LightBlue® vs Bluetooth for Arduino
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
LightBlue®
This app allows users to interact with Bluetooth Low Energy devices. It supports scanning for, connecting to, and analyzing BLE peripherals, as well as simulating your own BLE devices. It's a comprehensive tool for developers and enthusiasts working with BLE technology.
- Scan and discover BLE peripherals
- Connect and view device profiles
- Read and write characteristics
- Subscribe to notifications
- Create and advertise virtual BLE devices
- Clone peripheral profiles
- Log and share BLE events
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LightBlue® by Punch Through® Your ultimate BLE debugging and development toolkit. Trusted by BLE developers and engineers since 2012 to scan, inspect, and troubleshoot Bluetooth Low Energy devices with precision. Scan For Peripherals Discover, connect, and interact with nearby BLE devices. Quickly view advertising peripherals, sort by signal strength (RSSI), and connect with a single tap. Once connected, explore the device's advertisement data, services, and characteristics. Isolate SDK Issues Simplify debugging by pinpointing issues in your BLE SDKs. LightBlue lets you isolate your app's business logic and focus on core tasks like connecting, scanning, reading, writing, and receiving notifications, built on years of BLE development experience and platform best practices. Mimic Your Devices Prototype your application by creating virtual BLE peripherals. Build a profile from scratch or clone an advertising peripheral to mimic your product's functionality, even before your own firmware is ready. Key features: - Scan and discover BLE peripherals nearby - Browse services and characteristics in detail - Read, write, and subscribe to notifications and indications - Send data from notifications to AWS IoT or Adafruit IO via Cloud Connect - Write to characteristics in Hex, Octal, Binary, Decimal, or ASCII - Clone peripheral profiles or build your own from scratch - Advertise as a custom peripheral to simulate your device - Thoroughly log and share BLE events - Available on iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Android LightBlue started in 2012 as an internal tool. Punch Through built it to test and debug BLE devices while working on client projects. It worked well, so we shared it with the community. We've kept it free ever since. Today, LightBlue is used by solo developers and engineering teams alike, including inside some of the world's most respected tech and device companies.
Bluetooth for Arduino
Transform your iPhone or iPad into a wireless remote control for your Arduino projects. Easily connect to your Bluetooth module and send custom commands via keyboard or pre-designed buttons.
- Bluetooth remote control
- Arduino project control
- Custom command sending
- Keyboard input
- Button interface
- Connect to Bluetooth modules
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Do you want to control via bluetooth the Arduino project you built? Let your iPhone or iPad be a remote control for any micro-controller with a bluetooth module. Run the app, search for your bluetooth module and connect. Once you are connected you will be able to send your own commands to your Arduino board using the keyboard or some fancy buttons
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: LightBlue® at 4.4 against Bluetooth for Arduino's 3.4. LightBlue® also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 5) and review sentiment (66% vs 46%). On price, 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
Both are free to download. Bluetooth for Arduino sells 5 one-off in-app purchases. LightBlue® asks for nothing beyond the download.
LightBlue® holds the better App Store score, 4.4 against 3.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: LightBlue® has 942 ratings behind it against 42, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 66% of LightBlue®'s written reviews are positive against 46% of Bluetooth for Arduino's.
LightBlue® ships an update every 3 weeks, Bluetooth for Arduino every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | LightBlue® | Bluetooth for Arduino |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.4 (942 ratings) — better | 3.4 (42 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 66.2% of reviews — better | 45.7% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 942 — better | 42 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks — better | Every 2 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Ad-supported — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 16.4 — better | 18.5 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 22 MB | 5 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 17+ |
| Developer | Punch Through | Giuseppe Migliore |
Customer experience
LightBlue®
Bluetooth for Arduino
Bugs and requests
LightBlue®
Reported bugs
3 issues- Crashes after updates
- Fails to connect Apple Pencil
- Doesn't detect all nearby devices
Requested features
3 requests- Ability to manually name devices
- More precise location tracking
- Integration with Siri/Shortcuts
Bluetooth for Arduino
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
LightBlue®
No in-app purchases
Bluetooth for Arduino
- Coffee$0.99
- Custom$3.99
- Gamepad$3.99
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- Terminal$3.99
- Unlock everything$11.99
Questions
Is LightBlue® free?
Is Bluetooth for Arduino free?
Which has better reviews, LightBlue® or Bluetooth for Arduino?
Do LightBlue® or Bluetooth for Arduino have ads?
Which is updated more often, LightBlue® or Bluetooth for Arduino?
Other comparisons
