Comparison

BBQ Guru vs Combustion Inc.

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

BBQ Guru

This app allows you to remotely monitor and control your BBQ Guru temperature device. It helps maintain precise cooking temperatures for perfect barbecue results, sending notifications to your phone so you can relax while your food cooks.

Highlights
  • Remote temperature monitoring
  • Precise cooking temperature control
  • Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity
  • Visual status feedback via light ring
  • Email and text notifications
  • Monitor food internal temperature
Features
Read full description

Barbecuing with charcoal is the only way to achieve that unbelievable succulent, tantalizing flavor. Whether you're cooking beef brisket, pork ribs, or chicken wings, the key ingredients to mastering delicious barbecue are the perfect mix of time and temperature. Conquering this slow cooking process allows the tough, chewy protein fibers in meat to break down and transform into incredibly tender barbecue. The problem is that charcoal is notoriously difficult to control and wild temperature fluctuations can result in tough, dried, or burnt meat. Powered by smart technology, the BBQ Guru temperature control devices easily avoid this disaster by remotely measuring the internal temperature of your foods and effortlessly maintaining the precise cooking temperature inside your grill. The revolutionary DynaQ and UltraQ controllers take outdoor cooking to the next level with the Guru Status Light Ring. At a glance, you can get visual feedback on the status of your cooking temperature and the operation of the control. In addition, you can use this app to monitor or update your BBQ Guru temperature control device via Bluetooth or WiFi to achieve perfect predictability and consistency with your cooks without needing to hover by the cooker. You can also setup email and text notifications, so you’ll always know the most up-to-date status of your BBQ. Whether you’re in your backyard playing with the kids, relaxing by the pool, or hanging out with friends and family, a quick check on your phone over Bluetooth or Wi-Fi ensures your food is on target.

About

Combustion Inc.

Monitor and graph real-time food temperatures during cooking. Predict exactly when your meal will be ready using advanced sensor data and a predictive engine. Receive alerts for key cooking events and ensure food safety.

Highlights
  • Real-time core, surface, and ambient temperature graphing
  • Predictive engine for exact 'ready' time estimation
  • Advanced alerts for cooking events
  • Food safety parameter setting
  • Firmware updates for accessories
  • Cloud connectivity for remote monitoring
  • Live Activity and Apple Watch support
Features
Read full description

See (and graph!) exact temperatures throughout your food while it cooks. Know exactly when it will be done. View and graph core, surface, and ambient temps in real time. The wireless Predictive Thermometer was built to answer a simple but important question: when will my food be ready? Combustion’s Predictive Engine™ estimates exactly when that will be, using the data from 8 onboard sensors (the most of any cooking thermometer). Important firmware updates! The Combustion App includes the latest firmware updates for Predictive Thermometers and other Combustion Accessories including Boosters, Displays, Giant Grill Gauges and other forthcoming products. Firmware updates improve core functions including time-to-cook predictions, longer battery life, and can add new features. MeatNet™ Cloud – for functionally unlimited range! Use with WiFi Accessories or with a second mobile device to stream your cook data to the cloud. Watch your cook in real-time from anywhere with internet access. Live Activity/Apple Watch support. The Combustion App works with iOS as well as iPadOS and MacOS (M1 or newer). Includes Live Activity (Dynamic Island) display feature so you can watch key temps even when the app is in the background. So handy! Combustion App Features: – Set target temp: so that your food comes out just the way you want it – See predictions in relative time (“ready in” countdown) or in absolute “clock” time – See key temps in real-time: including TrueCore®, TrueSurface™, TrueAmbient™ – Get notifications for important cooking events with advanced alerts (ready alarm, 5-minute warning, disconnect alert, low battery notification) – Set SafeCook™ parameters (integrated food-safety) – Know exactly when your food is safe to eat – Set-up WiFi connectivity for Combustion WiFi accessories – Graph your food’s temperatures in real-time! – See (and graph) temperatures from all 8 sensors with Advanced Cooking Mode – Enables multi-node MeatNet™: use any combination of Combustion accessories to extend Bluetooth signal range + strength – Use with or without Combustion Display – Export cooking data - to fine-tune your technique – Update firmware: get better performance and new features for Combustion tools – Works with most cooking appliances and cookware types – Works with all kinds of foods and most cooking appliances - BBQ smokers, ovens, ranges, grills, and more - indoors and out. – Works with or without WiFi Get more consistent results with all your favorite foods: steak, pork chops, brisket, pork shoulder, roasts, turkey, whole chicken, ribs, fish, bread, and more. Advanced graphing on the Combustion App helps you visualize exactly how heat moves through your food. You will understand the relationship between ambient cook temps and surface temps. And how surface temps really control how long things take – and how evenly food cooks. It may shock you to find out the oven temp (or grill temp) you set is not the same as the food is actually experiencing! The Combustion Inc app puts all that knowledge in front of you – with instant feedback, so you’re not just cooking better, you’re also learning as you go. And learning has never been so delicious.

