IHOP vs Cold Stone
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
IHOP
Easily find nearby locations, order delivery, and pay in store. Earn rewards and track your loyalty account all within the app. Enjoy award-winning pancakes and other favorite menu items.
- Find nearby locations
- Order delivery
- Pay in store with Pay N’ Go
- Earn rewards
- Track loyalty account
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IHOP makes it easy to enjoy award winning buttermilk pancakes — and all your favorite breakfast, lunch and dinner items. And now, the IHOP app makes it easy to find nearby locations, order delivery, and pay in store with Pay N’ Go. Plus, you can earn rewards and track your International Bank of Pancakes account, all within the app.
Cold Stone
Order custom ice cream creations, shakes, or cakes for pickup or delivery. Save your favorite orders, earn rewards, and enjoy exclusive birthday treats through a loyalty program.
- Order ice cream creations, shakes, and cakes
- Pickup at store or delivery to door
- Save favorite orders and re-order easily
- Unlimited customizations
- Earn points and redeem rewards
- Birthday Buy One, Get One FREE offer
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The Cold Stone Creamery® app lets you order our made-fresh Ice Cream in a Creation™, Shake or Cake and have it ready for pickup at your favorite store or delivered right to your door! Sign in to your My Cold Stone Rewards account and you can save favorite orders, earn points and redeem rewards! ABOUT MY COLD STONE CLUB REWARDS + Earn 1 point for every $1 + Receive a $5 Reward with every 50 points + Enjoy a Buy One, Get One FREE on your birthday FEATURES + Order ahead and pick up at the store + Or, get your order delivered right to your door + Easily re-order with favorites and recent orders + Enjoy The Ultimate Ice Cream Experience® in app with unlimited customizations
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is monetization model: Cold Stone at free against IHOP's ad-supported. Cold Stone also leads on iOS requirement (15.6 vs 17.6). On price, rating, review sentiment and ratings volume 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.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for IHOP against 4.7 for Cold Stone. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 61K and 23K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 13% of IHOP's written reviews are positive against 20% of Cold Stone's.
Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | IHOP | Cold Stone |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (61K ratings) — better | 4.7 (23K ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 13.0% of reviews | 19.6% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 61K — better | 23K |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Every 3 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Ad-supported | Free — better |
| Best chart rank | #82 — better | #134 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.6 | 15.6 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 42 MB | 72 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | DineEquity, Inc. | Kahala Management, L.L.C. |
Customer experience
IHOP
Cold Stone
User reviews
IHOP
From 61K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Easy ordering process
- 👍 Customization options
- 🚀 Convenient mobile ordering
Room to improve
- 🐛 Buggy and unreliable
- 🔍 Limited customization options
- 💰 Lack of payment options
- 🔍 Difficult to track orders
- 🔍 Inconsistent pickup times
Cold Stone
From 23K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Fast and easy order and pick up
- 👍 Exceptional ice cream and service
- 💡 Allows store to accept phone number for rewards
Room to improve
- 🐛 Buggy and glitchy app features
- 👎 Outdated and clunky app design
- 🤔 Disconnect between app and store inventory
- 💸 Incorrect orders and missing items
- 🤯 Frustrating login and account issues
Bugs and requests
IHOP
Reported bugs
4 issues- App crashes when selecting certain menu items
- Delivery location reverts to default without warning
- Unable to reset password or create new account
- Payment information not saving properly
Requested features
5 requests- Add ability to tip delivery drivers
- Improve order customization options
- Implement Apple Pay and other digital wallets
- Add order tracking and status updates
- Allow scheduling orders for future pickup/delivery
Cold Stone
Reported bugs
4 issues- Payment processing errors
- Inability to change pickup location
- Rewards not updating properly
- App crashes when trying to add gift cards
Requested features
5 requests- Ability to reorder previous orders
- Option to select custom ice cream flavors
- Integration with mobile wallets (Apple Pay, Google Pay)
- Easier way to apply rewards and discounts
- Clearer communication on store closures and order availability
In-app purchases
IHOP
No in-app purchases
Cold Stone
No in-app purchases
