# Groups vs Groups! Free

The clearest difference is rating: Groups at 4.2 against Groups! Free's 2.5. Groups also leads on update cadence (every 8 days vs every 3 months) and ratings volume (4.9K vs 15). Groups! Free's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (7.0 vs 17.6). On price, in-app purchases, monetization model and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Groups sells 11 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month and Groups! Free sells 9 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Groups holds the better App Store score, 4.2 against 2.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Groups has 4.9K ratings behind it against 15, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 76% of Groups's written reviews are positive against 67% of Groups! Free's.

Groups ships an update every 8 days, Groups! Free every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 9, 2026 and October 7, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Groups | Groups! Free |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.2 (4.9K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/groups/id407855546/reviews)** | [2.5 (15 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/groups-free/id407855985/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **4.9K** | 15 |
| Positive reviews | **75.7% of reviews** | 67.2% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | **Every 8 days** | Every 3 months |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 146 MB | 53 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.6 | **7.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Qbix, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/406865714) | [Qbix, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/406865714) |

## What reviewers say

### Groups

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/groups/id407855546)

This app transforms your phone's contacts into a private social network. Organize people, share updates, and stay connected without sharing your data with large tech companies. It offers features for communication, event planning, and contact management.

**Highlights:** Organize contacts into custom groups, Set reminders to reach out, Send personalized group messages, Create events and invite guests, Share content from any app, Data privacy focused

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Safari Extension

**In-app purchases (11)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Unlock All Features | $0.99 | per month |
| Plus | $1.99 | per month |
| Premium | $2.99 | per month |
| Turn off Ads | $1.99 | one-time |
| Turn off Ads | $4.99 | one-time |
| + 500 icons | $5.99 | one-time |
| Unlock All Features | $5.99 | one-time |
| + I just like your app | $9.99 | one-time |
| Unlock All Features | $9.99 | one-time |
| + I just like your app | $14.99 | one-time |
| + I really love your app! | $19.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Easy to use
- 👍 Helpful for organizing contacts
- 🚀 Efficient for group messaging
- 👍 Customizable groups

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Crashes and freezes
- 🐛 Unreliable sync and data loss
- 🐛 Buggy updates
- 👎 Poor customer support
- 👎 Confusing UI changes

**Reported bugs**

- Groups disappearing
- Contacts not syncing properly
- Inability to create new groups
- Freezing and crashing on certain actions

**Requested features**

- Ability to delete groups and contacts
- Improved group management and sorting
- Option to send mass texts without individual replies
- Better integration with native contacts app


### Groups! Free

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/groups-free/id407855985)

Organize contacts into custom groups for easy communication via text or email. Send personalized messages to multiple recipients simultaneously and share your location. Find contacts quickly with advanced search and set reminders to stay in touch.

**Highlights:** Group contacts into custom lists, Send mass texts and emails, Personalize messages, Attach images to emails, Share location, Search contacts by attribute, Set contact reminders

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (9)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Nice | $1.99 | one-time |
| Sweet | $2.99 | one-time |
| Turn off Ads | $3.99 | one-time |
| Helpful | $4.99 | one-time |
| + 30 icons | $4.99 | one-time |
| + 60 icons | $4.99 | one-time |
| Awesome! | $9.99 | one-time |
| + I just like your app | $9.99 | one-time |
| + I really love your app! | $19.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Easy to use
- 🚀 Efficient contact organization
- 💡 Useful for group communication
- 🔒 Integrates well with contacts

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Crashes and freezes
- 🐛 Slow performance
- 🐛 Inability to delete groups
- 🐛 Compatibility issues with iOS updates

**Reported bugs**

- Crashes on startup
- Groups disappear after use
- Contacts not syncing properly
- Inability to edit or remove groups

**Requested features**

- Ability to delete groups
- Faster load times
- More customization options for groups
- Ability to sort contacts within groups


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Groups free?

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

### Is Groups! Free free?

Groups! Free is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Groups or Groups! Free?

Groups is rated higher. Groups averages 4.2 out of 5 from 4.9K ratings, while Groups! Free averages 2.5 from 15 ratings.

### Do Groups or Groups! Free have ads?

Groups shows ads; Groups! Free does not.

### Which is updated more often, Groups or Groups! Free?

Groups ships an update every 8 days, and Groups! Free every 3 months. Most recently, Groups was updated on October 9, 2026 and Groups! Free on October 7, 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.*