Comparison

Cluster vs The Livable Forest®

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

Head to head
About

Cluster

Create private groups to share photos and videos with specific people. Ideal for families, friends, or colleagues to share moments securely without broadcasting to a wider audience. Access your shared memories across mobile devices and the web.

Highlights
  • Create private sharing groups
  • Share photos and videos
  • Invite specific members
  • Web and mobile access
  • Relevant notifications
  • Secure and private sharing
Features
Read full description

* Featured as “New and Noteworthy” by Apple * Cluster makes it possible to create private groups where you share moments through photos and videos with the people you care about. Create a group with family, a group of friends, coworkers, people from your home town, or anyone else! Great for: • New Moms! Share photos of a new baby with close friends and family without spamming everyone on other social networks • College Students! Share memories with friends not appropriate for Facebook • Families! Keep in touch even if you’re not in the same place. Tons of people already trust Cluster. Here’s why: • Private & secure: Only invited members of the group can see what you post. • An app for everyone: Access Cluster through gorgeous mobile apps and the web. • Relevant notifications: Know when people you invited post new things to the group. How it works: 1. Create a group. 2. Add the people you care about. 3. Share photos, videos and notes together. People LOVE Cluster: • “The app is fantastic! Me and my sister were so happy to find it. We made a group of the whole family and its great. My big brother is living in Europe, my sister traveling for the next 4 months and the rest of the family lives in Chile. They upload pictures and we can see how and what they are doing. Its very simple to use (even our grandmother is in the group!).” • “I downloaded 10 different photo sharing apps, not including your Cluster app. I needed an app that allowed the creation of multiple albums, other users could join from anywhere, was password protected and SIMPLE. I deleted every app except your Cluster app. All the other apps were either too difficult to explain...to someone 8 hours away, too complicated to set up and/or upload, they limited the number of albums a user can create, required Bluetooth or wifi to share, or required a social media account to set up. Your app served all the purposes that I need. It is great, fabulous, fun & simple! Keep up the good work!” • “I really like the privacy of the app and the fact that only people invited or with the code can access our pictures.” • “I want to thank you all for such a wonderful product - it really has brought us all even closer together. The constant banter, the photo streams, the comedy...all of it...it's been awesome. So, as far as my feedback goes, I'd say this is an awesome program and we'll continue using it for as long as it's available!” The press LOVES Cluster: • Featured by the Apple App Store (“New and Noteworthy”), NYTimes, TechCrunch and many more! Cluster Club is a monthly or annual subscription to give admins more control over their groups. Check it out by visiting the Settings → Subscription Settings section of the app. By purchasing a subscription you agree to Cluster's Terms of Use: https://cluster.co/terms/ and Privacy Policy: https://cluster.co/privacy/

About

The Livable Forest®

Discover real-time community happenings in the Houston area. Get local updates, event information, and curated guides for neighborhoods, shopping, and family fun. Stay informed with personalized notifications and engage with interactive drops.

Highlights
  • Live neighborhood updates
  • Local event discovery
  • Curated guides
  • Personalized notifications
  • Interactive drops and check-ins
  • Follow trusted local voices
Features
Read full description

The Livable Forest Your lifestyle. Edited. The Livable Forest is Houston's lifestyle and community platform, designed to help you discover where to go, what to do, what to eat, what to buy, what matters, and each other. Whether you're looking for a new restaurant, local events, trusted businesses, community groups, family activities, live music, local perks, rides, farmers markets, or simply a better way to stay connected to what's happening around you, The Livable Forest brings it all together in one place. Explore curated experiences including: • The Edit • Dining, Shopping & Personal Care Guides • Farm to Table • Local Events & Concerts • Community Groups & Discussions • The Forester Scoop • Membership Perks • Relationship, Movement & Lifestyle Content • Local Artists, Businesses & Organizations • Seasonal Guides & Community Experiences More than a social network, The Livable Forest is built for real life. Discover new places. Build meaningful connections. Support local businesses. Find opportunities. Stay informed. Experience your community in a more intentional way. Serving Kingwood, Humble, Atascocita, The Woodlands, Houston, and beyond. Curated for real life.

Screenshots

Cluster4 screens
The Livable Forest®4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Cluster at 4.8 against The Livable Forest®'s 3.9. Cluster also leads on ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (22K vs 7). The Livable Forest®'s advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 2 months) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.0). On price, in-app purchases, monetization model and device support 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. Cluster sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and The Livable Forest® sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $20.00 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Cluster holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 3.9. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Cluster has 22K ratings behind it against 7, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Cluster ships an update every 2 months, The Livable Forest® every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 27, 2026 and July 9, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Cluster versus The Livable Forest®: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterClusterThe Livable Forest®
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (22K ratings) — better3.9 (7 ratings)
Positive reviews56.6% of reviews—
Number of ratings22K — better7
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 2 weeks — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.013.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size35 MB90 MB
Age rating4+17+
DeveloperCluster Labs, Inc.The Livable Forest LLC

Customer experience

Cluster

All ratings21,986 ratings
Positive96.3%
Neutral1.6%
Negative2.1%
Written reviews235 reviews
Positive56.6%
Neutral9.4%
Negative34.0%

The Livable Forest®

All ratings5 ratings
Positive60.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative40.0%

Bugs and requests

Cluster

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • App crashes on launch for some users
  • Photos and videos fail to upload consistently
  • Notification issues - not receiving updates
  • Compatibility problems with newer Android devices
  • Unexpected errors when trying to access accounts

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add ability to edit/delete posts
  • Improve photo/video upload reliability
  • Implement better notification system
  • Add option to create galleries/albums within groups
  • Enhance search and filtering capabilities

The Livable Forest®

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

6 purchases

Cluster

Subscriptions6
  • Cluster Friend$4.991 Month
  • Cluster Family$9.991 Month
  • Cluster Pro$19.991 Month
Show 3 more
  • Cluster Friend$49.991 Year
  • Cluster Family$99.991 Year
  • Cluster Pro$199.991 Year
8 purchases

The Livable Forest®

Subscriptions7
  • Solstice Society Monthly$20.001 Month
  • Community Membership Monthly$100.001 Month
  • Solstice Society Yearly$199.001 Year
Show 4 more
  • Community Membership Annual$549.001 Year
  • Vendor Membership$600.001 Year
  • Exclusive Pinned Post Option$700.001 Month
  • All-Inclusive Marketing$800.001 Month
One-time1
  • The Livable Forest®$100.00

Questions

Is Cluster free?
Cluster is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is The Livable Forest® free?
The Livable Forest® is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Cluster or The Livable Forest®?
Cluster is rated higher. Cluster averages 4.8 out of 5 from 22K ratings, while The Livable Forest® averages 3.9 from 7 ratings.
Do Cluster or The Livable Forest® have ads?
The Livable Forest® shows ads; Cluster does not.
Which is updated more often, Cluster or The Livable Forest®?
Cluster ships an update every 2 months, and The Livable Forest® every 2 weeks. Most recently, Cluster was updated on September 27, 2026 and The Livable Forest® on July 9, 2026.

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