Comparison

PIFster vs Circl

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

Head to head
About

PIFster

This app enables a community to collectively donate small amounts to charitable causes. Users can suggest and vote on which organizations receive funds, fostering a sense of shared impact and community action. It also features a heatmap to visualize donation activity and allows users to promote causes they care about.

Highlights
  • Suggest charitable causes
  • Vote on recipient charities
  • Donate as little as $1/month
  • Interactive donation heatmap
  • Promote causes
  • Watch impact videos
Features
Read full description

How many times have you thought to yourself: Wow, if everybody could just pitch in $1 dollar, we'd have enough to fix this problem? Well, that was the genesis of PIFster! And now we're so proud and excited to present to you this app, representing a 501(c)(3) non-profit (pending), which empowers a growing community of like-minded individuals to donate as little as $1 dollar per month, and then suggest and vote on a diverse slate of charitable causes. PIFster is totally free to join and explore. The only thing required is that you actually donate in order to vote on which charity will be the recipient of our community's collection each month. That's fair, right? Just put a little skin in the game. After all, a dollar is barely pocket change these days, but if we ALL chipped in... well, you get the idea. So that means 12 times per year you can Pay It Forward! Grow a community of your own and increase your influence! On your journey, watch videos documenting the good we've done as a community, and swell with pride at being a part of something so unique and special. PIFster is also a great place to both suggest and promote charitable causes near and dear to you! And anybody can do that, whether they have the financial resources to contribute, or not. If nothing else, please join to let us know who you feel deserves a helping hand! Want to see where the community is most active? Explore an interactive "heatmap" showing the relative number of either donors OR donations within an area! Want to drill down even deeper? You can explore the relative activity of those in your own personal community! As you can see, PIFster is the perfect tool for influencers to leverage their followers for good! So join the PIFster community today! Let's start making the world a better place $1 dollar at a time!

About

Circl

A focused network for founders, students, mentors, and investors to connect, collaborate, and grow. Organize teams, find mentorship, discover opportunities, and access resources to build and advance your ventures.

Highlights
  • Create/manage organizations
  • Network with founders and professionals
  • Find mentorship
  • Discover investor networks
  • Access startup resources
  • Collaborate in communities
  • Build global community
Features
Read full description

Circl is designed for founders, students, mentors, investors, and teams. Circl brings the people and tools behind entrepreneurship into one focused network so connections turn into real momentum. What you can do with Circl: Create or Manage Your Organization Set up your startup, student organization, or community with centralized messaging, shared dashboards, and a built-in calendar to keep people aligned and moving forward. Network with Builders Connect with founders, students, professionals, mentors, investors, and collaborators aligned with your goals. Find Mentorship That Matters Learn from experienced builders and professionals who support growth, leadership, and decision-making. Discover Investor & Opportunity Networks Explore communities and conversations around funding, startups, and collaboration. Access Startup & Career Resources Get recommendations for tools, services, and support—from legal and marketing to growth and operations. Message and Collaborate Chat one-on-one or work together in public or private communities organized by industry, stage, or interest. Build a Global Community Join a growing network of Gen Z, Millennials, and next-generation builders focused on collaboration and progress. Whether you’re exploring ideas, building a startup, growing a team, or supporting others through mentorship or investment, Circl helps you connect, organize, and move forward with purpose. Build. Connect. Grow.

Screenshots

PIFster4 screens
Circl4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: PIFster at every 2 weeks against Circl's every 5 weeks. PIFster also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 16.6). On price, rating, review sentiment and ratings volume 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for PIFster against 5.0 for Circl. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 8 and 9 respectively. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 100% and 100% positive.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PIFster ships an update every 2 weeks, Circl every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
PIFster versus Circl: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPIFsterCircl
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (8 ratings)5.0 (9 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings89 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeks — betterEvery 5 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS13.0 — better16.6
Further details — not scored
Size129 MB127 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperChris ConleeCircl International Inc.

Customer experience

PIFster

All ratings8 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews4 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Circl

All ratings10 ratings
Positive90.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative10.0%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

PIFster

No in-app purchases

None

Circl

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is PIFster free?
PIFster is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Circl free?
Circl is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, PIFster or Circl?
PIFster and Circl are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 8 and 9 ratings respectively.
Do PIFster or Circl have ads?
Neither PIFster nor Circl shows ads.
Which is updated more often, PIFster or Circl?
PIFster ships an update every 2 weeks, and Circl every 5 weeks. Most recently, PIFster was updated on November 3, 2026 and Circl on October 30, 2026.

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