HackIllinois vs HexLabs
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
HackIllinois
This app enhances the hackathon experience by providing event schedules, point-earning opportunities through QR scans and duels, and a shop for redeeming prizes. Users can track their progress, view rankings, and manage check-ins for food and events.
- Event schedule and details
- Point system via QR scans and duels
- Prize redemption in Point Shop
- Personal progress and rank tracking
- Event check-in functionality
- Countdown timer for hacking
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Download the official HackIllinois 2026 app for a complete in-person hackathon experience! With our app, you can: - See how much time you have left to hack! - View the time, location, and other details for all of our events. - Scan QR codes at events to obtain points! - Play duels against other members for points. - Get checked in by staff for food and other events. - Redeem points for merchandise and raffle prizes through our newly improved Point Shop! - View your rank, points, and other personal information. - and more!
HexLabs
This app helps students discover and manage events for collegiate and high school competitions. It provides a centralized platform to view event schedules, access important information, and plan participation. The goal is to foster an inspiring environment for students to bring their ideas to life.
- Event discovery
- Personalized schedule
- Access important information
- View current and upcoming events
- Resource-rich environment
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HexLabs throws events for collegiate and high school students with the goal of allowing our participants to bring any of their ideas to life. From the most serious to the most hilarious, we empower our participants by cultivating a resource-rich and inspiring environment. View our events, personalize your schedule, and quickly access important information all in one place. With all the events HexLabs has to offer, take advantage of them all with a clear view of what's happening now, up next, and additional information.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: HackIllinois at daily against HexLabs's weekly. HackIllinois also leads on ratings volume (32 vs 8). HexLabs's advantage is iOS requirement (11.0 vs 15.1). On price, rating, review sentiment and ads 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.
HexLabs holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 32 and 8 respectively. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 100% and 100% positive.
HackIllinois ships an update daily, HexLabs weekly. The most recent releases landed on June 5, 2026 and June 9, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | HackIllinois | HexLabs |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (32 ratings) | 4.9 (8 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 32 — better | 8 |
| Update frequency | Daily — better | Weekly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 | 11.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 46 MB | 13 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | ACM UIUC | HackGT, Inc. |
Customer experience
HackIllinois
HexLabs
In-app purchases
HackIllinois
No in-app purchases
HexLabs
No in-app purchases
