Comparison

base vs Essences

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

Head to head
About

base

This app offers a private, ad-free social networking experience focused on community and inspiration. It features secure communication, AI integration, and tools for creative collaboration, moving away from manipulative social media tactics.

Highlights
  • Ad-free and tracker-free community spaces
  • Secure encrypted audio and video calls
  • AI technologies to amplify voices
  • Focus on inspiration over manipulation
  • Community-centric design
  • Privacy controls and data erasure
  • Multilingual support
Features
Read full description

Base: - Create a personalized space for your community devoid of distractions, ads, and trackers. - Unlock new possibilities and reach higher success by redefining the possibilities of your social network. - Connect deeper through seamless, secure audio and video calls — whether it’s a quick catch-up with a friend or a group discussion with your network - Considered disconnecting from your social networks? Don’t. Let’s show you how to use them differently. - endless scroll? Sorry, we don’t do that here! - two ways to readily influence behavior: manipulate or inspire. We choose to inspire. - Deconstructing and reconstructing social media - Shifting from individualistic and capitalistic social media platforms towards community-centric spaces. - Building spaces that give people access to cutting-edge AI technologies to help amplify their voices and narratives. - Humans and Machines work together - for each other. Why Base? - Privacy - Encrypted data and communications - Ability to erase ALL of your data from base - Focus - Only notified about topics and people you chose - Positive community - Creativity - Unleash collaboration, productivity, and kindle problem solving - Full ability to manage spaces, interactions, control, and conversations - Reach - Scale and engage with a larger audience through your digital community center - Have conversations and interactions in over 100 languages - Innovation - Experience and make advanced (AI) technologies work for you like never before - Persuasive design/ Manipulative technologies - Base leverages ZERO technologies, tactics, and algorithms to get you hooked

About

Essences

Share personal stories and messages within curated topics based on real-life experiences. Connect with others by highlighting resonant parts of their stories, symbolizing shared life experiences.

Highlights
  • Curated topic-based sharing
  • Personal story and message submission
  • Highlighting resonant story fragments
  • Symbolic connection acknowledgment
  • Focus on real-life experiences
Features
Read full description

Essences curates topics(hives) grounded in real-life experiences, inviting users to share their personal stories and/or messages. When a story resonates with another user—echoing a fragment of their own life's essence—they can acknowledge this connection by highlighting it with a yellow hexagon. This shape, symbolically known as a building block of life, underscores the story's significance as a foundational element in their personal narrative.

Screenshots

base4 screens
Essences3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: base at monthly against Essences's every 5 months. base also leads on ratings volume (8 vs 2). On price, rating, ads 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.9 for base against 5.0 for Essences. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 8 and 2 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

base ships an update monthly, Essences every 5 months. Both last shipped on October 8, 2026.

Scorecard2 real differences · 7 level
base versus Essences: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterbaseEssences
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.9 (8 ratings)5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Number of ratings8 — better2
Update frequencyMonthly — betterEvery 5 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.115.1
Further details — not scored
Size111 MB50 MB
Age rating4+17+
DeveloperIssakaAICaridad Rivera

Customer experience

base

All ratings8 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Essences

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

base

No in-app purchases

None

Essences

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is base free?
base is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Essences free?
Essences is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, base or Essences?
Essences is rated higher. base averages 4.9 out of 5 from 8 ratings, while Essences averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.
Do base or Essences have ads?
Neither base nor Essences shows ads.
Which is updated more often, base or Essences?
base ships an update monthly, and Essences every 5 months. Most recently, base was updated on October 8, 2026 and Essences on October 8, 2026.

Other comparisons