Comparison

Background Noise vs Characterize

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

Head to head
About

Background Noise

Instantly create detailed backstories for fantasy characters. Explore their upbringing, family, childhood events, personality, and more through a vast array of randomized options. Perfect for role-playing games and creative writing.

Highlights
  • Randomized character background generation
  • Detailed family and upbringing details
  • Childhood and adult life events
  • Personality trait determination
  • Millions of unique combinations
  • Ideal for role-players and authors
Features
Read full description

Instantly generate a background for a fantasy character. Breathe life into your role-playing or fantasy character. Background Noise allows you to randomly generate a background for any fantasy character. By walking through a series of tables, you will determine: * Where the character grew up * Who they lived with * What their parents did * How many siblings they had * Any family legacy * Events in the character's childhood * Events in the character's adult life * The most significant personality traits of the character * and much much more... With 40 tables and hundreds of options, there are millions of possible combinations, making sure that no two character's backgrounds are exactly alike. Great for role-players or authors. So add some Background Noise to your character, they'll thank you for it.

About

Characterize

Generate unique characters with names, traits, and stats instantly. Explore diverse categories and save your favorites for any creative project. Unlock additional themed packs for even more variety.

Highlights
  • Unlimited name generation
  • Rich character details (age, traits, etc.)
  • Themed character packs
  • Save and share creations
  • Diverse character categories
Features
Read full description

Characterize: Your Unlimited Character Creation Companion Characterize is the ideal tool for writers, role-players, storytellers, and anyone who needs fresh, original characters at a moment’s notice. With a tap, Characterize draws from a massive, ever-expanding database of names, traits, and stats to bring you a nearly infinite variety of unique personalities—enough for even the most epic of projects. Whether you’re crafting a daring pirate, a cunning assassin, a modern hero, or something more fantastical, Characterize helps you find the perfect fit every time. Save your favorites, tweak their details, and return for more whenever inspiration strikes! Key Features: Boundless Name Generation: - Instantly generate characters from countless categories, including humans, orcs, pirates, assassins, and more. The possibilities stretch into the quadrillions—no two characters need ever be the same! Rich Character Details: - Don’t stop at names. Dive into ages, birthdays, hair and eye color, height, intelligence, personality, and relationships—all created with a single tap. Your characters will spring to life with depth and flair! Unlock Even More Worlds: - Beyond the vast default selection, themed packs give you even more variety. From superheroes to aliens, historical figures to anime icons, you’ll find the perfect flavor for any setting. Save & Share with Ease: - Keep track of your favorite creations and share them with friends. Revisit your saved characters whenever you like—no scrolling through endless notes or documents. Whether you’re naming a long-awaited protagonist, populating a tabletop campaign, or challenging yourself to write a story without knowing your cast in advance, Characterize puts limitless inspiration at your fingertips. Stop juggling multiple tools—download Characterize today and generate your next hero with a single tap! http://www.apple.com/legal/itunes/appstore/dev/stdeula

Screenshots

Background Noise1 screens
Characterize4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Characterize at Free against Background Noise's $2.99. Characterize also leads on rating (4.3 vs 2.9) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 39 months). Background Noise's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 16) and iOS requirement (13.2 vs 15.0). On ads and device support 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

Characterize is free to download; Background Noise costs $2.99 up front. Characterize sells 16 one-off in-app purchases. Background Noise asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Characterize holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 2.9. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Characterize has 344 ratings behind it against 9, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 50% of Background Noise's written reviews are positive against 68% of Characterize's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Background Noise ships an update every 39 months, Characterize every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on June 5, 2026 and September 1, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard8 real differences · 2 level
Background Noise versus Characterize: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBackground NoiseCharacterize
Price$2.99Free — better
Rating2.9 (9 ratings)4.3 (344 ratings) — better
Positive reviews50.0% of reviews68.3% of reviews — better
Number of ratings9344 — better
Update frequencyEvery 39 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS13.2 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size2 MB295 MB
Age rating9+4+
DeveloperErik A. DeweyAlexander Winn

Customer experience

Background Noise

All ratings9 ratings
Positive33.3%
Neutral22.2%
Negative44.4%
Written reviews8 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral25.0%
Negative25.0%

Characterize

All ratings344 ratings
Positive85.8%
Neutral4.4%
Negative9.9%
Written reviews123 reviews
Positive68.3%
Neutral12.2%
Negative19.5%

Bugs and requests

Background Noise

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Characterize

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Crashes on startup
  • Issues with custom generators and editing characters
  • Purchased content not unlocking properly

Requested features

3 requests
  • More free generators
  • Ability to edit and customize generated characters
  • Sorting and organization options for saved characters

In-app purchases

None

Background Noise

No in-app purchases

16 purchases

Characterize

One-time16
  • Heroes & Villains Generator$0.99
  • Wizards & Witches Generator$0.99
  • Gods & Goddesses Generator$0.99
Show 13 more
  • Anime & Manga Generator$0.99
  • Demons Generator$0.99
  • Anthros Generator$0.99
  • Aliens Generator$0.99
  • Kings, Queens, & Nobles Generator$0.99
  • Apocalypse Survivors Generator$0.99
  • Assassins Generator$0.99
  • Angels Generator$0.99
  • Demigods Generator$0.99
  • Dragons Generator$0.99
  • Fantasy Races Bundle$4.99
  • Mythology Bundle$5.99
  • All Generators$19.99

Questions

Is Background Noise free?
Background Noise costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Characterize free?
Characterize is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Background Noise or Characterize?
Characterize is rated higher. Background Noise averages 2.9 out of 5 from 9 ratings, while Characterize averages 4.3 from 344 ratings.
Do Background Noise or Characterize have ads?
Neither Background Noise nor Characterize shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Background Noise or Characterize?
Background Noise ships an update every 39 months, and Characterize every 3 weeks. Most recently, Background Noise was updated on June 5, 2026 and Characterize on September 1, 2026.

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