# Trout vs Elemental

The clearest difference is rating: Trout at 4.8 against Elemental's 2.2. Elemental's advantage is review sentiment (73% vs 33%) and in-app purchases (none vs 3). On price, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Trout sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.49 per 2 months. Elemental asks for nothing beyond the download.

Trout holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 2.2. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 4 and 18 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 33% of Trout's written reviews are positive against 73% of Elemental's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Trout ships an update every 5 months, Elemental every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 22, 2026 and July 6, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Trout | Elemental |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.8 (4 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/trout/id384470167/reviews)** | [2.2 (18 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/elemental/id518655328/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | 4 | **18** |
| Positive reviews | 33.3% of reviews | **73.4% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 5 months | **Every 3 weeks** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Free** |
| Size | 51 MB | 8 MB |
| Requires iOS | 18.6 | **8.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Digital-Dirtbag](https://appshunter.io/developer/384470170) | [Dotmatics Limited](https://appshunter.io/developer/518655351) |

## What reviewers say

### Trout

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/trout/id384470167)

This app helps you organize thoughts and ideas non-linearly using words and images. You can categorize concepts with color and shape, and enhance your maps with sketches and photos. Share your organized ideas as images or PDFs, or export them in OPML or markdown formats.

**Highlights:** Associate words and images, Organize ideas non-linearly, Categorize by color and shape, Add sketches and photos, Share as image or PDF, Export OPML or markdown, Freeform or automatic layout

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 60 Day subscription | $2.49 | per 2 months |
| Free trial | Free | one-time |
| Lifetime Purchase | $3.99 | one-time |


### Elemental

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/elemental/id518655328)

This free utility allows users to easily draw chemical structures and reactions on their mobile devices. It offers features like property calculation, file sharing via email and Dropbox, and a built-in periodic table. Users can also export structures as image files or MOL/RXN formats.

**Highlights:** Draw chemical structures and reactions, Calculate cheminformatics properties, Tweet chemical structures, Dropbox integration, Open MOL/RXN files, Email structures as files/images, Built-in Periodic Table

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Trout free?

Trout is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Elemental free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Trout or Elemental?

Trout is rated higher. Trout averages 4.8 out of 5 from 4 ratings, while Elemental averages 2.2 from 18 ratings.

### Do Trout or Elemental have ads?

Neither Trout nor Elemental shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Trout or Elemental?

Trout ships an update every 5 months, and Elemental every 3 weeks. Most recently, Trout was updated on September 22, 2026 and Elemental on July 6, 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.*