# Tailscale vs Owl Home

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Tailscale at 61% against Owl Home's 10%. Tailscale also leads on rating (4.4 vs 2.5) and ratings volume (772 vs 15). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

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

Tailscale holds the better App Store score, 4.4 against 2.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Tailscale has 772 ratings behind it against 15, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 61% of Tailscale's written reviews are positive against 10% of Owl Home's.

Tailscale ships an update fortnightly, Owl Home monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Tailscale | Owl Home |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.4 (772 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/tailscale/id1470499037/reviews)** | [2.5 (15 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/owl-home/id1491587061/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **772** | 15 |
| Positive reviews | **60.7% of reviews** | 10.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Fortnightly** | Monthly |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Best chart rank | **#57** | — |
| Size | 29 MB | 69 MB |
| Requires iOS | **16.6** | 17.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Apple TV** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Tailscale Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1470499035) | [Owl Home Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1643949844) |

## What reviewers say

### Tailscale

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/tailscale/id1470499037)

**Currently charting:** #57 Top Free · Utilities (US App Store)

Securely connect devices, workloads, and users to any internet resource. This platform uses identity to control access, creating a modern mesh network that enhances security and performance. It's hardware-agnostic and integrates with numerous technologies.

**Highlights:** Identity-based access control, Mesh networking architecture, Zero Trust security, Hardware-agnostic deployment, Integrates with 100+ technologies, Supports multiple environments

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Easy to set up and use
- 🔒 Secure remote access
- 👍 Convenient for accessing home network
- 👍 Seamless connectivity between devices
- 🚀 Powerful networking features

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🔋 Significant battery drain
- 🐛 Connectivity issues and bugs
- 🐛 Unreliable performance
- 🐛 Broken functionality after updates

**Reported bugs**

- Inability to connect or authenticate
- Exit node feature not working as expected
- Inconsistent behavior when switching networks
- App getting stuck in a loading state

**Requested features**

- On-demand VPN connection
- Ability to switch between multiple accounts
- More granular control over exit nodes
- Integration with other networking tools
- Dark mode option


### Owl Home

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/owl-home/id1491587061)

This smart home security system monitors for smoke, carbon monoxide, motion, and environmental changes. It offers Wi-Fi connectivity, a backup battery, and a built-in siren for alerts. The system prioritizes user privacy with a microphone mute switch and secure, encrypted communication.

**Highlights:** Smoke and CO detection, Motion and sound sensing, Temperature and humidity monitoring, Wi-Fi connectivity, Backup battery power, Built-in siren and LED alerts, Microphone privacy switch

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

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Tailscale free?

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

### Is Owl Home free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Tailscale or Owl Home?

Tailscale is rated higher. Tailscale averages 4.4 out of 5 from 772 ratings, while Owl Home averages 2.5 from 15 ratings.

### Do Tailscale or Owl Home have ads?

Neither Tailscale nor Owl Home shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Tailscale or Owl Home?

Tailscale ships an update fortnightly, and Owl Home monthly. Most recently, Tailscale was updated on October 30, 2026 and Owl Home on October 29, 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.*