Comparison

AirPort Utility vs HE.NET Network Tools

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

Head to head
About

AirPort Utility

Manage your Wi-Fi network and Apple AirPort base stations from your iOS device. View network status, connected devices, and configure advanced settings like security, channels, and IPv6. Easily update firmware, change passwords, and access network information.

Highlights
  • Graphical Wi-Fi network overview
  • View connected Wi-Fi devices
  • Change network and Wi-Fi settings
  • Restart or restore base stations
  • Update base station firmware
  • View and update passwords
  • Configure IPv6 settings
Read full description

Use AirPort Utility to manage your Wi-Fi network and AirPort base stations, including AirPort Express, AirPort Extreme, and AirPort Time Capsule — right from your iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch. See a graphical overview of your Wi-Fi network and devices. Change base station and network settings, or manage advanced features such as security modes, wireless channels, IPv6 configuration, and more. AirPort Utility works with all Apple 802.11n and 802.11ac Wi-Fi base stations, including AirPort Express, AirPort Extreme, and AirPort Time Capsule. Features • See a graphical overview of your Wi-Fi network • Get information about your connected Wi-Fi devices • View and change network and Wi-Fi settings • Restart or restore a base station, or update the firmware on a base station when available • View or update passwords for your network, base stations, or disks • Easily access network information such as IP address, DNS servers, and router address • Manage DHCP reservations and port mappings • Configure base stations for IPv6 • View status or error messages • Archive Time Machine backups

About

HE.NET Network Tools

A comprehensive suite of network diagnostic tools for professionals. It offers features like ARP/NDP lookup, DNS queries, IP calculations, bandwidth testing, and port scanning. Securely manage two-factor authentication codes and view network routing tables.

Highlights
  • ARP/NDP lookup
  • DNS lookup
  • IP Calculator
  • iperf bandwidth test
  • Port Scan
  • SSL/TLS Information
  • Two-factor authentication code storage
Features
Read full description

This suite of networks tools implements most of the network diagnostics that you need as a Network Engineer or System Administrator. Please help us improve it by giving us feedback. + ARP / NDP: Lookup local devices found on your network using either ARP (IPv4) or NDP (IPv6). + Bonjour Browser: See what DNS-SD/Bonjour services are available on your network + DNS lookup: Search for a servers DNS zone records such as SOA, NS, A, AAAA, MX, PTR. + Interface Information: Get information regarding your device's current network state. + IP Calculator: Calculate the Netmask, Wildcard, Network, Host range, and Broadcast for a given subnet. + iperf: Check bandwidth against remote iperf services. + One Time Password: Securely store and view your TOTP and HOTP (two-factor authentication) codes. TOTP codes are available on the Apple Watch. + Ping: Send ICMP packets to a single IPv4/IPv6 address. + Ping Sweep: Send ICMP packets to an entire subnet range. + Traceroute: Find the route packets take to reach your destination. + Progressive Traceroute: Get detailed statistics for a given route. + Port Scan: Scan a list of TCP ports on any server. + Routing Table: See your local device's routing table. + SSL/TLS Information: Check available ciphers, protocols and what's being used when connecting to a remove service. + Whois: Get information regarding network resources. + NO ADS! Note: Recent iOS releases secure certain low-level network information, and as such will not be available in-app, such as MAC addresses for other network devices.

Screenshots

AirPort Utility4 screens
HE.NET Network Tools4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: HE.NET Network Tools at 4.0 against AirPort Utility's 3.1. HE.NET Network Tools also leads on review sentiment (76% vs 36%) and update cadence (every 2 months vs every 4 months). AirPort Utility's advantage is ratings volume (2K vs 72) and iOS requirement (9.0 vs 13.0). 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

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

HE.NET Network Tools holds the better App Store score, 4.0 against 3.1. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: AirPort Utility has 2K ratings behind it against 72, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 36% of AirPort Utility's written reviews are positive against 76% of HE.NET Network Tools's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

