Rowmote vs Remote Mouse
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Rowmote
Control audio, video, and presentation applications on your Mac from your iOS device wirelessly. Seamlessly switch between apps, manage playback, and even wake your Mac remotely. It offers a convenient and cost-effective alternative to physical remotes.
- Wireless Mac control
- App switching and launching
- Media playback control
- Wake sleeping Macs
- Secure authentication
- Proximity sensor support
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Rowmote lets you seamlessly control audio, video, and presentation applications on your Mac from your iOS device. You love the remote control which came with your Mac - so simple yet elegant, with easy control of Front Row, iTunes, Quicktime, DVD Player, Keynote, and more. Or, your Mac didn’t come with a remote control or doesn’t even have an infrared port. Buying a remote control, from Apple or a third party, would carry a significant cost! You carry your iPhone or iPod Touch wherever you go... so why should you carry a second device just to control your computer? Furthermore, why should you need line-of-sight to do so? Enter Rowmote! Rowmote is like your Mac’s remote control, but over the wireless network and even better! By tapping the Apps button, you get bonus abilities, switching between controlled programs, toggling the iTunes Visualizer, and more. Rowmote will even wake sleeping Macs. FEATURES - Control your Mac over a wireless network. No line of sight necessary. - Functions just like the hardware Apple Remote Control in: • Adobe Lightroom • Airfoil Video • Amarra • Aperture • BBC iPlayer • Beamer • Boxee • Decibel • DVD Player • Ecoute • eyeTV 3.x • Firefox • Front Row • Hulu Desktop • iPhoto • iTunes • Keynote ‘08 & later • kJams Pro • Kodi • Last.fm • Logic • Microsoft Powerpoint ‘04 & later • mPlayer • Movist • OpenOffice Impress • Preview • PandoraBoy • PandoraJam • PandoraOne Desktop • Photos • Plex, Plex Home Theater, & Plex Media Player • Quicktime • Rdio • Safari • Skim • Songbird • Spotify • Squire • The Tube • VLC • xbmc (Xbox Media Center) - SWITCH: Access your Mac’s Dock, launching & switch between all controllable applications on the Mac, toggle the iTunes visualizer, and more. Order & display customizable. - Click-and-hold works just like on the physical remote in applications; for example, holding the right button fast-forwards, while a single click is ‘next’. This is a feature no other iPhone remote control I know of does properly! - Sleep on demand; wake the Mac automatically - Pause the music or video automatically when you answer a call on your iPhone - Proximity sensor support to automatically turn the screen off if the device is face-down - Secure authentication - Optional dark interface - Connect via WiFi or Bluetooth (Bluetooth requires Personal Hotspot Bluetooth tethering) REQUIREMENTS • Mac OS X 10.4.0 or later. • Mac: The free Rowmote Helper program must be running on the Mac to be controlled. Download at www.rowmote.com. Some features require later versions of Mac OS X. Rowmote is a steal! Couple it with Apple’s free Remote app to turn your iPhone or iPod Touch into the ultimate controller for home stereo, mobile presentation, or casual video viewing. The artwork of Rowmote was designed by Rik Schennink.
Remote Mouse
Control your computer remotely using your phone or tablet. Mimics mouse, keyboard, and touchpad functions, with specialized panels for media, web browsing, and power options. Seamlessly transfer text and images across devices.
