Sunrun vs Thermostat Controller
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Sunrun
Monitor your solar energy system, track energy production, and access support. Gain insights into your environmental impact and manage your system data from a single, user-friendly interface.
- System data management
- Energy production tracking
- Customer support access
- Environmental impact insights
- User-friendly interface
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Newly designed and easy-to-use, our app is the single access point for Sunrun customers to monitor their systems, track energy production, and get the support they need. Featuring: • Streamlined access to manage and organize all of your system data. Our user-friendly interface provides a centralized hub where you can conveniently access and oversee your system data. • Thorough support page to help you find the answers you need. Whether it’s getting started with your new system or questions around the fundamentals of solar, we’ve got you covered. • Contextualized insights to better understand the positive environmental impact you’re making. Our app utilizes your system data to offer valuable insights, deepening your understanding of how your choices contribute to a greener planet.
Thermostat Controller
Monitor and adjust your Venstar thermostat's temperature, humidity, and fan settings directly from your phone. View current and historical runtime data. Receive optional notifications for state changes.
- View current temperature and humidity
- Adjust set temperature
- Change heating/cooling mode
- Control fan settings
- Monitor daily runtime history
- Optional state change notifications
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This app lets you view the data from and control your Venstar thermostat locally. Note: "Locally" refers to the fact that your Venstar thermostat has a local API. This app is interacting with this local API. Meaning, unless you have remote mode enabled and are running the companion app on a computer, then, if your phone isn't connected to the same Wi-Fi network as your thermostat, you won't be able to read from it or control it. Data you can view: * Current temperature * Set temperature * Humidity * Mode (heat, cool, auto) * Fan state * Today’s runtime * Runtime for each day of the past week * The average daily runtime for the past week What you can control: * Increase/decrease the set temperature * Change the mode (heating, cooling, auto) * Change the fan mode (always on or auto) Optional push notifications are available to let you know when the thermostat state changes from idle to active (e.g. heating or cooling) or vice versa. These push notifications require the companion app to be running on a computer as well as an API key. More info here: https://thermostat-controller.studiojq.io/push An optional remote mode is now also available, which lets you view your thermostat data while not on the same Wi-Fi network as the thermostat (i.e. from anywhere). This remote mode requires the companion app to be running on a computer as well as an API key. The remote mode is view only. You cannot control your thermostat remotely. More info here: https://thermostat-controller.studiojq.io/remote Documentation: https://thermostat-controller.studiojq.io
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Thermostat Controller at 5.0 against Sunrun's 4.5. Thermostat Controller also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 73%) and update cadence (weekly vs every 4 weeks). Sunrun's advantage is ratings volume (3K vs 1) and device support (3 vs 1). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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.
Thermostat Controller holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Sunrun has 3K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 73% of Sunrun's written reviews are positive against 100% of Thermostat Controller's.
Sunrun ships an update every 4 weeks, Thermostat Controller weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 1, 2026 and June 8, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Sunrun | Thermostat Controller |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.5 (3K ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 73.4% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 3K — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 4 weeks | Weekly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 — better | 16.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 96 MB | 5 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Sunrun Inc. | JASON QUARTZ |
Customer experience
Sunrun
Thermostat Controller
Bugs and requests
Sunrun
Reported bugs
4 issues- App crashes or freezes
- Frequent loading issues
- Charts and graphs not functioning properly
- Discrepancies between app and actual production
Requested features
5 requests- Download or export data
- Integrate energy usage data
- Add alerts and notifications
- Provide landscape mode on iPad
- Show year-over-year production comparisons
Thermostat Controller
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Sunrun
No in-app purchases
Thermostat Controller
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Sunrun free?
Is Thermostat Controller free?
Which has better reviews, Sunrun or Thermostat Controller?
Do Sunrun or Thermostat Controller have ads?
Which is updated more often, Sunrun or Thermostat Controller?
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