# 千牛 vs TIM

The clearest difference is rating: 千牛 at 2.8 against TIM's 1.9. 千牛 also leads on ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (fortnightly vs every 3 months). TIM's advantage is ratings volume (731 vs 223). On price, review sentiment, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

千牛 holds the better App Store score, 2.8 against 1.9. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 223 and 731 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 24% of 千牛's written reviews are positive against 19% of TIM's.

千牛 ships an update fortnightly, TIM every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on September 22, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | 千牛 | TIM |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[2.8 (223 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/id590217303/reviews)** | [1.9 (731 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/tim-qq/id1175213887/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | 223 | **731** |
| Positive reviews | **23.5% of reviews** | 18.8% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Fortnightly** | Every 3 months |
| Monetization | — | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 300 MB | 347 MB |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 | 13.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch** | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [浙江淘宝网络有限公司](https://appshunter.io/developer/1597411546) | [Tencent Technology (Shanghai) Company Limited](https://appshunter.io/developer/473924491) |

## What reviewers say

### 千牛

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/id590217303)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Apple Watch app, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 💯 Amazing platform
- 👍 Convenient to use
- 🚀 Efficient and fast

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent bugs and crashes
- 🔋 High battery consumption
- 💸 Excessive fees and charges
- 🤖 Poor customer service
- 📤 Unreliable message delivery

**Reported bugs**

- Unable to publish products
- Inventory management issues
- Frequent app crashes and freezes
- Delayed message delivery
- Incorrect order and payment information

**Requested features**

- Improve message notification system
- Add iPad/tablet support
- Enhance search and filtering options
- Streamline product listing process
- Provide better analytics and reporting


### TIM

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/tim-qq/id1175213887)

This instant messaging app focuses on efficient communication and collaboration for work, study, and life. It offers QQ friend and message synchronization, file saving, a favorites feature, and real-time voice and video calls. It also includes task management, scheduling, and collaborative document editing.

**Highlights:** QQ friend and message sync, File saving to cloud storage, Favorites for text, images, links, Real-time voice and video calls, To-do list management, Schedule creation and viewing, Collaborative document editing

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Efficient and focused on chatting
- 👍 Simple and clean UI design
- 🤖 Useful for office work

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
- 🔋 High battery consumption
- 🤯 Confusing UI changes
- 🗑️ Removal of useful features like email

**Reported bugs**

- Inability to open shared links
- Inconsistent message synchronization
- Unreliable notification system
- Frequent login issues

**Requested features**

- Dark mode option
- iPad version
- Improved file sharing and management
- Restore removed features like email


## Frequently asked questions

### Is 千牛 free?

千牛 is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is TIM free?

TIM is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, 千牛 or TIM?

千牛 is rated higher. 千牛 averages 2.8 out of 5 from 223 ratings, while TIM averages 1.9 from 731 ratings.

### Do 千牛 or TIM have ads?

TIM shows ads; 千牛 does not.

### Which is updated more often, 千牛 or TIM?

千牛 ships an update fortnightly, and TIM every 3 months. Most recently, 千牛 was updated on September 22, 2026 and TIM on September 24, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*