# Tootoise vs Beluga

The clearest difference is rating: Beluga at 5.0 against Tootoise's 4.3. Tootoise's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 6 months) and ratings volume (18 vs 1). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

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

Beluga holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Tootoise has 18 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

Tootoise ships an update every 2 weeks, Beluga every 6 months. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and November 12, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Tootoise | Beluga |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.3 (18 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/tootoise/id1465090190/reviews) | **[5.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/beluga-self-hosted-tweets/id1626349771/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **18** | 1 |
| Positive reviews | 68.0% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 2 weeks** | Every 6 months |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 23 MB | 11 MB |
| Requires iOS | **12.0** | 27.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Naoki Kuwata](https://appshunter.io/developer/1465090189) | [Blimp](https://appshunter.io/developer/647925201) |

## What reviewers say

### Tootoise

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/tootoise/id1465090190)

A straightforward client for the Mastodon social network, allowing users to manage multiple accounts, interact with timelines, and customize their experience. It offers robust post management features, including editing and pinning, along with privacy controls like muting and blocking.

**Highlights:** Manage multiple Mastodon accounts, View and post to timelines, Create and edit post lists, Pinning and bookmarking posts, Mute, block, and report users, Customizable theme colors, Edit posts

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


### Beluga

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/beluga-self-hosted-tweets/id1626349771)

Share your thoughts and updates with friends and followers through a "tweet-like" feed.  It generates a mini-website for easy sharing, even with non-users, and supports RSS feed readers for broader reach. This decentralized app ensures you own your data.

**Highlights:** Tweet-like content publishing, Personalized mini-website generation, JSON Feed compatibility, Decentralized data ownership, RSS feed reader integration, Multiple S3-compatible storage support

**Features:** iPhone Duo support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Tootoise free?

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

### Is Beluga free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Tootoise or Beluga?

Beluga is rated higher. Tootoise averages 4.3 out of 5 from 18 ratings, while Beluga averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.

### Do Tootoise or Beluga have ads?

Neither Tootoise nor Beluga shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Tootoise or Beluga?

Tootoise ships an update every 2 weeks, and Beluga every 6 months. Most recently, Tootoise was updated on November 3, 2026 and Beluga on November 12, 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.*