Comparison

Roon ARC vs BluRemote

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

Head to head
About

Roon ARC

Access your entire Roon music library and streaming services on the go. Enjoy personalized recommendations, offline listening, and advanced audio controls with a familiar interface.

Highlights
  • Access Roon library anywhere
  • Stream TIDAL, Qobuz, KKBOX
  • Offline music downloads
  • Personalized recommendations
  • Advanced audio controls (MUSE)
  • Car integration
Features
Read full description

*** Roon ARC requires a valid Roon subscription *** ARC puts the best possible on-the-go music experience in your pocket and lets you enjoy your Roon library and all of Roon's immersive features wherever you are in the world. ARC is a custom-built streaming service powered by your Roon system at home. Explore your complete collection of artists, albums, playlists, and personal music files, plus TIDAL, Qobuz, and KKBOX streams. Discover added content from Roon's music experts and smart features, such as staff-curated playlists, Daily Mixes, New Releases for You, personalized recommendations, and Roon Radio. You can add albums to your collection, build playlists, set favorites, create tags, and more, just as you can in Roon. Offline listening lets you download your personal music files to keep the music playing wherever your adventures take you – even if you're off the grid entirely. ARC offers remote access to Roon's captivating library of in-depth artist bios and album articles, revealing the stories that take us deep into the heart of our favorite music. And there's more… Ready to hit the road? Your Roon library is too! Roon's browsing and discovery features fully integrate into your car's controls for safe and convenient playback. With ARC within easy reach of the wheel, every road you take is a journey in sound. ARC makes the driver's seat feel like your listening chair at home. ARC is designed to look and feel just like Roon. You get the same intuitive, aesthetically rich Roon interface you know and love, fully optimized for your phone. No more switching between streaming apps; ARC compiles all your music in one place for easy access and maximum enjoyment. And now, Roon's audio shaping suite and pristine sound quality have arrived in ARC - with bold styling never before seen in a mobile app! MUSE delivers the precision audio control of Roon when you're on the go or running a streamlined mobile setup with ARC. It places radically unique EQ handling, optimized balance control, precision volume leveling, FLAC, DSD & MQA support, crossfeed, headroom management, and sample rate conversion in the palm of your hand. You can customize sonic qualities to your specific tastes with MUSE, then save or apply them with a few clicks. To top it all off, MUSE even remembers your presets and reapplies them when you reconnect to a known device. The MUSE Signal Path display provides complete audio signal transparency as the music flows through your device - from source media all the way to your speakers. ARC offers artful design, sound quality, and a music listening experience unmatched by any other music app. Best of all, it's included free with your Roon subscription.

About

BluRemote

Control your BluOS-enabled music players with a faster, cleaner interface. Enjoy immediate access to presets, playlists, and playback controls, with interactive widgets and Siri command support for seamless automation.

Highlights
  • BluOS player control
  • Preset and playlist access
  • Playback and volume control
  • Interactive widgets
  • Siri commands and automation
  • Landscape support
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

BluRemote is a quick and easy-to-use controller for BluOS-based music players – compatible with Bluesound, NAD, DALI and other brands! It is an alternative to the official BluOS controller app, providing better usability, native app performance and several nice integrations into the Apple ecosystem. Features: - Quickly access all presets - Browse radio stations - Switch audio sources - Playback and volume control - Player search and grouping - Fast player switching - Now playing and play queue - Interactive widgets - Shortcuts and automation Next features on the roadmap: - Browse your local music library - Browse music streaming services The app plays nicely with your iPhone and iPad: - Portrait and landscape orientation - Dark and light appearance - Dynamic text size - Home Screen, Lock Screen and StandBy widgets - App Shortcuts and Siri commands Your purchase includes the app for iPhone, iPad und Mac. No ads, no tracking, no subscriptions, no nonsense. Buy once – get all upcoming features for free and use it on all your devices. Made in Berlin, Germany – by an independent developer. By buying this app, you support the independent app development. Thank you! Terms: https://goeldner.ch/terms Privacy: https://goeldner.ch/privacy Support: https://goeldner.ch/support Please note that the initial setup of your player, OS-updates and other settings still have to be done using the official BluOS Controller app. BluOS is a trademark of Lenbrook Industries Limited, a member of the Lenbrook Group of Companies. The BluRemote app uses the "BluOS Custom Integration API" according to the "API Use Policy" of Lenbrook Industries Limited, but is not endorsed or certified by Lenbrook Industries Limited.

Screenshots

Roon ARC4 screens
BluRemote4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Roon ARC at Free against BluRemote's $3.99. Roon ARC also leads on ratings volume (196 vs 18) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.4). BluRemote's advantage is rating (3.7 vs 3.3) and chart position (#180 vs unranked). On update cadence, ads, in-app purchases 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Roon ARC is free to download; BluRemote costs $3.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

BluRemote holds the better App Store score, 3.7 against 3.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Roon ARC has 196 ratings behind it against 18, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 36% of Roon ARC's written reviews are positive against 47% of BluRemote's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Roon ARC ships an update monthly, BluRemote every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 26, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
Roon ARC versus BluRemote: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRoon ARCBluRemote
PriceFree — better$3.99
Rating3.3 (196 ratings)3.7 (18 ratings) — better
Positive reviews35.7% of reviews46.9% of reviews — better
Number of ratings196 — better18
Update frequencyMonthly — betterEvery 5 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterPaid
Best chart rank—#180 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, Mac — better
Requires iOS15.0 — better18.4
Further details — not scored
Size122 MB13 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperRoon LabsChristoph Goldner

Customer experience

Roon ARC

All ratings196 ratings
Positive54.6%
Neutral8.7%
Negative36.7%
Written reviews221 reviews
Positive35.7%
Neutral11.3%
Negative52.9%

BluRemote

All ratings18 ratings
Positive66.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative33.3%
Written reviews32 reviews
Positive46.9%
Neutral12.5%
Negative40.6%

Bugs and requests

Roon ARC

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Corrupted media files
  • Disappearing playlists
  • Inability to select external storage for downloads
  • Inconsistent connectivity to Roon server

Requested features

5 requests
  • Native iPad app
  • Siri integration for voice control
  • Improved browsing and search capabilities
  • Automatic offline downloads
  • MQA decoding support

BluRemote

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Roon ARC

No in-app purchases

None

BluRemote

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Roon ARC free?
Roon ARC is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is BluRemote free?
BluRemote costs $3.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Roon ARC or BluRemote?
BluRemote is rated higher. Roon ARC averages 3.3 out of 5 from 196 ratings, while BluRemote averages 3.7 from 18 ratings.
Do Roon ARC or BluRemote have ads?
Neither Roon ARC nor BluRemote shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Roon ARC or BluRemote?
Roon ARC ships an update monthly, and BluRemote every 5 weeks. Most recently, Roon ARC was updated on September 24, 2026 and BluRemote on September 26, 2026.

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