# Hourly vs The Big Keyboard

The clearest difference is rating: Hourly at 4.0 against The Big Keyboard's 3.5. Hourly also leads on ratings volume (127 vs 13) and review sentiment (73% vs 64%). The Big Keyboard's advantage is update cadence (every 2 days vs every 6 months) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). On ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Hourly costs $0.99 and The Big Keyboard $1.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Hourly holds the better App Store score, 4.0 against 3.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Hourly has 127 ratings behind it against 13, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 73% of Hourly's written reviews are positive against 64% of The Big Keyboard's.

Hourly ships an update every 6 months, The Big Keyboard every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Hourly | The Big Keyboard |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | **$0.99** | $1.99 |
| Rating | **[4.0 (127 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hourly/id415727230/reviews)** | [3.5 (13 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-big-keyboard/id6746368921/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **127** | 13 |
| Positive reviews | **72.9% of reviews** | 64.3% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 6 months | **Every 2 days** |
| Monetization | **Free** | Paid |
| Size | 94 MB | 11 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **15.0** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch** | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Chris Jones](https://appshunter.io/developer/415727233) | [Defriction LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1626590021) |

## What reviewers say

### Hourly

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hourly/id415727230)

This app provides customizable hourly chimes and notifications, functioning like a personal wristwatch that alerts you at specific intervals. You can select unique sounds, display custom messages, and choose which times to be notified.

**Highlights:** Customizable hourly chimes, Selectable notification sounds, Display custom messages, Flexible notification scheduling, No ads or tracking

**Features:** Apple Watch app, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- ✅ Simple, straightforward functionality that works as advertised
- ⏰ Effective hourly reminders help users stay on schedule
- 🎵 Multiple sound options including BBC Greenwich Pips
- ⚙️ Customizable time intervals and scheduling
- 🔕 Non-intrusive notifications that don't interfere with calendar

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Unreliable notifications when phone is locked
- 🐛 Notifications stop working after silencing phone
- 🐛 Inconsistent functionality across iOS updates
- ⌚ Limited Apple Watch integration and functionality
- 🔊 Sounds are too quiet and difficult to hear

**Reported bugs**

- Notifications don't work when phone is locked or in sleep mode
- Notifications stop working after phone is silenced
- App stops working after iOS updates
- Settings fail to sync between iPhone and multiple Apple Watches
- Duplicate notifications firing within 2-3 seconds

**Requested features**

- More diverse sound options (cuckoo chime, gong, church bells, grandfather clock)
- Ability to use system sounds and custom ringtones
- Female voice option and multiple voice varieties (British, Australian accents)
- Volume control for individual notifications
- 24-hour continuous operation option


### The Big Keyboard

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-big-keyboard/id6746368921)

This keyboard app offers larger text and buttons for improved readability, especially for users with vision difficulties. It provides customizable themes, multiple layouts including a numeric keypad and arrow keys, and supports various languages.

**Highlights:** Scalable text size up to 2.5x, Comfortable button sizes, Word suggestions and autocorrect, Multiple keyboard layouts (QWERTY, numeric, arrows), Full emoji collection, Customizable themes (light, dark, high contrast), Sound and haptic feedback controls

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Hourly free?

Hourly costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is The Big Keyboard free?

The Big Keyboard costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Hourly or The Big Keyboard?

Hourly is rated higher. Hourly averages 4.0 out of 5 from 127 ratings, while The Big Keyboard averages 3.5 from 13 ratings.

### Do Hourly or The Big Keyboard have ads?

Neither Hourly nor The Big Keyboard shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Hourly or The Big Keyboard?

Hourly ships an update every 6 months, and The Big Keyboard every 2 days. Most recently, Hourly was updated on November 1, 2026 and The Big Keyboard on November 5, 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.*