Comparison

Pinger vs InnoCaption

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

Head to head
About

Pinger

This app provides a free U.S. phone number for unlimited calling and texting to the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. It offers features like voicemail, group chat, and MMS messaging, functioning as a reliable alternative to a traditional phone line.

Highlights
  • Free U.S. phone number
  • Unlimited calling
  • Free texting (SMS)
  • Voicemail
  • Group chat
  • MMS picture & video messaging
Features
Read full description

Make free calls with a real U.S.phone number on the original free calling and texting app. Pinger comes preloaded with free calling minutes that can be used to call anyone in the U.S., Canada, or Mexico. After that, minutes are free to earn or cheap to purchase. SMS messages are also free. On top of free calling and SMS, additional features include voicemail, group chat, MMS picture & video messaging, emoji, ringtones, and more. WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING “It’s like having a real phone number from the carrier. Except FREE.” –Nick “I started using this app back in 2007 on my iPod touch 3rd generation... Works every time, voice calls are clear, and no one knows it’s an app and not an actual phone. Highly recommended.” –Scott “I have used this app as my main phone number for years. It is just as reliable as an actual phone number.” –Kay “I’ve tried several, but hands down, Pinger is by far the best. Why? Simple: It works. Period.” –Tuc “I would rate this like 100,000,000 stars but can’t :/ only 5.” –Molly “Great to have a backup number especially when you travel abroad.” –Milo —— © 2020 Pinger, Inc. All rights reserved. The Pinger name, associated trademarks, and logos are trademarks of Pinger, Inc. or related entities. Terms of Service: https://www.pinger.com/privacy-policy/terms-and-conditions/ Privacy Policy: https://www.pinger.com/privacy-policy/ Subscriptions are automatically billed monthly or annually to your iTunes Account and auto-renew unless you turn off auto-renew at least 24-hours before the end of the current period. Payments are charged to your iTunes account upon confirmation of purchase. You can turn off auto-renew or manage subscriptions in your iTunes & App Store account settings. Cancellations take effect at the end of the active subscription period. Any unused portion of a free trial period (where available) is forfeited when purchasing a subscription.

About

InnoCaption

This app provides free, real-time captions for phone calls, assisting individuals with hearing loss. It offers options for live stenographers or automated speech recognition, with features like text-to-speech shortcuts and transcript summaries for enhanced communication.

Highlights
  • Live call captioning (stenographer or ASR)
  • Text-to-speech calling with AI refine
  • Customizable TTS shortcuts
  • AI-powered transcript summaries
  • Save and view call transcripts
  • Captioning for incoming and outgoing calls
  • Spam call filter
Features
Read full description

If hearing loss makes understanding phone calls challenging, try the InnoCaption app for free, fast, and accurate real-time call captions. InnoCaption is available at no cost to eligible users in the United States through funding from the FCC’s Telecommunications Relay Services (TRS) Fund. **** New Update **** • Custom Word List – Add custom words like names and specialized terms to improve real-time caption accuracy • Picture-in-Picture – Keep captions visible in a floating window while using other apps or browsing the web during a call REAL-TIME CAPTIONS FOR EVERY CALL • Switch between live stenographers or Automated Speech Recognition (ASR) captions at any time during your call • Available at no cost to individuals with hearing loss in the United States • Caption your calls in multiple languages, including Spanish, Chinese, Filipino, and more • Make and caption 3-way calls SEAMLESS CALLING & PERSONALIZATION • Get captions for both incoming and outgoing calls • Keep your existing phone number with our patented One Number technology • Use InnoCaption like your regular phone dialer – no need to make calls through a 711 relay • Customize the InnoCaption app to fit your accessibility needs TEXT-TO-SPEECH CALLING FEATURES • Use AI Refine to turn short responses into complete sentences at the touch of a button • Customize prewritten TTS Shortcuts for fast and effortless replies during calls ACCESSIBLE TRANSCRIPTS & VOICEMAIL • Save and view transcripts of previous calls • Generate concise AI-powered summaries of call transcripts • Access and read fully captioned voicemail messages SMART CONTACT INTEGRATION • Easily sync contacts from your phone to the InnoCaption app • Continue using your personal cell number by combining our caller ID and call-forwarding features EMERGENCY CALLS & SPAM FILTER • Built-in spam call filter blocks high-risk calls and provides notices for potential spam calls • Make 911 emergency calls with captions* *911 service may be limited or unavailable in the event of network disruptions or degradation, service connection or internet failure, or other circumstances. For more information, visit www.innocaption.com/calling-911 Cellular data plan or Wi-Fi is required to use the service. FEDERAL LAW PROHIBITS ANYONE BUT REGISTERED USERS WITH HEARING LOSS FROM USING INTERNET PROTOCOL (IP) CAPTIONED TELEPHONES WITH THE CAPTIONS TURNED ON. IP Captioned Telephone Service may use a live operator. The operator generates captions of what the other party to the call says. These captions are then sent to your phone. There is a cost for each minute of captions generated, paid from a federally administered fund. For more information, visit us at https://www.innocaption.com For assistance, contact us at support@innocaption.com

