# Prowl vs ntfy

The clearest difference is price: ntfy at Free against Prowl's $2.99. ntfy also leads on update cadence (fortnightly vs every 7 months) and rating (4.8 vs 4.6). Prowl's advantage is review sentiment (88% vs 79%) and iOS requirement (8.0 vs 15.0). On ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

ntfy is free to download; Prowl costs $2.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ntfy holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 106 and 425 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 88% of Prowl's written reviews are positive against 79% of ntfy's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Prowl ships an update every 7 months, ntfy fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on September 26, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Prowl | ntfy |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $2.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | [4.6 (106 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/prowl-easy-push-notifications/id320876271/reviews) | **[4.8 (425 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ntfy/id1625396347/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 106 | **425** |
| Positive reviews | **87.7% of reviews** | 78.7% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 7 months | **Fortnightly** |
| Monetization | Paid | **Free** |
| Size | 3 MB | 3 MB |
| Requires iOS | **8.0** | 15.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Prowl Solutions LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/320876274) | [Philipp Heckel](https://appshunter.io/developer/1625396349) |

## What reviewers say

### Prowl

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/prowl-easy-push-notifications/id320876271)

Receive push notifications from your computer and various apps directly on your iOS device. Integrate the API into your own applications for custom alerts. Supports email-to-push and offers features like quiet hours and notification history.

**Highlights:** Push notifications from Mac/Windows, Support for numerous apps/services, Email to push functionality, Customizable notification delivery, Quiet Hours and Do Not Disturb modes, Notification history and control

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

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Works consistently and reliably
- 🚀 Versatile and customizable
- 👍 Easy to set up and use
- 👍 Indispensable for monitoring and notifications
- 🚀 Prompt and fast push notifications

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional visual bugs or glitches
- 📚 Interface looks dated and needs update
- 🔋 High battery consumption when used extensively

**Reported bugs**

- Inconsistent notification delivery
- Login issues on mobile app

**Requested features**

- Support for modern iPhone screen sizes
- Custom notification sounds
- Improved notification management (e.g. delete multiple)
- Integration with Apple Watch


### ntfy

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ntfy/id1625396347)

This app allows you to send push notifications to your phone from scripts or other applications using simple HTTP requests. It acts as a client for a free, open-source pub-sub service, enabling you to receive alerts and updates directly on your device.

**Highlights:** Send notifications via REST API, Subscribe to topics, Publish messages via HTTP, Integrates with Bash/PowerShell, Free and open source client

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

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Simple and easy to use
- 🔒 Great for self-hosting
- 👍 Reliable and works as expected
- 🚀 Quick and easy to set up
- 🚀 Lightweight and functional

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Notification issues on iOS
- 🔍 Limited features compared to other platforms
- 🔍 Lacks customization options
- 🐛 Occasional crashes or delivery issues

**Reported bugs**

- Notifications not working on iOS
- Broken click URLs in notifications
- Compatibility issues with iOS notification summarizing

**Requested features**

- Ability to change notification sounds
- Support for Apple Watch
- Customizable topic names/aliases
- Improved iOS notification handling
- All topics view and read/unread indicators


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Prowl free?

Prowl costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is ntfy free?

ntfy is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Prowl or ntfy?

ntfy is rated higher. Prowl averages 4.6 out of 5 from 106 ratings, while ntfy averages 4.8 from 425 ratings.

### Do Prowl or ntfy have ads?

Neither Prowl nor ntfy shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Prowl or ntfy?

Prowl ships an update every 7 months, and ntfy fortnightly. Most recently, Prowl was updated on September 26, 2026 and ntfy on September 24, 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.*