Dolphin Count vs Monarch Watch
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Dolphin Count
Contribute to marine mammal research by collecting real-time data on local dolphins. This free, family-friendly application requires no prior experience and helps expand scientific coverage areas. It aims to raise awareness about local dolphin populations.
- Citizen science data collection
- Marine mammal research support
- Local dolphin tracking
- Awareness raising
- Family-friendly
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Dolphin Count is a citizen scientist event where the general public can help marine mammal scientists collect real data on local dolphins. Utilizing citizens to collect data allows us to increase our coverage area where we might otherwise never go. This is a free, family friendly, no experience needed app to help count dolphins and raise awareness about Charleston's #Local dolphins.
Monarch Watch
Contribute to citizen science by tracking monarch butterflies. Log tagging, recovery, and calendar data with automatic image capture and field data import. Save data offline for later submission.
- Monarch tagging data submission
- Recovery and calendar data logging
- Automatic tag image capture
- Streamlined data entry
- Offline data saving
- Educational materials
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Participate in Monarch Watch community science projects and submit your monarch tagging, recovery and calendar data! Capture images of tags and automatically import codes for streamlined data entry. Easily import location, date, weather and other information then instantly submit data in the field. If no network connection is available, data may be saved and submitted later. All data from tagging, recovery, and calendar projects are saved on your device, giving you a record of what you have submitted. Detailed tagging instruction is provided as well as other educational materials and activities.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Monarch Watch at monthly against Dolphin Count's every 10 months. Monarch Watch also leads on rating (4.7 vs 4.5) and ratings volume (7 vs 2). Dolphin Count's advantage is iOS requirement (10.0 vs 15.6). 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.
Monarch Watch holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2 and 7 respectively.
Dolphin Count ships an update every 10 months, Monarch Watch monthly. The most recent releases landed on September 29, 2026 and October 23, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Dolphin Count | Monarch Watch |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.5 (2 ratings) | 4.7 (7 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | — | 100.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 2 | 7 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 10 months | Monthly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 10.0 — better | 15.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 90 MB | 86 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Lowcountry Marine Mammal Network | The University of Kansas |
Customer experience
Dolphin Count
Monarch Watch
In-app purchases
Dolphin Count
No in-app purchases
Monarch Watch
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Dolphin Count free?
Is Monarch Watch free?
Which has better reviews, Dolphin Count or Monarch Watch?
Do Dolphin Count or Monarch Watch have ads?
Which is updated more often, Dolphin Count or Monarch Watch?
Other comparisons
