Comparison

PatchScan vs Patch Vault

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

Head to head
About

PatchScan

Access detailed information about officially licensed Boy Scouts of America patches by scanning their unique codes. Discover issuance numbers, issuing organizations, manufacturing details, and view scans from the same production run to verify authenticity. Enhance your patch trading and collection with this free tool.

Highlights
  • Scan officially licensed BSA patches
  • View patch issuance numbers
  • Identify issuing organizations
  • Access manufacturing details
  • Verify patch authenticity with production scans
  • Enhance patch trading
Read full description

Use PatchScan to get important information about Boy Scouts of America® Officially Licensed patches that have a special PatchScan code on the back! With an internet connection, you can quickly access how many of each patch were really issued, which organization issued them, and manufacturing details. You'll even see a scan of a patch from the same production run so you can verify that the patch in your hand is legit. Make better patch trades and get PatchScan today for FREE! PatchScan's official launch party is at the 2013 National Scout Jamboree. Official Jamboree Shoulder Patches are required to have a PatchScan code on the back. PatchScan is a project of the Boy Scouts of America's licensing programs. Boy Scouts of America®, the Universal Emblem, BSA®, are either registered trademarks or trademarks of the Boy Scouts of America in the United States and/or other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. All rights reserved.

About

Patch Vault

Organize and catalog your patch and challenge coin collections with detailed records, photos, and tracking. Easily search, filter, and view item origins on a map. Gain insights into your collection's trends and history.

Highlights
  • Catalog patches and challenge coins
  • Add multiple photos
  • Track detailed item information
  • Search and filter collection
  • View origins on interactive map
  • Review collection stats and trends
  • Sync privately with iCloud
Features
Read full description

Keep your patches, challenge coins, and badges organized, photographed, and easy to find. Patch Vault brings your collection's details together on iPhone and iPad. Record the department, station, location, acquisition date, purchase price, tags, notes, and photos for every item, whether it came from a trade, station visit, event, or gift. - Catalog patches, challenge coins, and badges in one collection. - Search names, departments, locations, tags, and notes. - Combine tag, type, format, and favorite filters to find the items you want. - Explore where your items came from on an interactive map. - Sort by title, department, date, price, or recently added. - Earn achievements for collection size, geography, photos, and more. Track progress and share milestones. - Share individual items, collection summaries, and achievements as image cards. - Add photos from other apps using the share sheet. - Keep collection totals and achievement progress close with Home Screen widgets. - Use Siri and Shortcuts for collection stats or a random patch, and find items in Spotlight. - Sync your collection across your devices with iCloud. - Export backups with photos, restore your collection, or export a CSV spreadsheet. - Personalize your app icon and tint. Made for collectors of fire, police, EMS, dispatch, search and rescue, military, government, and other patches, coins, and badges. Start free with up to 25 items and one photo per item. Vault Unlock is an optional, one-time in-app purchase that adds unlimited items, unlimited photos per item, and collection charts.

Screenshots

PatchScan4 screens
Patch Vault4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Patch Vault at 100% against PatchScan's 30%. Patch Vault also leads on rating (5.0 vs 2.5) and update cadence (fortnightly vs every 25 months). PatchScan's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 4) and ads (none vs shown). On price 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. Patch Vault sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. PatchScan asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Patch Vault holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 2.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: PatchScan has 39 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 30% of PatchScan's written reviews are positive against 100% of Patch Vault's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PatchScan ships an update every 25 months, Patch Vault fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard8 real differences · 2 level
PatchScan versus Patch Vault: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPatchScanPatch Vault
PriceFreeFree
Rating2.5 (39 ratings)5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews30.0% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings39 — better2
Update frequencyEvery 25 monthsFortnightly — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS9.0 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size28 MB59 MB
Age rating4++4
DeveloperBoy Scouts of AmericaRobotic Snail Software LLC

Customer experience

PatchScan

All ratings34 ratings
Positive38.2%
Neutral5.9%
Negative55.9%
Written reviews30 reviews
Positive30.0%
Neutral10.0%
Negative60.0%

Patch Vault

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

PatchScan

No in-app purchases

4 purchases

Patch Vault

One-time4
  • Small Tip$0.99
  • Medium Tip$4.99
  • Large Tip$9.99
Show 1 more
  • Premium$14.99

Questions

Is PatchScan free?
PatchScan is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Patch Vault free?
Patch Vault is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, PatchScan or Patch Vault?
Patch Vault is rated higher. PatchScan averages 2.5 out of 5 from 39 ratings, while Patch Vault averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.
Do PatchScan or Patch Vault have ads?
Patch Vault shows ads; PatchScan does not.
Which is updated more often, PatchScan or Patch Vault?
PatchScan ships an update every 25 months, and Patch Vault fortnightly. Most recently, PatchScan was updated on November 1, 2026 and Patch Vault on October 31, 2026.

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