AirPort Utility ships an update every 4 months, HE.NET Network Tools every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and November 1, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
AirPort Utility versus HE.NET Network Tools: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterAirPort UtilityHE.NET Network Tools
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.1 (2K ratings)4.0 (72 ratings) — better
Positive reviews36.2% of reviews75.9% of reviews — better
Number of ratings2K — better72
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsEvery 2 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS9.0 — better13.0
Further details — not scored
Size12 MB9 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperApple Inc.Hurricane Electric, LLC

Customer experience

AirPort Utility

All ratings2,021 ratings
Positive46.9%
Neutral10.7%
Negative42.4%
Written reviews1,225 reviews
Positive36.2%
Neutral9.3%
Negative54.4%

HE.NET Network Tools

All ratings70 ratings
Positive72.9%
Neutral5.7%
Negative21.4%
Written reviews133 reviews
Positive75.9%
Neutral12.0%
Negative12.0%

User reviews

AirPort Utility

From 2K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Simple and efficient
  • 💡 Useful for managing Apple routers
  • 👍 Provides important network information
  • 👍 Convenient for configuring settings

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes and compatibility issues with iOS updates
  • 🔒 Limited security and access control features
  • 👎 Outdated and lacking new features
  • 👎 Difficult to use for advanced configuration

HE.NET Network Tools

From 72 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🎯 Comprehensive network diagnostic tools in one app
  • 💰 Completely free with no ads or paywalls
  • 🔒 Privacy-friendly and no data collection
  • ⚡ Lightweight and efficient performance
  • 🛠️ Advanced features like SSL cert chain analysis

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent crashes on Interface Information tool
  • 🐛 Dark mode text readability issues
  • 🐛 iperf3 tool unreliable and buggy
  • 🐛 DNS resolver doesn't show NXDOMAIN responses
  • 🐛 App crashes when scrolling tool menu

Bugs and requests

AirPort Utility

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Inability to detect or connect to routers
  • Crashes when entering router password
  • Inconsistent behavior across iOS versions

Requested features

4 requests
  • Improved user interface and navigation
  • More advanced network management tools
  • Remote configuration and monitoring capabilities
  • Support for non-Apple routers and legacy devices

HE.NET Network Tools

Reported bugs

12 issues
  • Interface Information crashes app immediately
  • iperf3 fails with 'operation not permitted' error
  • iperf2 crashes on iOS 8+
  • DNS lookups not responding after updates
  • iperf3 only runs for 1 second despite longer duration settings
Show 7 more
  • iperf3 fails to start intermittently
  • App crashes when selecting tools from menu
  • Crashes on iOS 11 and later versions
  • Neighbor Discovery crashes on iPhone 6
  • Dark mode text hard to read on iPhone
  • App crashes on iPad for multiple functions
  • Ping and basic tools crash on iOS 11+

Requested features

12 requests
  • Vision Pro compatibility and controls
  • SRV record lookup in DNS tool
  • IPv6 subnet calculator
  • WOL (Wake-on-LAN) magic packet support
  • MTR (My Traceroute) tool
Show 7 more
  • Telnet command for port testing
  • Stop/pause button for running tests
  • Multiple iperf test execution
  • Configurable iperf parameters and bandwidth limits
  • LAN device scanning capability
  • Dark mode text color options
  • Apple Watch app with full functionality

In-app purchases

None

AirPort Utility

No in-app purchases

None

HE.NET Network Tools

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is AirPort Utility free?
AirPort Utility is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is HE.NET Network Tools free?
HE.NET Network Tools is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, AirPort Utility or HE.NET Network Tools?
HE.NET Network Tools is rated higher. AirPort Utility averages 3.1 out of 5 from 2K ratings, while HE.NET Network Tools averages 4.0 from 72 ratings.
Do AirPort Utility or HE.NET Network Tools have ads?
Neither AirPort Utility nor HE.NET Network Tools shows ads.
Which is updated more often, AirPort Utility or HE.NET Network Tools?
AirPort Utility ships an update every 4 months, and HE.NET Network Tools every 2 months. Most recently, AirPort Utility was updated on November 3, 2026 and HE.NET Network Tools on November 1, 2026.

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