Phyto vs Gaiaxus
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Phyto
Learn to identify common marine and freshwater phytoplankton with this educational app. It features a comprehensive identification guide, flashcards, and interactive games to aid learning. Developed with support from NOAA, it's designed for both iPhone and iPad.
- Phytoplankton identification guide
- Marine and freshwater species
- Flash cards for learning
- Interactive identification games
- Species details and photos
- Submit observation results
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Phyto helps you learn to identify phytoplankton and their proper pronunciation. It includes the most common marine and freshwater phytoplankton. --------------------- Phyto Version 2.0 - Completely redesigned! --------------------- - Many new species added with more details and photos. - Freshwater and Marine species now included - Flash Cards and Fast Phyto: two games to help learn how to identify phytoplankton - Species Identification Guide - Phytoplankton Monitoring Network volunteers can submit sample observation results - Embedded news and information browser - Universal App: now works well on both the iPhone and iPad (support for all screen sizes and resolutions) ----------------- This application was developed by the Phytoplankton Monitoring Network which is sponsored by the Center for Coastal Environmental Health and Biomolecular Research division of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
Gaiaxus
This app enables users to monitor water quality using a connected sensor, collecting data on temperature, turbidity, salinity, and more. It offers interactive learning modules for environmental education, suitable for students and citizen scientists.
- Real-time water quality data collection
- Temperature, turbidity, salinity, pH, chlorophyll monitoring
- Interactive educator-designed learning modules
- Field data collection and viewing
- Supports K-12 students, citizen scientists, and researchers
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The GaiaXus mobile app is a powerful tool for water quality monitoring, designed to engage students and citizen scientists in hands-on environmental education. Paired with the Proteus sensor, the app captures key water quality data like temperature, turbidity, salinity, depth, chlorophyll, and pH, providing a user-friendly platform for field data collection, viewing, and interactive learning through educator-designed “Labs.” While tailored for K-12 students, the app also scales for citizen scientists and researchers, enriching environmental literacy and STEM skills by combining real-world data with collaborative, problem-solving activities.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Gaiaxus at every 2 months against Phyto's every 10 months. Gaiaxus also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.8). Phyto's advantage is ratings volume (6 vs 1). On price, ads, 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Gaiaxus holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Phyto has 6 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.
Phyto ships an update every 10 months, Gaiaxus every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 21, 2026 and June 1, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Phyto | Gaiaxus |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (6 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 64.3% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 6 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 10 months | Every 2 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 15.1 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 81 MB | 75 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Gano Technologies LLC | GaiaXus LLC |
Customer experience
Phyto
Gaiaxus
In-app purchases
Phyto
No in-app purchases
Gaiaxus
No in-app purchases









