Comparison

Chaos Lab vs Vector Field

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

Head to head
About

Chaos Lab

Explore the beauty of chaos through interactive simulations of mathematical objects, chemical reactions, and celestial mechanics. Manipulate parameters with device tilt and touch to create stunning visual art and understand complex scientific principles.

Highlights
  • Interactive strange attractors
  • Chemical oscillator simulations
  • 3-body chaos simulation
  • Julian fractal morphing
  • Real-time parameter control
  • Multiple attractors included
Features
Read full description

Chaos Lab puts the beauty of chaos in your hands. With a tilt of your device, you control the parameters of beautiful mathematical objects called strange attractors, the reaction rates of a chemical oscillator, the position of two stars in a 3-body chaos simulation, and the shape of the Julian fractal. Now you can be an experimentalist and an artist. Using real-time integration of over 6,000 points for the attractors whose parameters are tied to your motion, over 7,000 data points for a fractal which morphs at your command, ten "asteroids" demonstrating chaotic sensitivity to initial conditions in a jittering twin-star system where the stars move with your tilt (can you keep them from escaping?), and a real-time BZ-reaction simulation which you control by both tilt and touch, this is chaos as you've never seen it before. Chaos Lab comes loaded with four of the most stunning attractors in chaos theory. The Rössler and Lorenz attractors are well known, but the Thomas and Newton-Leipnik attractors are relatively new and quite amazing! This work has been supported in part by grant PHY-0754081 from the U.S. National Science Foundation, the Nonlinear Dynamics Research Group at Drexel University (directed by Dr. Robert Gilmore), and the Department of Physics at Drexel University. Please note, some of these experiments will run slower on the older models of iPhones and iPod touch devices. Find the beauty in the chaos!

About

Vector Field

Visualize mathematical vector fields with animated particles in 2D, 3D, or spherical spaces. Input custom equations and adjust simulation parameters in real-time to explore dynamical systems and mathematical patterns interactively.

Highlights
  • 2D, 3D, and spherical vector field visualization
  • Customizable dx, dy, dz equations
  • Adjustable particle speed, density, and colors
  • Time-dependent field animation
  • Interactive 3D view rotation
  • Real-time rendering powered by Metal
Read full description

Vector Field lets you create and visualize mathematical vector fields with thousands of animated particles. Enter your own equations, adjust the simulation instantly, and watch how particles move through 2D, 3D, or spherical spaces. Whether you are studying differential equations, experimenting with dynamical systems, teaching vector calculus, or simply exploring mathematical patterns, Vector Field turns equations into interactive motion. Features: • Visualize vector fields in 2D, 3D, and on a sphere • Define custom dx, dy, and dz equations using x, y, z, and time t • Use built-in function presets or save your own • Adjust particle speed, density, lifetime, colors, and ranges • Animate time-dependent fields • Normalize vectors to focus on direction • Rotate 3D views interactively • Powered by Metal for smooth real-time rendering • Create, tweak, and discover vector fields directly from your device.

Screenshots

Chaos Lab4 screens
Vector Field4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Chaos Lab at every 3 days against Vector Field's every 3 months. Chaos Lab also leads on rating (4.9 vs 4.5). Vector Field's advantage is device support (4 vs 2) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.0). On price, review sentiment, ratings volume and ads 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

Chaos Lab holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 8 and 6 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 69% of Chaos Lab's written reviews are positive against 63% of Vector Field's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Chaos Lab ships an update every 3 days, Vector Field every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Chaos Lab versus Vector Field: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterChaos LabVector Field
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.9 (8 ratings) — better4.5 (6 ratings)
Positive reviews68.8% of reviews — better62.5% of reviews
Number of ratings8 — better6
Update frequencyEvery 3 days — betterEvery 3 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better
Requires iOS18.015.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size7 MB1 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTimothy D. JonesEliott Morgensztern

Customer experience

Chaos Lab

All ratings7 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews16 reviews
Positive68.8%
Neutral12.5%
Negative18.8%

Vector Field

All ratings4 ratings
Positive75.0%
Neutral25.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews8 reviews
Positive62.5%
Neutral0.0%
Negative37.5%

In-app purchases

None

Chaos Lab

No in-app purchases

None

Vector Field

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Chaos Lab free?
Chaos Lab is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Vector Field free?
Vector Field is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Chaos Lab or Vector Field?
Chaos Lab is rated higher. Chaos Lab averages 4.9 out of 5 from 8 ratings, while Vector Field averages 4.5 from 6 ratings.
Do Chaos Lab or Vector Field have ads?
Neither Chaos Lab nor Vector Field shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Chaos Lab or Vector Field?
Chaos Lab ships an update every 3 days, and Vector Field every 3 months. Most recently, Chaos Lab was updated on October 23, 2026 and Vector Field on October 24, 2026.

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