Screenshots

Pinger4 screens
InnoCaption4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: InnoCaption at none against Pinger's 11. InnoCaption also leads on ads (none vs shown) and review sentiment (71% vs 50%). Pinger's advantage is chart position (#170 vs unranked) and ratings volume (70K vs 12K). On price, rating, update cadence and iOS requirement 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. Pinger sells 11 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. InnoCaption asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Pinger against 4.7 for InnoCaption. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Pinger has 70K ratings behind it against 12K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 50% of Pinger's written reviews are positive against 71% of InnoCaption's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly weekly. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
Pinger versus InnoCaption: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPingerInnoCaption
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (70K ratings)4.7 (12K ratings)
Positive reviews50.5% of reviews71.3% of reviews — better
Number of ratings70K — better12K
Update frequencyWeeklyWeekly
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
Best chart rank#170 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS16.015.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size219 MB95 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperPinger, Inc.Mezmo Corporation

Customer experience

Pinger

All ratings70,108 ratings
Positive91.2%
Neutral3.1%
Negative5.7%
Written reviews321 reviews
Positive50.5%
Neutral7.5%
Negative42.1%

InnoCaption

All ratings11,942 ratings
Positive92.8%
Neutral4.2%
Negative3.0%
Written reviews334 reviews
Positive71.3%
Neutral6.0%
Negative22.8%

User reviews

Pinger

From 70K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Great app
  • 👍 Simple and functional
  • 👍 Good app
  • 👍 Works pretty good
  • 👍 Great service, user friendly

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Constantly lock your account due to supposed shady activity
  • 💰 You have to pay $10 a month to receive SMS from apps
  • 🐛 Does not even let you create an account
  • 🔍 Why so many ads since last update??!
  • 🐛 Issues with Pinger

InnoCaption

From 12K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Accurate and fast captioning
  • 👍 Enables independent phone use for deaf/hard of hearing
  • 👍 Helpful customer support
  • 👍 Useful for work, personal, and medical calls
  • 👍 Saves call transcripts for reference

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional issues with call quality and disconnections
  • 🐛 Inaccurate transcription of names and numbers
  • 🔒 Concerns about privacy and sharing personal information
  • 🔋 Drains battery when used extensively

Bugs and requests

Pinger

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Constantly lock your account due to supposed shady activity
  • Does not even let you create an account
  • Microphone doesn't work, can't hear me on calls
  • Inconsistent, can't make calls sometimes
  • Not dependable, messages don't go through

Requested features

3 requests
  • Ability to receive verification codes
  • Option to turn off sounds/notifications
  • Fix for not being able to send more than one picture at a time

InnoCaption

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Incoming calls not always received or displayed
  • App crashing or freezing during calls
  • Issues with call forwarding setup

Requested features

4 requests
  • Ability to caption in-person conversations
  • Integration with video calling apps
  • Improved transcription accuracy for names and numbers
  • Option to save call transcripts locally

In-app purchases

11 purchases

Pinger

Subscriptions8
  • Remove Ads$2.991 Month
  • Voicemail to Text$2.991 Month
  • Pinger Plus Weekly$4.997 Days
Show 5 more
  • Pinger Plan$4.991 Month
  • Pinger Plus Weekly$6.997 Days
  • Pinger Plus Monthly$9.991 Month
  • Pinger Plus Half Yearly$39.996 Months
  • Pinger Plus Yearly$69.991 Year
One-time3
  • 100 minutes$1.99
  • 400 minutes$9.99
  • 1000 minutes$18.99
None

InnoCaption

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Pinger free?
Pinger is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is InnoCaption free?
InnoCaption is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Pinger or InnoCaption?
Pinger and InnoCaption are both rated 4.7 out of 5 on the App Store, from 70K and 12K ratings respectively.
Do Pinger or InnoCaption have ads?
Pinger shows ads; InnoCaption does not.
Which is updated more often, Pinger or InnoCaption?
Pinger ships an update weekly, and InnoCaption weekly. Most recently, Pinger was updated on September 24, 2026 and InnoCaption on September 23, 2026.

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