- Simulated mouse and touchpad
- Wireless keyboard input
- Cross-device clipboard
- Media and web remote panels
- Application switcher
- Power options control
- Gyro mouse functionality
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Remote Mouse™ turns your mobile device into a powerful remote control app for your PC or Mac. Use your phone or tablet as a wireless mouse, keyboard, and touchpad — complete with multi-touch gestures and media controls. Whether you're watching movies, controlling a presentation, or browsing the web from your couch, Remote Mouse™ offers an effortless way to control your computer remotely. With over 20 million users and featured by CNET, Mashable, and Product Hunt, Remote Mouse™ offers one of the most elegant solutions to computer control from mobile. What you can do: Mouse • Control the cursor like a real PC mouse • Move using your phone’s gyroscope (Gyro Mouse) • Left-handed mode support Keyboard • Type remotely in any language • Use voice input (if supported by your soft keyboard) • Send system and app shortcuts • Adaptive layouts for Mac or PC • Use your phone as a remote keyboard for your computer Touchpad • Simulates Apple Magic Trackpad • Supports multi-touch gestures • Ideal wireless touchpad app for remote navigation Specialty Panels • Media Remote: Control videos, music, and presentations across apps and sites like YouTube, Netflix, Disney+, Apple TV+, VLC, Spotify, and more. • Browser Remote: Navigate Chrome, Firefox, and Opera • App Switcher: Launch and switch between apps • Power Options: Shut down, sleep, or restart remotely • Clipboard Sync: Copy and paste text/images across devices Other features • Control volume using physical phone buttons • Secure the connection with a password • Reorder specialty panels • Customize your remote with personal wallpapers Connection & Compatibility • Connect over Wi-Fi or Bluetooth • Connect by IP address, QR code, or connection history • Supports Windows, macOS, and Linux Easy to set up: 1. Download and install Remote Mouse for desktop on your computer: [https://remotemouse.net](https://remotemouse.net) 2. Launch the desktop version (it runs in the background) 3. Connect your mobile device to your computer via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Remote Mouse at Free against Rowmote's $0.99. Remote Mouse also leads on rating (4.6 vs 3.0) and ratings volume (19K vs 87). Rowmote's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (13.2 vs 15.0). On review sentiment, update cadence, in-app purchases and monetization model 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
Remote Mouse is free to download; Rowmote costs $0.99 up front. Rowmote sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Remote Mouse sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $1.49 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Remote Mouse holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 3.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Remote Mouse has 19K ratings behind it against 87, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 66% of Rowmote's written reviews are positive against 68% of Remote Mouse's.
Rowmote ships an update every 6 weeks, Remote Mouse every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and September 25, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Rowmote | Remote Mouse |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $0.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 3.0 (87 ratings) | 4.6 (19K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 66.1% of reviews | 68.3% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 87 | 19K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 6 weeks | Every 3 weeks — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — better |
| Requires iOS | 13.2 — better | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 37 MB | 51 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Evan Schoenberg | 耀 阮 |
Customer experience
Rowmote
Remote Mouse
User reviews
Rowmote
From 87 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Easy to use
- 👍 Convenient remote control
- 🚀 Responsive
- 👍 Great for media control
- 👍 Useful for presentations
Room to improve
- 🐛 Connectivity issues
- 🐛 Crashes and bugs
- 🐛 Compatibility problems
- 🔒 Requires additional software
- 🔒 Doesn't work with Apple TV
Remote Mouse
From 19K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Excellent app functionality
- 👍 Easy to use and set up
- 🚀 Responsive and precise
- 👍 Useful for presentations and media control
- 👍 Works great as a touchpad replacement
Room to improve
- 🐛 Connection issues and frequent disconnects
- 🔒 Privacy concerns with data collection
- 💰 Paywalling basic features
- 🐛 Buggy and unreliable after updates
- 🔋 High battery consumption
Bugs and requests
Rowmote
Reported bugs
4 issues- Frequent disconnections
- Crashes on startup
- Unresponsive controls
- Incompatibility with newer OS versions
Requested features
4 requests- Keyboard support
- Improved mouse/trackpad functionality
- Sleep/power controls
- Support for more apps and devices
Remote Mouse
Reported bugs
5 issues- Keyboard not working in certain apps
- Touchpad not functioning in landscape mode
- App freezing and crashing
- Inability to connect via Bluetooth
- Unexpected charges and subscription issues
Requested features
6 requests- Add dark mode option
- Improve Bluetooth connectivity
- Allow using phone as a mouse for iPad
- Add more customization options
- Improve compatibility with VPNs
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- Save last connected PC information
In-app purchases
Rowmote
- Rowmote Pro Upgrade$3.99
Remote Mouse
- Pro Membership (1 Month)7 Days trial$1.491 Month
- Pro Membership (1 Year)7 Days trial$13.991 Year
- Remove Ads$0.99
- Customize Wallpaper$1.99
- Media Remote Panel$1.99
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- Unlock Web Remote$1.99
Questions
Is Rowmote free?
Is Remote Mouse free?
Which has better reviews, Rowmote or Remote Mouse?
Do Rowmote or Remote Mouse have ads?
Which is updated more often, Rowmote or Remote Mouse?
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