Comparison

El Trackpad vs Tracepad

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

Head to head
About

El Trackpad

Turn your iPhone or iPad into a responsive Mac trackpad. Control your computer with familiar gestures like scrolling, zooming, and rotating, all with minimal lag. It's a convenient way to enhance your Mac experience.

Highlights
  • Transform iPhone/iPad into Mac trackpad
  • Full gesture support
  • Lag-free control
  • Inertial scrolling
  • Multi-touch support
  • USB connection
Features
Read full description

Transform your iPhone or iPad into a fully featured Mac trackpad with gestures support. This app was written by a single person and was featured by 9to5Mac, Redmond Pie, AppAdvice, MacMagazine and more. REVIEWS “I’ve tried many similar apps before, but none of them worked as well as El Trackpad. Besides not having any notable lag, the app lets the user perform the same gestures as you can do on Apple’s Magic Trackpad.” — 9to5Mac “What makes El Trackpad so impressive here is the fact that it appears to be lag-free and works identically to an actual Apple Magic Trackpad, which is super awesome.” — Redmond Pie “If you’ve ever used a Magic Trackpad or the built-in version on any MacBook model, you’ll be right at home with the app.” — AppAdvice “This app transforms the iPhone/iPad into a complete trackpad for Macs, with multi-touch support and everything.” — MacMagazine DESCRIPTION Move the mouse cursor with the slide of a finger and smoothly navigate through your content with inertial scrolling. Pinch to zoom, rotate with your fingers and much more. Control your Mac in real-time with no lag. El Trackpad works like magic and has the features and touch gestures that you expect from a touchpad for a Mac computer. GET STARTED - Download and Install El trackpad on your iOS/iPadOS device and on your Mac. - Enable accessibility features on the Mac app when prompted. This is required to control the mouse cursor. - Connect the devices via USB cable. SUPPORTED GESTURES - Tap to click: Tap with one finger to click - Secondary click: Tap with two fingers to right click - Smart zoom: Double-tap with two fingers to zoom in and out - Scroll: Slide two fingers to scroll - Zoom: Pinch with two fingers to zoom - Rotate: Move two fingers around each other to rotate - Three-finger drag: Use three fingers to drag items on the screen - Look up: Tap with three fingers to look up a word - Show desktop: Spread your thumb and four fingers to show the desktop - Launchpad: Pinch with your whole hand to show Launchpad - Mission Control: Swipe up with four fingers to open mission control - App Exposé: Swipe down with four fingers to open App Exposé - Swipe between desktops: Swipe left or right with four fingers to move between full-screen apps or desktops ADDITIONAL INFO El Trackpad can be downloaded for free and offers a 7-day free trial with full functionality. After that, gestures with 2 fingers or more will no longer be recognized. At any time, you may unlock the app forever with a one-time in-app purchase.

About

Tracepad

Transform your iPhone into a wireless trackpad for your Mac. Enjoy full gesture support, a built-in keyboard, and low latency for presentations or remote control. Connect via Bluetooth or USB for a seamless experience.

Highlights
  • Full gesture support
  • Wireless and USB connection
  • Built-in keyboard
  • Low latency control
  • Privacy-focused connection
Features
Read full description

Tracepad turns your iPhone into a wireless trackpad, keyboard and mouse controller. For devices where you do not want to install a helper app, use Universal Keyboard & Mouse Mode and pair Tracepad as a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse for Mac, iPad, Windows PCs and other compatible devices. For the complete Mac experience, install the companion Mac app and use familiar trackpad gestures with low-latency Bluetooth or USB connection. FEATURES • Mac Trackpad Mode Use your iPhone as a precise trackpad for Mac with scrolling, clicking, dragging and advanced gestures. • Universal Keyboard & Mouse Mode Pair directly as a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse for Mac, iPad, Windows PCs and other compatible devices. No helper app required on the target device. • Built-in Keyboard Type on your Mac from your iPhone, with support for common modifier keys and shortcuts. • Dual Connection for Mac Connect to your Mac over Bluetooth or USB cable. No Wi-Fi required. • Low Latency Optimized for responsive, smooth and precise control. • Privacy First Direct device-to-device connection. Your input never goes through any server. REQUIREMENTS • Mac Trackpad Mode requires the free companion Mac app. • Universal Keyboard & Mouse Mode requires a device that supports Bluetooth keyboard and mouse input. Perfect for presentations, couch control, quick typing, or using your iPhone as a portable keyboard and mouse. Terms of Use: https://www.tracepad.site/terms Privacy Policy: https://www.tracepad.site/privacy Subscription Terms: https://www.tracepad.site/subscription

