# Beacon vs ILC Institut

The clearest difference is ads: ILC Institut at none against Beacon's shown. ILC Institut also leads on update cadence (every 2 days vs every 3 weeks). On price, in-app purchases, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

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

Beacon ships an update every 3 weeks, ILC Institut every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on September 26, 2026 and October 1, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Beacon | ILC Institut |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.5 (2 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/beacon-digital-guide/id1435526583/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **2** | — |
| Positive reviews | 21.4% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | **Every 2 days** |
| Monetization | Ad-supported | — |
| Size | 40 MB | 31 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 | **15.1** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [University of Staffordshire](https://appshunter.io/developer/1157433122) | [AfroVibrations UG (Haftungsbeschränkt)](https://appshunter.io/developer/1777330172) |

## What reviewers say

### Beacon

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/beacon-digital-guide/id1435526583)

This app serves as a comprehensive digital guide for student life, offering features like timetable viewing, campus navigation, and access to university services. It helps students find contact information, check resource availability, and stay updated on news and events.

**Highlights:** View timetable, Campus maps and points of interest, Staff and service contact details, PC availability checks, News and events browsing, Societies and clubs search, Answers to common service questions

**In-app purchases:** none


### ILC Institut

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ilc-institut/id6761900941)

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

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Beacon free?

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

### Is ILC Institut free?

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

### Do Beacon or ILC Institut have ads?

Beacon shows ads; ILC Institut does not.

### Which is updated more often, Beacon or ILC Institut?

Beacon ships an update every 3 weeks, and ILC Institut every 2 days. Most recently, Beacon was updated on September 26, 2026 and ILC Institut 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.*