The Garden Guide vs SafeForesters
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.
SafeForesters
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SafeForesters features include: - Emergency Contacts: Contact the correct services for the Lake Forest College area in case of an emergency or a non-emergency concern - Panic Button / Mobile Bluelight: Send your location to Lake Forest Public Safety in real-time in case of a crisis - Friend Walk : Send your location to a friend through email or SMS on your device. Once the friend accepts the Friend Walk request, the user picks their destination and their friend tracks their location in real time; they can keep an eye on them to make sure they make it safely to their destination. - Tip Reporting: Multiple ways to report a safety/security concern directly to Lake Forest College Public Safety. - Virtual WalkHome: Allow campus security to monitor a user's walk. If a user feels unsafe when walking on campus, they can request a Virtual WalkHome and a dispatcher on the other end will monitor their journey until they reach their destination. - Safety Toolbox: Enhance your safety with the set of tools provided in one convenient app. - Chat with Public Safety: Communicate live with safety staff at Lake Forest College Public Safety via chat. - Notification History: Find previous push notifications for this app with the date and time. - Share Map with your Location: Send your location to a friend by sending them a map of your position. - Campus Maps - Campus Map: Navigate around the Lake Forest College area. - Crime Mapping: View recent crimes that have occurred on and near campus. - Evacuation Map: Find gathering points after an evacuation alarm has been sounded. - Parking Map: Find parking areas currently in service. - Emergency Plans: Campus emergency documentation that can prepare you for disasters or emergencies. This can be accessed even when users aren't connected to Wi-Fi or cellular data. - Support Resources: Access support resources in one convenient app to enjoy a successful experience at Lake Forest College. - Safety Notifications: Receive instant notifications and instructions from [institution] safety when on-campus emergencies occur. Download today to ensure you're prepared in the event of an emergency.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: SafeForesters at 5.0 against The Garden Guide's 3.7. The Garden Guide's advantage is ratings volume (14 vs 1). On price, update cadence, 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.
SafeForesters holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: The Garden Guide has 14 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.
The Garden Guide ships an update every 7 months, SafeForesters every 11 months. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | The Garden Guide | SafeForesters |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.7 (14 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 64.3% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 14 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 7 months — better | Every 11 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | 15.6 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 36 MB | 29 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Chicago Horticultural Society | Lake Forest College |
In-app purchases
The Garden Guide
No in-app purchases
SafeForesters
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is The Garden Guide free?
Is SafeForesters free?
Which has better reviews, The Garden Guide or SafeForesters?
Do The Garden Guide or SafeForesters have ads?
Which is updated more often, The Garden Guide or SafeForesters?
Other comparisons