Screenshots

El Trackpad4 screens
Tracepad3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Tracepad at 4.3 against El Trackpad's 3.7. Tracepad also leads on review sentiment (69% vs 55%). El Trackpad's advantage is iOS requirement (10.0 vs 13.0). On price, ratings volume, update cadence 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. El Trackpad sells 2 one-off in-app purchases and Tracepad sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Tracepad holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 3.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 39 and 16 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 55% of El Trackpad's written reviews are positive against 69% of Tracepad's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

El Trackpad ships an update every 5 days, Tracepad every 3 days. Both last shipped on November 3, 2026.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
El Trackpad versus Tracepad: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterEl TrackpadTracepad
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.7 (39 ratings)4.3 (16 ratings) — better
Positive reviews54.8% of reviews69.2% of reviews — better
Number of ratings39 — better16
Update frequencyEvery 5 daysEvery 3 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS10.0 — better13.0
Further details — not scored
Size15 MB19 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperHugo Lispector庾涛 沈

Customer experience

El Trackpad

All ratings39 ratings
Positive53.8%
Neutral28.2%
Negative17.9%
Written reviews62 reviews
Positive54.8%
Neutral24.2%
Negative21.0%

Tracepad

All ratings15 ratings
Positive73.3%
Neutral0.0%
Negative26.7%
Written reviews13 reviews
Positive69.2%
Neutral0.0%
Negative30.8%

Bugs and requests

El Trackpad

Reported bugs

23 issues
  • App no longer opens on Mac (M1 MacBook Pro)
  • App is non-functional on M3 MacBook Pro with Sequoia OS
  • Swiping with two fingers activates 'desktop view' on Sequoia OS
  • Tap with two fingers for right click refuses to register in certain applications
  • Rarely some gestures will not register
Show 18 more
  • Scrolling functionality suspends and requires mouse click to fix
  • Mouse movement is suddenly reversed on a monitor
  • Pinch to zoom out is only good/precise for zooming in
  • Double two finger tap sometimes registers as a zoom and often responds with a right click
  • Swipes pickup on iPad and swipe you out of the app
  • 3 fingers gestures like switching desktops became 4 fingers
  • Does not recognize long press or 3d press as click
  • El Trackpad overrides USB and nothing else works after sleep period
  • Transaction error when starting trial
  • Device not supported error when plugging in via USB
  • iPadOS 15 no longer allows disabling multitasking gestures
  • System zoom is disabled, cannot switch desktops with 3-finger swipe
  • Mission control gesture does not work for some laptops
  • App is extremely glitchy and frequently crashes
  • Mouse behavior in the app does not replicate Magic Trackpad functionality
  • App only works with USB cable connection
  • Inconsistent trial messaging and immediate charging
  • Cannot drag click for artwork

Requested features

20 requests
  • Add Bluetooth connectivity
  • Add Wi-Fi connectivity
  • Allow landscape orientation
  • Support 3-finger swiping for browser back/forward
  • Support 4-finger gestures for screen switching
Show 15 more
  • Add gesture for toggling between windows
  • Implement drag-and-drop functionality
  • Add pressure sensitivity for drawing/art
  • Make the app usable without a cable
  • Add option to rotate the virtual trackpad
  • Add keyboard support
  • Add option to run app upside down for cable management
  • Support iPhone as trackpad for iPad
  • Add more settings options
  • Add 3D Touch support
  • Add support for 4-finger gestures
  • Add 2-finger gesture for Notification Center
  • Add 2-finger parallel swipe for page navigation
  • Add FaceID authentication integration
  • Make it compatible with Windows

Tracepad

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

2 purchases

El Trackpad

One-time2
  • 7-day TrialFree
  • Unlock Full App$3.99
3 purchases

Tracepad

Subscriptions2
  • Plus: Unlock iPhone Display$0.991 Month
  • Pro Plus: Unlock All Features$1.991 Month
One-time1
  • Tracepad unlock all gesture$3.99

Questions

Is El Trackpad free?
El Trackpad is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Tracepad free?
Tracepad is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, El Trackpad or Tracepad?
Tracepad is rated higher. El Trackpad averages 3.7 out of 5 from 39 ratings, while Tracepad averages 4.3 from 16 ratings.
Do El Trackpad or Tracepad have ads?
Neither El Trackpad nor Tracepad shows ads.
Which is updated more often, El Trackpad or Tracepad?
El Trackpad ships an update every 5 days, and Tracepad every 3 days. Most recently, El Trackpad was updated on November 3, 2026 and Tracepad on November 3, 2026.

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