Screenshots

BBQ Guru4 screens
Combustion Inc.4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Combustion Inc. at 76% against BBQ Guru's 12%. Combustion Inc. also leads on rating (4.7 vs 2.7) and ratings volume (1.9K vs 15). BBQ Guru's advantage is device support (4 vs 2). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

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

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Combustion Inc. holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 2.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Combustion Inc. has 1.9K ratings behind it against 15, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 12% of BBQ Guru's written reviews are positive against 76% of Combustion Inc.'s.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 6 weeks. Both last shipped on November 3, 2026.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
BBQ Guru versus Combustion Inc.: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBBQ GuruCombustion Inc.
PriceFreeFree
Rating2.7 (15 ratings)4.7 (1.9K ratings) — better
Positive reviews12.1% of reviews76.3% of reviews — better
Number of ratings151.9K — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeksEvery 6 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size106 MB119 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperBBQ GuruCombustion Inc.

Customer experience

BBQ Guru

All ratings13 ratings
Positive38.5%
Neutral0.0%
Negative61.5%
Written reviews116 reviews
Positive12.1%
Neutral5.2%
Negative82.8%

Combustion Inc.

All ratings1,858 ratings
Positive93.7%
Neutral1.7%
Negative4.6%
Written reviews80 reviews
Positive76.3%
Neutral3.8%
Negative20.0%

User reviews

BBQ Guru

From 15 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🎯 Accurate temperature control when functioning properly
  • 📱 Convenient remote monitoring via app
  • 🔋 Reliable Bluetooth connectivity within range
  • ⚙️ Solid hardware design and build quality
  • 👨‍💼 Responsive customer service (when available)

Room to improve

  • 🐛 WiFi connectivity extremely unreliable and drops frequently
  • 🐛 App crashes and freezes constantly during use
  • 🐛 Bluetooth connection drops out of range inconsistently
  • ❌ Share My Cook feature broken or non-functional
  • ❌ App requires constant reconnection and restart

Combustion Inc.

From 1.9K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Fantastic product
  • 👍 Easy to use
  • 🔍 Accurate temperature readings
  • 💡 Predictive cooking feature
  • 🚀 Seamless app experience

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Connectivity issues
  • 🔋 Battery life problems
  • 🐛 Unreliable performance
  • 🐛 Sync and pairing problems
  • 🐛 App bugs and glitches

Bugs and requests

BBQ Guru

Reported bugs

24 issues
  • WiFi connection fails to establish or maintain connection
  • App crashes when making temperature adjustments
  • Bluetooth disconnects when out of range and won't reconnect automatically
  • Share My Cook feature missing or non-functional
  • API errors during login attempts
Show 19 more
  • Device requires factory reset after app updates
  • App freezes when accessing timer or chart features
  • Temperature readings don't update unless app is closed and reopened
  • Device locks up mid-cook with fan stuck at 100%
  • Bluetooth PIN mismatch (4 digits shown but 3 required)
  • WiFi symbol shows connected but app shows disconnected
  • App doesn't recognize paired devices after update
  • Settings changes don't persist (temperature units revert)
  • Stop recording button too large, easily accidentally clicked
  • Device unresponsive to app commands despite showing connected
  • Pit temperature resets to zero randomly
  • Probe temperature readings inaccurate (9 degrees offset)
  • App doesn't send real-time alerts or notifications
  • Share My Cook website inaccurate or broken
  • Landscape mode not supported causing text overlap
  • Password reset emails not working
  • Long WiFi passwords with special characters rejected
  • App crashes when switching between Bluetooth and WiFi
  • Device shows purple WiFi light but app says disconnected

Requested features

14 requests
  • Temperature graph/chart over time tracking
  • iPhone push notifications and alerts
  • Apple Watch app integration
  • Alexa voice control integration
  • Landscape mode support for tablets
Show 9 more
  • Food temperature probe tracking
  • Multiple alarm configuration options
  • WiFi-only connection option without Bluetooth
  • User forum for community support
  • Simplified setup wizard for new users
  • Better password validation (support longer/special characters)
  • Temperature unit consistency across all settings
  • Third-party app compatibility restoration
  • Legacy device support continuation

Combustion Inc.

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Thermometer disconnects during use
  • App unable to stop timer
  • Inaccurate temperature readings
  • App unable to find device
  • Firmware update issues

Requested features

5 requests
  • Cooking history and logging
  • Live status widget
  • Apple Watch and Dynamic Island support
  • Ambient temperature alerts
  • Customizable probe labeling

In-app purchases

None

BBQ Guru

No in-app purchases

None

Combustion Inc.

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is BBQ Guru free?
BBQ Guru is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Combustion Inc. free?
Combustion Inc. is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, BBQ Guru or Combustion Inc.?
Combustion Inc. is rated higher. BBQ Guru averages 2.7 out of 5 from 15 ratings, while Combustion Inc. averages 4.7 from 1.9K ratings.
Do BBQ Guru or Combustion Inc. have ads?
Neither BBQ Guru nor Combustion Inc. shows ads.
Which is updated more often, BBQ Guru or Combustion Inc.?
BBQ Guru ships an update every 6 weeks, and Combustion Inc. every 6 weeks. Most recently, BBQ Guru was updated on November 3, 2026 and Combustion Inc. on November 3, 2026.

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