# Lineman's Reference vs 50 Ducks

The clearest difference is price: 50 Ducks at Free against Lineman's Reference's $19.99. Lineman's Reference's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 4) and rating (4.6 vs 4.2). On update cadence, ads, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

50 Ducks is free to download; Lineman's Reference costs $19.99 up front. 50 Ducks sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Lineman's Reference asks for nothing beyond the download.

Lineman's Reference holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Lineman's Reference has 307 ratings behind it against 24, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 62% of Lineman's Reference's written reviews are positive against 44% of 50 Ducks's.

Lineman's Reference ships an update every 4 weeks, 50 Ducks fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 18, 2026 and October 4, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Lineman's Reference | 50 Ducks |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $19.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | **[4.6 (307 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/linemans-reference-xfmr-lab/id1583878194/reviews)** | [4.2 (24 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/50-ducks/id6738795753/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **307** | 24 |
| Positive reviews | **62.2% of reviews** | 44.4% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 4 weeks | **Fortnightly** |
| Monetization | **Free** | Freemium |
| Best chart rank | **#12** | — |
| Size | 65 MB | 29 MB |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | **15.1** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Digital Apprentice LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1565687382) | [50 Ducks LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1782383612) |

## What reviewers say

### Lineman's Reference

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/linemans-reference-xfmr-lab/id1583878194)

**Currently charting:** #12 Top Paid · Education, #110 Top Paid (US App Store)

This interactive simulator allows users to study and learn transformer connections. Test your wiring with various meters, and experience consequences of improper connections. Includes reference diagrams, informational material, and a quiz mode to test knowledge.

**Highlights:** Transformer connection simulation, Volt, ohm, and rotation meters, Abnormal voltage and fuse explosion simulation, Transformer nameplate and coil inspection, Quick reference diagrams, Informational reading material, Quiz and advanced quiz modes

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

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Great for learning
- 👍 Helpful for apprentices
- 👍 Useful practice tool
- 👍 Good concept
- 👍 Excellent labs and sandbox

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Too many bugs
- 🐛 App is clunky
- 🐛 Wiring issues
- 🐛 Incorrect diagrams
- 🐛 Incorrect quiz answers

**Reported bugs**

- Tutorial loop
- Lines not connecting
- Cannot wire up all banks
- WYE Delta is wrong
- Cannot bus secondary x2 to x2 bushing for delta secondaries

**Requested features**

- Ability to build own banks
- Add tap changer settings
- Add vector charts
- Add more labs with different scenarios
- Create your own bank option


### 50 Ducks

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/50-ducks/id6738795753)

Track the real-time movements and migration patterns of ducks. Learn about wildlife and support conservation efforts with detailed historical data and GPS-tagged birds. A portion of membership fees directly benefits wildlife sanctuaries.

**Highlights:** Real-time duck tracking, Historical migration data, GPS-tagged bird information, Support for wildlife sanctuaries, Educational content for schoolchildren, Premium access to extensive data

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (4)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly | $9.99 | per month |
| Monthly | $9.99 | per month |
| Yearly | $59.99 | per year |
| Yearly | $59.99 | per year |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Lineman's Reference free?

Lineman's Reference costs $19.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is 50 Ducks free?

50 Ducks is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Lineman's Reference or 50 Ducks?

Lineman's Reference is rated higher. Lineman's Reference averages 4.6 out of 5 from 307 ratings, while 50 Ducks averages 4.2 from 24 ratings.

### Do Lineman's Reference or 50 Ducks have ads?

Neither Lineman's Reference nor 50 Ducks shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Lineman's Reference or 50 Ducks?

Lineman's Reference ships an update every 4 weeks, and 50 Ducks fortnightly. Most recently, Lineman's Reference was updated on October 18, 2026 and 50 Ducks on October 4, 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.*