The Garden Guide vs Lake Villa Library
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
The Garden Guide
Explore the Chicago Botanic Garden with this app. Discover plants, find your way around, and learn about the garden's features through tours and audio guides. It's a helpful companion for both visitors and home gardeners.
- Navigate 385 acres and 26 gardens
- Discover plant information by name, color, or characteristics
- Access walking tours and audio guides
- Pin favorite locations
- Track seasonal blooms
- Personal garden docent
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When your question is: “How do I find…” Your answer is: The Garden Guide Packed with information about the Chicago Botanic Garden, our app is the perfect companion as you navigate, discover, learn about, and explore all 385 acres, 26 gardens, 4 natural areas, and our outstanding collection of 2.6 million plants. Get to know the Garden with the help of our Walking Tours and Audio Guides. Or, be your own guide--set out on your own and pin your favorite places. Discover what’s in bloom year round and locate any plant on the grounds by its name, color, or characteristics. Think of it as your personal garden docent--whether you’re visiting the Garden grounds or working in your own backyard.
Lake Villa Library
Manage your library account on the go with this app. Search the catalog, place holds, renew items, and access a digital library card. Book rooms and register for library programs and events.
- Search catalog and place holds
- Renew materials and check due dates
- Manage multiple library cards
- Book study or meeting rooms
- Register for library programs
- Digital library card access
- Scan ISBN to check availability
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Download the Lake Villa District Library app and take the library with you anywhere you go! - Search our catalog, place holds, check due dates, or renew materials on the go. - Add multiple library cards to easily manage family accounts. - Book a study or meeting room. - Find and register for LVDL programs and events. - Access a digital version of your library card within the app. - Scan an ISBN on any book, anywhere, to see if it's available to borrow from our collection.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Lake Villa Library at 4.4 against The Garden Guide's 3.6. Lake Villa Library also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 64%) and update cadence (every 3 months vs every 7 months). On price, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Lake Villa Library holds the better App Store score, 4.4 against 3.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 13 and 5 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 64% of The Garden Guide's written reviews are positive against 100% of Lake Villa Library's.
The Garden Guide ships an update every 7 months, Lake Villa Library every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on September 14, 2026 and June 1, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | The Garden Guide | Lake Villa Library |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.6 (13 ratings) | 4.4 (5 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 64.3% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 13 — better | 5 |
| Update frequency | Every 7 months | Every 3 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | 16.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 36 MB | 51 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Chicago Horticultural Society | Lake Villa Public Library District |
Customer experience
The Garden Guide
Lake Villa Library
In-app purchases
The Garden Guide
No in-app purchases
Lake Villa Library
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is The Garden Guide free?
Is Lake Villa Library free?
Which has better reviews, The Garden Guide or Lake Villa Library?
Do The Garden Guide or Lake Villa Library have ads?
Which is updated more often, The Garden Guide or Lake Villa Library?
Other comparisons
