Comparison

Kiwichat vs Hive

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

Head to head
About

Kiwichat

Connect with individuals in correctional facilities through instant messaging. This free application facilitates communication, helping to maintain relationships with incarcerated loved ones. It offers a simple interface for easy texting.

Highlights
  • Instant messaging to people in prison
  • Free to download and use
  • Easy-to-use interface
  • Facilitates staying in touch
  • Subscription plans available
Read full description

KiwiChat enables you to text people in prison instantly and for free. Our core purpose is to increase the number of people who stay in touch with those who are incarcerated. KiwiChat achieves this by offering an easy-to-use, free instant messaging app that allows anyone to download and communicate with people in prison. https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Hive

This social platform focuses on genuine connections by helping you discover local events and find communities based on shared interests. Create or join groups to foster authentic conversations and build spaces that matter.

Highlights
  • Discover local events
  • Find people with shared interests
  • Create and manage communities
  • In-app ticket purchasing
  • QR code check-ins for events
  • Authentic, non-algorithm-driven feeds
Features
Read full description

Hive is the social app where things actually happen. Exclusively on iOS. Find events near you, grab tickets, and check in at the door with a QR code, all without leaving the app. Discover what's going on tonight or plan something for next week. Public events, private events, free or ticketed, it's all here. Join communities called Hives -around music, food, nightlife, sports, art, or whatever you're into. Some are open to everyone. Some are private, invite-only. Post, talk, link up, and actually meet the people behind the profiles. Start your own Hive and build something around it. Host events with Swarm: set your own pricing, create promo codes, invite co-hosts, and manage everything from your phone. Your tickets even show the weather forecast, so your people know what to wear. Add events straight to your calendar or Apple Wallet. Set your profile music. Hive isn't trying to keep you on your phone. It's trying to get you off it.

Screenshots

Kiwichat4 screens
Hive4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Hive at 100% against Kiwichat's 17%. Hive also leads on rating (5.0 vs 3.0) and in-app purchases (none vs 2). Kiwichat's advantage is ratings volume (17 vs 5) and iOS requirement (13.4 vs 18.6). On price, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Kiwichat sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.95 per month. Hive asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Hive holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 17 and 5 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 17% of Kiwichat's written reviews are positive against 100% of Hive's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Kiwichat ships an update every 2 months, Hive every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and November 4, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Kiwichat versus Hive: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterKiwichatHive
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.0 (17 ratings)5.0 (5 ratings) — better
Positive reviews16.7% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings17 — better5
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS13.4 — better18.6
Further details — not scored
Size28 MB47 MB
Age rating17+17+
DeveloperKIWICHAT INC.Blankwall Software Inc

Customer experience

Kiwichat

All ratings14 ratings
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%
Written reviews6 reviews
Positive16.7%
Neutral16.7%
Negative66.7%

Hive

All ratings3 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Kiwichat

Subscriptions2
  • Kiwi Premium Chat$4.951 Month
  • Test Georgia Chat7 Days trial$6.951 Month
None

Hive

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Kiwichat free?
Kiwichat is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Hive free?
Hive is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Kiwichat or Hive?
Hive is rated higher. Kiwichat averages 3.0 out of 5 from 17 ratings, while Hive averages 5.0 from 5 ratings.
Do Kiwichat or Hive have ads?
Neither Kiwichat nor Hive shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Kiwichat or Hive?
Kiwichat ships an update every 2 months, and Hive every 3 weeks. Most recently, Kiwichat was updated on November 3, 2026 and Hive on November 4, 2026.

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