# Boulder Creator vs Retro Flash

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Boulder Creator at none against Retro Flash's 8. Retro Flash's advantage is update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months) and ratings volume (226 vs 31). On price, rating, review sentiment and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Retro Flash sells 8 one-off in-app purchases. Boulder Creator asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Boulder Creator against 4.7 for Retro Flash. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Retro Flash has 226 ratings behind it against 31, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 89% of Boulder Creator's written reviews are positive against 83% of Retro Flash's.

Boulder Creator ships an update every 2 months, Retro Flash every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 12, 2026 and October 11, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Boulder Creator | Retro Flash |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.7 (31 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/boulder-creator/id1508558239/reviews) | [4.7 (226 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/retro-flash-climbing/id1519582483/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | 31 | **226** |
| Positive reviews | **88.9% of reviews** | 82.9% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Every 3 weeks** |
| Monetization | **Free** | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 28 MB | 162 MB |
| Requires iOS | **14.0** | 15.6 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Gustavo Grassi](https://appshunter.io/developer/1508558238) | [Arcade Bouldering UG (haftungsbeschrnkt)](https://appshunter.io/developer/1519582485) |

## What reviewers say

### Boulder Creator

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/boulder-creator/id1508558239)

Easily create and share climbing problems with a global community. Document your training sessions by marking holds, assigning difficulty, and tracking your progress. No more physical markers needed to share your latest challenges.

**Highlights:** Create climbing problems, Share problems with community, Mark holds on wall photos, Assign difficulty levels, Track sends and projects, Profile for progress tracking

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


### Retro Flash

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/retro-flash-climbing/id1519582483)

This app helps climbers maximize their spray wall training with unique tools for setting various problems and supports multiple grading systems. It fosters a community for climbers to share and improve their training.

**Highlights:** Spray wall problem setting, Supports symmetrical, partly symmetrical, adjustable, and private walls, Circuit and competition boulder creation, Fontainebleau, Dankyu, and Hueco grading systems, Customizable grading systems, Wall upgrades for new possibilities

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

**In-app purchases (8)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Unlock Rules for Circles | $4.99 | one-time |
| Home Wall Year Pass | $4.99 | one-time |
| 1 Month Upgrade Pass | $8.99 | one-time |
| Additional Wall | $9.99 | one-time |
| Gym Year Pass Tier 1 | $14.99 | one-time |
| Add Gym | $14.99 | one-time |
| Gym Year Pass Tier 2 | $29.99 | one-time |
| 6 Months Upgrade Pass | $44.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Easy to use and intuitive
- 💰 Free to use, affordable one-time fees
- 🏠 Perfect for home walls
- 👥 Great community feature
- 🚀 Fast and functional

**What reviewers complain about**

- 👎 Horrid UI
- 🐛 Massive bugs and data loss
- 🛠️ App is useless when buggy
- ❓ Unclear target audience
- 🧭 Navigation can be challenging

**Reported bugs**

- Cannot see sends anymore
- All boulders set to unclimbed for all users
- Statistics are gone
- Won't let me reset wall
- Won't let me delete walls

**Requested features**

- Add a tick list of all climbs done
- Show number and distribution of grades
- Copy route feature for minor adjustments
- Ability to edit names or grades of existing boulders


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Boulder Creator free?

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

### Is Retro Flash free?

Retro Flash is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Boulder Creator or Retro Flash?

Boulder Creator and Retro Flash are both rated 4.7 out of 5 on the App Store, from 31 and 226 ratings respectively.

### Do Boulder Creator or Retro Flash have ads?

Neither Boulder Creator nor Retro Flash shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Boulder Creator or Retro Flash?

Boulder Creator ships an update every 2 months, and Retro Flash every 3 weeks. Most recently, Boulder Creator was updated on October 12, 2026 and Retro Flash on October 11, 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.*
