Comparison

iNaturalist vs Mathalon

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

Head to head
About

iNaturalist

Identify plants, animals, and fungi using your camera or imported photos. Get AI-powered species suggestions and connect with a global community of nature enthusiasts to learn more about the natural world and contribute to scientific conservation efforts.

Highlights
  • AI species identification
  • Record species observations
  • Contribute to scientific data
  • Explore biodiversity
  • Connect with nature enthusiasts
Currently charting
Read full description

Your photos of plants, animals, fungi, and more can help protect nature all around the world. iNaturalist is free, nonprofit, and community-powered. iNaturalist helps millions of people learn about and document the nature around them. Point your camera at plants, animals, and fungi to get instant identification suggestions, then share your photos or sound recordings as an "observation." Then, see your observation get reviewed by a global community of knowledgeable nature-lovers to turn it into a useful data point for science and conservation efforts. Your everyday moments of curiosity can directly contribute to protecting nature, and you don't need any previous experience or knowledge to get started. iNaturalist is a mission-driven nonprofit dedicated to connecting people to nature and advancing biodiversity science and conservation, and is freely available thanks to the generous support of our community. KEY FEATURES • Identify species from anywhere in the world • Contribute to science by sharing your observations • Keep a record of species you see • Explore and protect biodiversity • Connect with and learn from other nature enthusiasts

About

Mathalon

Features
Read full description

Mathalon turns math into a competitive arena. Daily challenge — one carefully-picked problem every day. Build a solve streak. Rush — 5-minute live climbing race. Solve fast, stay ahead, top the live leaderboard. Ranked 1v1 — Glicko-2 matchmaking against another player in your rating zone. Head-to-head, best of five. Practice — thousands of problems from arithmetic to olympiad. Filter by topic and difficulty. Escape rooms and mystery cases — narrative puzzle chains that reward mathematical reasoning. Every solve updates your rating. Every match sharpens it. Climb the global leaderboard.

Screenshots

iNaturalist4 screens
Mathalon4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Mathalon at every 2 days against iNaturalist's fortnightly. iNaturalist's advantage is chart position (#70 vs unranked) and iOS requirement (15.1 vs 26.5). On price, ads, in-app purchases 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

iNaturalist ships an update fortnightly, Mathalon every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 27, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 8 level
iNaturalist versus Mathalon: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameteriNaturalistMathalon
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.1 (714 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews48.6% of reviews—
Number of ratings714 — better—
Update frequencyFortnightlyEvery 2 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
Best chart rank#70 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.1 — better26.5
Further details — not scored
Size220 MB2 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperiNaturalistPETER CHRISTER ANDREAS NODTVEIDT

Bugs and requests

iNaturalist

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • App freezes when suggesting IDs on audio clips
  • Inconsistent tap responsiveness in search menu
  • Observation time not accurately filling based on upload time
  • Map showing incorrect observation locations
  • Crashes and performance issues on some devices

Requested features

5 requests
  • Ability to type in address/coordinates for location
  • Option to add observations to projects during upload
  • Batch editing/uploading of observations
  • More precise search filters (e.g. aquatic, parasitic, migratory)
  • Bring back colored observation markers on map

Mathalon

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

iNaturalist

No in-app purchases

None

Mathalon

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is iNaturalist free?
iNaturalist is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Mathalon free?
Mathalon is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do iNaturalist or Mathalon have ads?
Neither iNaturalist nor Mathalon shows ads.
Which is updated more often, iNaturalist or Mathalon?
iNaturalist ships an update fortnightly, and Mathalon every 2 days. Most recently, iNaturalist was updated on October 27, 2026 and Mathalon on October 25, 2026.

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