with ultra-low power consumption for MeshKit-Light devices. ESP32-MeshKit-Sense - development board for controlling MeshKit peripherals based on the data from its multiple onboard sensors. When built into an ESP-MESH network, these devices present a ready-made solution for smart home lighting. For more details, please see https://github.com/espressif/esp-mdf The source code for the ESP-Mesh App can be found https://github.com/EspressifApp/EspMeshForiOS. It might be helpful in development of your own ESP-MESH applications.

About

ServerBox

Manage your Linux servers remotely with SSH and SFTP. Control Docker containers and utilize experimental snippet features. Ping your servers to check connectivity.

Highlights
  • SSH client
  • SFTP client
  • Docker/Podman management
  • Snippet feature (experimental)
  • Ping utility
  • Open Source
Features
Read full description

This project is completely OPEN SOURCE. You can click the "App Support" button near the score below to download other system versions or compile them by yourself. Support for major Linux distributions. Support SSH, SFTP, docker/podman management, snippet.(experimental feature) Support Ping.

Screenshots

ESP4 screens
ServerBox4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: ServerBox at 91% against ESP's 50%. ServerBox also leads on update cadence (fortnightly vs every 2 months) and device support (5 vs 2). ESP's advantage is iOS requirement (12.3 vs 15.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ESP ships an update every 2 months, ServerBox fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on August 29, 2026 and September 16, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
ESP versus ServerBox: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterESPServerBox
PriceFreeFree
Rating—4.9 (90 ratings) — better
Positive reviews50.0% of reviews91.1% of reviews — better
Number of ratings—90 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsFortnightly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS12.3 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size23 MB79 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperESPRESSIF SYSTEMS (SHANGHAI) CO., LTD.吐司工作室

Customer experience

ESP

Written reviews2 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%

ServerBox

All ratings90 ratings
Positive96.7%
Neutral1.1%
Negative2.2%
Written reviews45 reviews
Positive91.1%
Neutral2.2%
Negative6.7%

In-app purchases

None

ESP

No in-app purchases

None

ServerBox

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is ESP free?
ESP is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is ServerBox free?
ServerBox is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do ESP or ServerBox have ads?
Neither ESP nor ServerBox shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ESP or ServerBox?
ESP ships an update every 2 months, and ServerBox fortnightly. Most recently, ESP was updated on August 29, 2026 and ServerBox on September 16, 2026.

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