CHEF iQ vs Masterbuilt
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
CHEF iQ
This app acts as a culinary companion for smart cooking appliances, offering guided recipes, remote control, and ingredient shopping. It connects users with a community of home cooks and provides over-the-air updates for enhanced features.
- Remote appliance control
- Thousands of pre-programmed settings
- Guided cooking recipes with videos
- Instacart integration for ingredient delivery
- Save favorite recipes and configurations
- Appliance sharing with friends and family
- Community forum for cooks
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Welcome to CHEF iQ®, your ultimate culinary companion designed to elevate your cooking experience. Embrace the art of cooking smarter, not harder, with an app that empowers seasoned chefs and kitchen novices. Join our vibrant community of home cooks and embark on a journey toward culinary mastery. COOK SMARTER, NOT HARDER At CHEF iQ®, we believe in simplifying the cooking process while enhancing your confidence in the kitchen. Our app is meticulously crafted to guide you through every step, ensuring that every meal you create is worth sharing. COOK CONTROL Take command of your CHEF iQ® smart cooking appliances effortlessly. With real-time monitoring and notifications, stay in control of your culinary creations no matter where you are. TIMES & TEMPS Unlock thousands of pre-programmed control settings to achieve optimal results with ease. From precise cooking times to ideal temperatures, our app provides the guidance you need to cook like a pro. GUIDED COOKING RECIPES Delve into a treasure trove of expertly curated recipes seamlessly integrated with CHEF iQ® appliances. With step-by-step instructions and professional videos, discover new culinary delights and master your favorite dishes with confidence. SHOP FOR INGREDIENTS Found a recipe you love but are missing a few key ingredients? No problem. Schedule a delivery through our Instacart integration and have everything you need at your doorstep in as little as one hour. FAVORITES Save your favorite recipes and cooking configurations for easy access. Track your culinary adventures and revisit past successes with just a tap. APPLIANCE SHARING Share the joy of cooking with friends and family by inviting them to collaborate on your culinary creations. With appliance sharing, cooking becomes a communal experience like never before. COMMUNITY OF COOKS Engage with fellow chefs, share your thoughts on recipes, and glean valuable tips from our growing community. Together, we can inspire and support each other on our culinary journeys. OVER THE AIR UPDATES Stay ahead of the curve by constantly improving the CHEF iQ® cooking experience. With over- the-air updates, you'll always have the latest features and enhancements. Discover the full suite of CHEF iQ® smart cooking appliances, each designed to streamline your cooking process and unlock new culinary possibilities: SMART COOKER The most capable cooker ever created. - Pressure & multi-cooker - Auto pressure release - 6-quart capacity - 1000s of presets -Built-in scale SMART THERMOMETER Never over or undercook your food again. - Speaker for audio alerts - Ambient alerts for temperature fluctuations - Live Graph display - Unlimited range connectivity over Wi-Fi and Bluetooth - Auto-calibrating sensors measure food's true lowest temp - Fast-charging hub iQ MINI OVEN Meal prep made easy for everyone. - Bake, air fry, toast, dehydrate, air sous vide, and more - Smart Thermometer interconnectivity - Guided rack lighting - Heavy-duty glide racks - Natural LED lighting - Soft-close door Ready to embark on your culinary adventure? Download the CHEF iQ® app today and join our community of passionate home cooks. Let's cook up something extraordinary together! support@chefiq.com https://chefiq.com/ https://www.tiktok.com/@mychefiq https://www.instagram.com/mychefiq
Masterbuilt
Control your smart grill or smoker remotely. Adjust temperature, monitor cooking progress with real-time graphs, and receive alerts. Explore a vast recipe library to elevate your outdoor cooking experience.
