Sutro vs Purezone by Balboa
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Sutro
Effortlessly manage your pool or spa water quality. This app works with a smart monitor to automatically track pH, free chlorine, alkalinity, and temperature, providing insights that make sense for optimal water conditions.
- Automatic water quality monitoring
- pH tracking
- Free chlorine measurement
- Alkalinity tracking
- Temperature monitoring
- Seamless app integration
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Sutro is the simple, safe, and seamless way to manage your Pool (or Spa) water with measurements that make sense and monitoring that is automatic. The Sutro app works with the Sutro Smart Monitor to measure your pool or spa’s pH, free chlorine (ppm), alkalinity, and temperature without you having to do anything.
Purezone by Balboa
Automate hot tub water maintenance with real-time insights and recommendations. This system simplifies keeping your water balanced and safe for optimal enjoyment.
- Smart monitoring system
- Automated maintenance
- Real-time insights
- Water chemistry recommendations
- Simplified water balancing
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Purezone is a smart monitoring system designed to automate the maintenance of your hot tub water chemistry. By providing real-time insights and recommendations, it simplifies the process of keeping your water balanced and safe.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Purezone by Balboa at 5.0 against Sutro's 3.9. Purezone by Balboa also leads on update cadence (weekly vs every 2 months). Sutro's advantage is ratings volume (175 vs 3). 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Purezone by Balboa holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.9. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Sutro has 175 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two.
Sutro ships an update every 2 months, Purezone by Balboa weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 15, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Sutro | Purezone by Balboa |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.9 (175 ratings) | 5.0 (3 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 72.9% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 175 — better | 3 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Weekly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 12.4 — better | 13.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 39 MB | 104 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Sutro Connect Inc | WaterGuru, Inc |
Customer experience
Sutro
Purezone by Balboa
Bugs and requests
Sutro
Reported bugs
4 issues- App crashes and freezes
- Disconnection issues with hub
- Calibration failures
- Inaccurate water chemistry readings
Requested features
4 requests- Measure total hardness and CYA
- Customizable notification settings
- Ability to cancel subscription easily
- Improved app stability and user experience
Purezone by Balboa
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Sutro
No in-app purchases
Purezone by Balboa
No in-app purchases
