Digimarc Discover vs Barcode Monsters
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Digimarc Discover
Easily scan various barcode types, including Digimarc Barcodes, 1D barcodes, and QR codes, to quickly access online content. This app showcases the capabilities of Digimarc's barcode technology and its mobile SDK for efficient product identification.
- Scan Digimarc Barcodes
- Scan 1D barcodes (UPC, EAN, Code 39, etc.)
- Scan QR codes
- Access online content
- Demonstrates Digimarc Mobile SDK
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Scanning barcodes using Digimarc’s Discover® App is faster and easier than ever. Scan Digimarc Barcodes, most 1D barcodes, and QR codes to access online content. The Digimarc Discover® app demonstrates the power of the Digimarc Barcode and the Digimarc Mobile SDK (Software Development Kit). Supports robust scanning of Digimarc Barcode and the most common traditional 1D barcodes found in retail including UPC-A, UPC-E, EAN-9, EAN-13, Code 39, Code 128, DataBar, ITF, QR codes and PDF417. The Digimarc Mobile SDK powers apps to provide efficient, reliable and affordable mobile scanning of the most common barcodes in retail, including QR codes and Digimarc Barcode for enhanced product packaging, connected print and audio.
Barcode Monsters
Discover and collect unique monsters hidden within barcodes. Scan any barcode to reveal a creature and add it to your journal and collection. Explore over 40 different monsters and track your progress.
- Scan barcodes to discover monsters
- Collect over 40 unique monsters
- Monster journal to track scans
- View monster profiles and achievements
- Supports 10+ barcode types
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Welcome to Barcode Monsters, the QR scanner app that lets you discover and collect monsters while scanning. Hidden within each barcode is a unique monster within, waiting to be found. [ Scan ]: Take out your scanner and start looking for monsters! When you're in scan mode, pointing the camera at a barcode will read it and show you what monster is hiding within. With over 40 monsters, can you find them all? [ Journal ]: Need to find a barcode you scanned in the past? No problem! The journal feature keeps track of all your past scans so you can look back on your adventure and see what monsters you've found. [ Collection ]: As you find monsters, you'll add them to your monster collection! Tap on a monster's profile to learn more about them, including how many you've found and if you've earned any achievements. May Barcode Monsters be your QR scanner of choice as you discover the hidden world within barcodes all around us! Barcode Monsters supports over 10 types of barcodes, including -- Code 128, Code 39, Code 39 Extended, Interleaved 2 of 5, ISBN 13, EAN 13, EAN 8, UPC-A, UPC-E, Data Matrix ASCII, and QR Codes.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Barcode Monsters at 100% against Digimarc Discover's 48%. Barcode Monsters also leads on rating (4.8 vs 3.7). Digimarc Discover's advantage is ratings volume (52 vs 4) and update cadence (every 3 months vs every 8 months). 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.
Barcode Monsters holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 3.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Digimarc Discover has 52 ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 48% of Digimarc Discover's written reviews are positive against 100% of Barcode Monsters's.
Digimarc Discover ships an update every 3 months, Barcode Monsters every 8 months. The most recent releases landed on September 21, 2026 and July 5, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Digimarc Discover | Barcode Monsters |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.7 (52 ratings) | 4.8 (4 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 48.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 52 — better | 4 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months — better | Every 8 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 14.0 | 13.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 18 MB | 13 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Digimarc | Kevin Otoshi |
Customer experience
Digimarc Discover
Barcode Monsters
Bugs and requests
Digimarc Discover
Reported bugs
12 issues- App fails to recognize Digimarc watermarks consistently
- Camera won't focus or capture images properly
- App crashes when attempting to save or share content
- Black screen appears instead of camera view
- Scanning stops working after app updates
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- Incompatible with iPhone 7 and newer models
- Login crashes when registering with Facebook or Gmail
- App locks up before initial use
- Music identification feature removed in updates
- Watermark detection expires and becomes unavailable
- Jumpy interface when selecting multiple recipes
- Unable to open app after reinstalling
Requested features
8 requests- Ability to organize and categorize saved content
- Better recipe management system with searchable database
- Option to disable automatic Safari opening
- Remove or customize notification sounds
- Pre-installed watermark creation tool for devices
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- Background app functionality for easier access
- Better indication of which content has watermarks
- Improved UI for selecting between multiple recipes on one page
Barcode Monsters
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Digimarc Discover
No in-app purchases
Barcode Monsters
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Digimarc Discover free?
Is Barcode Monsters free?
Which has better reviews, Digimarc Discover or Barcode Monsters?
Do Digimarc Discover or Barcode Monsters have ads?
Which is updated more often, Digimarc Discover or Barcode Monsters?
Other comparisons