- Remote grill and smoker control
- Set and adjust temperature and time
- Monitor meat probes and view graphs
- Receive cooking notifications and alerts
- Access a recipe library
- View cooking history
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Control your Masterbuilt Gravity Series®, AutoIgnite™ Series, and WiFi Smokers with our improved mobile app for a seamless grilling experience. Made for the modern grill master, you easily control your cooks with the power in the palm of your hand. Set and adjust temperature and time, monitor meat probes, view cooking history, discover hundreds of recipes, and take outdoor grilling to the next level. Features: Control Multiple Devices – Sync multiple Masterbuilt grills or smokers to the app for a digitally-driven outdoor cooking experience. Set Time and Temperature – Easily set your product’s desired cooking time and temperature. Notifications and Alerts—Receive alerts and notifications to help power on/off the grill, notify you when your meat probe has reached the desired temperature, and more. Interactive Cooking Graphs – Scroll through temperature graphs as you cook to stay on top of your game. Cooking History – Easily compare and interact with your past cooking adventures with a new session history feature. Recipe Library – Discover hundreds of new recipes and filter by food type, cooking style, or cook time. Product Compatibility – The Masterbuilt App is compatible with all Gravity Series Grills & Smokers, the AutoIgnite Series 545 Digital Charcoal Grill, and the 710 WiFi Digital Electric Smoker. Compatible products: Gravity Series 560 Grill & Smoker (MB20040220) Gravity Series 600 Grill & Smoker (MB20041023) Gravity Series 800 Grill & Smoker (MB20040221) Gravity Series 900 Grill & Smoker (MB20040122) Gravity Series 1050 Grill & Smoker (MB20041220) Gravity Series 1150 Grill & Smoker ( MB20041525) Gravity Series XT Grill & Smoker (MB20041223) 40” Digital Charcoal Smoker (MB20060321) AutoIgnite Series 545 Digital Charcoal Grill & Smoker (MB20041124) 710 WiFi Digital Electric Smoker (MB20070924) 710 WiFi Digital Electric Smoker EU (MB20072024, MB20072124, MB20072224)
Screenshots
Verdict
CHEF iQ and Masterbuilt both sit at 4.7 stars, but that hides the real split: 43% of CHEF iQ's written reviews are positive against 13% of Masterbuilt's. CHEF iQ also leads on update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 3 months). Masterbuilt's advantage is monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases). On price, rating, ratings volume 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.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for CHEF iQ against 4.6 for Masterbuilt. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 34K and 12K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 43% of CHEF iQ's written reviews are positive against 13% of Masterbuilt's.
CHEF iQ ships an update every 3 weeks, Masterbuilt every 3 months. Both last shipped on September 25, 2026.
| Parameter | CHEF iQ | Masterbuilt |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (34K ratings) — better | 4.6 (12K ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 43.2% of reviews — better | 13.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 34K — better | 12K |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks — better | Every 3 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 16.4 | 16.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 128 MB | 48 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | RJ Brands, LLC | PREMIER SPECIALTY BRANDS, LLC |
Customer experience
CHEF iQ
Masterbuilt
User reviews
CHEF iQ
From 34K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Accurate temperature readings
- 👍 Easy to use
- 🚀 Guided cooking makes cooking easy
- 🚀 Helpful for new cooks
- 👍 Versatile for different meats
Room to improve
- 🐛 Connectivity issues with WiFi and Bluetooth
- 🔒 Requires account verification to use
- 🔒 Privacy concerns with data access
- 🐛 Inconsistent notifications
- 🐛 Buggy app with crashes and freezes
Masterbuilt
From 12K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Great smoker and grill
- 👍 Easy to use
- 🔥 Excellent flavor from charcoal and wood
- 🍽️ Versatile (smoking, grilling, baking)
Room to improve
- 🐛 Connectivity issues with app
- 🔌 App frequently disconnects from smoker
- 🔍 App lacks important features (e.g. temperature history, notifications)
- 🔢 Inconsistent temperature readings
- 🤖 App is buggy and unreliable
Bugs and requests
CHEF iQ
Reported bugs
4 issues- Firmware update failures
- Inability to connect to WiFi
- Incorrect temperature conversions
- Cooking time and liquid amount miscalculations
Requested features
5 requests- Live Activity support for cooking status
- Ability to adjust temperature and time during cooking
- Cooking history and data tracking
- Landscape mode support for iPad
- More generic cooking options beyond recipes
Masterbuilt
Reported bugs
4 issues- App frequently loses connection to smoker
- Temperature settings not always reflected in smoker
- Probe temperature selection options are limited
- App crashes when trying to access certain features
Requested features
4 requests- Add ability to set custom probe temperatures
- Improve app connectivity and reliability
- Add more detailed cooking data and history
- Provide better notifications and alerts
In-app purchases
CHEF iQ
No in-app purchases
Masterbuilt
No in-app purchases
