Comparison

Countdown Star vs Noel

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Countdown Star

Easily track upcoming events with customizable countdowns and count-ups. Personalize your experience with custom wallpapers, animations, and widgets. Syncs across devices and offers notifications for important dates.

Highlights
  • iCloud Sync across devices
  • Celebration animations
  • Repeating event support
  • Home screen widgets
  • Customizable wallpapers
  • Notifications for event completion
  • Interactive time unit slider
Features
Read full description

Countdown Star is the best way to countdown to — and count up from — all of your favorite events. Countdown to birthdays, holidays, an upcoming vacation, a wedding, the New Year, parties, sporting events, concerts and more. Count up from anniversaries, the day you were born, and other special events in the past. * How many seconds until your next birthday? * How many months since you were born? * How many days until you graduate from college? * How many hours until your anniversary? * How much time is left until your vacation starts? * How many days until Christmas? * How many minutes until your party begins? * How much time is left until your baby's due date? Countdown Star is the countdown app that lets you choose which events to add, then keeps them in sync across all of your devices. Features: * iCloud Sync — events and wallpapers sync automatically across all your iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch devices * Celebration Animations — choose Confetti, Fireworks, Balloons, Stars, or Lasers when your countdown reaches zero * Repeating Events — annual events automatically advance to the next year so you never have to update them * Home Screen Widgets — Small, Medium, and Large widgets let you glance at your countdowns without opening the app * Compatible with iPhone Duo — Countdown Star fits the outer and inner displays, open or closed, and when partially open like a book * Apple Watch — view your events right on your wrist * Add Your Own Events — add as many events as you like * Custom Wallpapers — choose from 15+ built-in wallpapers or use your own photos * Time Zone Support — set each event in any time zone with localized city names * Sort and Search — sort by date, title, or your own custom order; events are sectioned into Countdown and Count Up groups * Favorites and Notifications — mark events as favorites to receive a notification when their countdown reaches zero * Interactive Slider — instantly switch between seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, or years to see your countdown exactly how you want it * Customizable Timer — choose timer position (Top, Middle, or Bottom), show or hide weeks, and toggle the leading zero * Multiple App Icons — personalize the app icon on your Home Screen Note: Countdown Star is available as a free version (with ads and an optional Remove Ads purchase) and as a paid ad-free version.

About

Noel

This app helps you embrace the holiday spirit with a countdown to Christmas, festive recipes, gift ideas, and activity planning. Enjoy carols with built-in music sheets and track your holiday preparations.

Highlights
  • Christmas countdown clock
  • Advent widget
  • AI gift ideas
  • Recipe list
  • Activity list
  • Christmas music sheets
Features
Read full description

Your cozy companion for the holiday season. Get into the Christmas spirit with Noel, the ultimate app for festive fun, creativity, and countdown excitement! Whether you’re planning activities, discovering new recipes, or looking for the perfect gift ideas — Noel keeps the magic of Christmas at your fingertips. Features: - Christmas Countdown Clock: Watch the days, hours, and minutes tick away until Christmas Day! - Advent Widget: Add a joyful countdown widget to your Home or Lock Screen. - AI Gift Ideas: Need inspiration? Get smart, personalized gift ideas for everyone on your list. - Recipe List: Save your favorite Christmas recipes or add your own festive creations. - Activity List: Create and track your favorite holiday activities — from decorating to baking and beyond. - Christmas Music Sheets: Play your favorite carols with easy-to-read music sheets right inside the app. Noel brings together everything you love about Christmas — creativity, music, giving, and celebration — all in one beautifully designed experience. Start counting down, creating, and celebrating today with Noel!

Screenshots

Countdown Star4 screens
Noel4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Noel at none against Countdown Star's shown. Noel also leads on review sentiment (80% vs 59%). Countdown Star's advantage is ratings volume (217K vs 84). On price, rating, update cadence 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Countdown Star sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Noel sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Countdown Star against 4.7 for Noel. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Countdown Star has 217K ratings behind it against 84, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 59% of Countdown Star's written reviews are positive against 80% of Noel's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Countdown Star ships an update fortnightly, Noel every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 13, 2026 and November 2, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Countdown Star versus Noel: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCountdown StarNoel
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (217K ratings) — better4.7 (84 ratings)
Positive reviews59.1% of reviews80.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings217K — better84
Update frequencyFortnightly — betterEvery 3 weeks
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.017.0
Further details — not scored
Size55 MB132 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperJoseph MerrillPaul Roden II

Customer experience

Countdown Star

All ratings216,685 ratings
Positive94.8%
Neutral3.1%
Negative2.1%
Written reviews1,340 reviews
Positive59.1%
Neutral11.7%
Negative29.2%

Noel

All ratings84 ratings
Positive92.9%
Neutral2.4%
Negative4.8%
Written reviews5 reviews
Positive80.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative20.0%

Bugs and requests

Countdown Star

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Widget not displaying events
  • Wallpaper not saving
  • Countdown off by one day
  • Notifications not working as expected
  • Crashes and glitches after updates

Requested features

6 requests
  • Add weeks option
  • Allow multiple countdowns on one screen
  • Provide Apple Watch complications
  • Add ability to export/backup data
  • Improve wallpaper customization
Show 1 more
  • Add option for annual/recurring events

Noel

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Countdown Star

One-time1
  • Remove Ads$1.99
2 purchases

Noel

Subscriptions2
  • Noel Premium$3.991 Month
  • Noel Premium3 Days trial$29.991 Year

Questions

Is Countdown Star free?
Countdown Star is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Noel free?
Noel is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Countdown Star or Noel?
Countdown Star is rated higher. Countdown Star averages 4.8 out of 5 from 217K ratings, while Noel averages 4.7 from 84 ratings.
Do Countdown Star or Noel have ads?
Countdown Star shows ads; Noel does not.
Which is updated more often, Countdown Star or Noel?
Countdown Star ships an update fortnightly, and Noel every 3 weeks. Most recently, Countdown Star was updated on November 13, 2026 and Noel on November 2, 2026.

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