BARQ! vs Root
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
BARQ!
Connect with the furry community through a next-generation social app. Discover local furries, join interest-based groups, and find information about meetups, events, and conventions. The platform is continuously evolving with new features and an expanding user base.
- Connect with local furries
- Join communities
- Discover meetups and events
- Attend conventions
- Growing feature set
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Join barq, the next generation social app for furries! Find furries around you, join communities and attend meetups, events and conventions. barq is currently in active development and our user base and feature set is growing constantly. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Terms and Conditions: https://barq.app/terms Privacy Policy: https://barq.app/privacy
Root
This platform empowers communities to connect, collaborate, and grow. It offers tools for organizing groups, from gaming guilds to interest-based clubs. Stay connected on the go with mobile chat, voice, and video calls, and manage your community with customizable channels and permissions.
- Community connection and collaboration
- Mobile chat and notifications
- Voice and video calls
- Customizable channels, roles, and permissions
- Desktop command center with integrated apps
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Root is community chat with voice and video calls, screen share, themes, and apps, all in one place. Chat in channels, hop into a call with your group, and add apps to enhance your community experience. FREE PROFILE AND THEME CUSTOMIZATION No paywalls on personality. Animated profile pictures, animated banners, custom emoji and themes are all free. Pick a theme or build your own. VOICE, VIDEO AND SCREEN SHARE Talk in voice channels, turn on video, and share your screen with sound. Move a call from your computer to your phone without hanging up. APPS IN YOUR COMMUNITY Add apps to your community. Draw together on one canvas, track tasks, or plan your next raid. BRING YOUR SERVER Import a server template and Root sets up your channels, categories and roles. FIND YOUR PEOPLE Browse Community Discovery to find a new group chat, or list your own community.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Root at 4.3 against BARQ!'s 2.9. Root also leads on review sentiment (70% vs 33%) and in-app purchases (none vs 6). On price, ratings volume, ads and device support 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. BARQ! sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Root asks for nothing beyond the download.
Root holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 2.9. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 319 and 143 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 33% of BARQ!'s written reviews are positive against 70% of Root's.
BARQ! ships an update every 4 weeks, Root weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 27, 2026 and October 28, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | BARQ! | Root |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 2.9 (319 ratings) | 4.3 (143 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 32.5% of reviews | 69.6% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 319 — better | 143 |
| Update frequency | Every 4 weeks | Weekly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Best chart rank | — | #74 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.8 — better | 16.4 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 107 MB | 165 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 17+ |
| Developer | BARQ! | Root Communications, Inc |
Customer experience
BARQ!
Root
Bugs and requests
BARQ!
Reported bugs
5 issues- Login/sign-up issues
- Profiles not loading
- Inability to change settings
- Disappearing accounts
- Broken image uploads
Requested features
5 requests- Dark mode option
- Ability to delete chats
- Custom sexuality options
- Improved moderation and safety features
- Better notification system
Root
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
BARQ!
- Silver Supporter$4.991 Month
- Gold Supporter$9.991 Month
- Diamond Supporter$24.991 Month
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- Silver Supporter$54.991 Year
- Gold Supporter$109.991 Year
- Diamond Supporter$274.991 Year
Root
No in-app purchases
