giffgaff vs Status Smart
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
giffgaff
Manage your mobile account effortlessly. Track data usage, renew plans, and access WiFi hotspots across the UK. This app provides a comprehensive overview of your mobile services and allows for easy top-ups and account management.
- Check data usage
- Buy or renew plans
- Plan expiry notifications
- Add credit/auto top-up
- WiFi Extra access
- Community access
Read full descriptionHide full description
The giffgaff mobile app lets you manage your giffgaff account with the tap of your phone. You can check your data use on the go and connect to literally thousands of WiFi hotspots all across the UK with WiFI Extra. But that's just the start of what the app can do. It's a bitesize wonder. - Check how much data you have left - Buy or renew a plan - Keep an eye on when your plan expires - Add credit or turn on auto top up - Pay with a saved card or PayPal - Redeem a voucher - Access the community - Add multiple giffgaff accounts - Access thousands of WiFi hotspots across the UK with WiFi Extra You'll need your giffgaff member name and password to log in. If you're new to giffgaff, order your free SIM card now: https://www.giffgaff.com/orders/free-sim
Status Smart
Control your home appliances remotely from anywhere. Manage multiple devices simultaneously, set timers for automated functions, and easily share device access with family members. Quick and simple connection to your smart devices.
- Remote appliance control
- Simultaneous device management
- Automated timers
- Family device sharing
- Easy device connection
Read full descriptionHide full description
Status Smart 1. Remote control: control your home appliances anywhere 2. Simultaneously control: control multiple devices with one app 3. Timer: set timer to perform multiple functions 4. Device sharing: one tap to share devices with family members 5. Easy connection: easily and quickly connect app to devices
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Status Smart at 5.0 against giffgaff's 4.5. giffgaff's advantage is update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 6 months) and ratings volume (1K vs 2). On price, review sentiment, 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.
Status Smart holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: giffgaff has 1K ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 29% of giffgaff's written reviews are positive against 32% of Status Smart's.
giffgaff ships an update every 3 weeks, Status Smart every 6 months. The most recent releases landed on October 21, 2026 and October 19, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | giffgaff | Status Smart |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.5 (1K ratings) | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 28.8% of reviews | 31.7% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 1K — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks — better | Every 6 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 | 14.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 99 MB | 208 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | giffgaff | Status International (UK) Limited |
Customer experience
giffgaff
Status Smart
User reviews
giffgaff
From 1K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Fast and easy to use
- 💰 Affordable pricing
- 👍 Straightforward app
- 🔒 Secure login process
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent app crashes
- ⚠️ Poor network coverage
- 🔍 Lack of customer support
- 🔧 Technical issues with SIM activation
Status Smart
From 2 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Easy to use app
- 💡 Good for basic control
- 🏠 Works well with Alexa
- 💰 Good value for money
- 🚀 Straightforward setup (for some)
Room to improve
- ❌ Difficult pairing process
- 🐛 App frequently crashes/freezes
- ❌ Connectivity issues
- ⚠️ Privacy concerns (data collection)
- ❌ Poor usability in app
Bugs and requests
giffgaff
Reported bugs
4 issues- Login screen freezes
- Inability to update payment methods
- Inconsistent app behavior across devices
- Unreliable app performance after updates
Requested features
4 requests- Detailed data usage tracking
- Ability to manage family accounts
- Landscape mode support for tablets
- Seamless SIM card switching
Status Smart
Reported bugs
15 issues- App keeps not working or huge delay
- Cannot get it to pair
- App freezes when trying to use it
- App doesn't log in anymore
- Network error
Show 10 moreShow fewer
- Bulbs keep saying 'connection failed'
- Cannot connect to Alexa
- Bulb doesn't flash to get connected
- Fails to connect at 10% search
- App freezes
- Connection failed
- Device unresponsive
- App doesn't refresh data
- Does not register low power devices
- Does not register intermittent high power usage
Requested features
10 requests- Allow minute adjustment for cost periods
- Implement swiping for graph/date navigation
- Add calendar view for specific date selection
- Add confirmation for switching off plugs
- Allow floating point numbers for usage/cost reminders
Show 5 moreShow fewer
- More granular data, including hourly stats
- More granular data, including hourly stats
- Change breath feature to completely off then on
- Dark mode option
- Siri/Shortcuts integration
In-app purchases
giffgaff
No in-app purchases
Status Smart
No in-app purchases
