Beta Bud vs Boardsesh
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Beta Bud
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Welcome to Beta Bud, the innovative app designed exclusively for the climbing community. Whether you're a seasoned climber or just starting out, Beta Bud is your perfect climbing partner, providing you with detailed insights into your own climbing journey. Key Features: Gym Layouts and Routes: Explore detailed layouts of bouldering gyms. View all the climbs, their grades, and get a real-time update on new problems set in your favorite gym. Community Insights: See what your fellow climbers think about each climb's difficulty. Get the community's perspective on the setter's grades, enhancing your gym experience. Progress Tracker: Monitor your climbing progress with ease. Track the climbs you've sent, view your improvement over time, and set new personal goals. Leaderboard Rankings: See how you stack up against others in the climbing community. Climb the ranks and watch your progress on the gym's leaderboard. Beta Views: Share your success and strategies. Upload your beta videos to show others how you conquered specific routes, and view tips from others to tackle your next challenge. Interactive Community: Engage with a vibrant community of climbers. Share experiences, tips, and celebrate each other’s achievements. Benefits: Personalized Experience: Tailor your Beta Bud experience based on your skill level and preferences. Stay Updated: Always be in the know about the newest routes and changes in your local gym. Connect and Compete: Join a community of like-minded enthusiasts. Make new climbing friends and enjoy a bit of friendly competition. Enhanced Learning: Learn from others and improve your techniques with diverse beta videos. We are constantly working to make Beta Bud better for you. For support, feedback, or suggestions, please visit support@betabud.app
Boardsesh
This app connects to various LED climbing boards via Bluetooth to light up holds on your wall. Browse and filter thousands of community-created climbs, build a queue, and track your progress. It supports group sessions for climbing with friends, whether in the same gym or remotely.
- Connects to LED climbing boards
- Lights up holds on the wall
- Browse and filter community climbs
- Build and manage a climb queue
- Track climbing attempts and sends
- Supports group climbing sessions
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Search a climb, watch your wall light up. Less time on your phone, more time on the wall. ONE APP FOR EVERY BOARD YOU CLIMB Kilter, Tension and MoonBoard each ship their own app for their own board. Boardsesh works across all of them, plus Woods, Decoy, Touchstone, Grasshopper and So iLL, in one place. Your whole climbing history across every board lives here. BOARD HISTORY, ALWAYS ON Share a board and you lose track of the last climb fast, and someone always wipes it by accident. In Boardsesh every board you connect to has a live feed of what's lit on that wall right now: the climb's name, who lit it, who set it, the grade and angle, and recent sends. It updates as the wall changes, so you always know what's up there. SESSIONS WITH YOUR CREW Start a session and you and your crew can share one queue everyone can drive. Anyone can light the next climb on the wall. When you're done you get a recap and tracking: sends and attempts, grade spread, your hardest send, and progress over time. CONTROL FROM YOUR LOCK SCREEN (iOS 17+) iOS Live Activities tell you what climb is on from your lock screen, and allow you to change it without leaving your lock screen. BUILD A WORKOUT Pick Volume, Pyramid, Ladder or Grade Focus, set a target grade and warm-up, preview the climbs, then push them to the wall one at a time. TRACK YOUR CLIMBING Record sends, flashes and attempts, get a recap with duration, grade spread and your hardest send, and watch your sends and grades climb on the Progress tab. BRING YOUR HISTORY WITH YOU Save your session to Apple Health, and import your past Kilter and Tension logbook from Aurora Climbing. FIND MORE TO CLIMB Follow your crew and setters, search climbers, and pin playlists from Discover. Supported boards: Kilter, Tension, MoonBoard (2010, 2016, 2024, Masters 2017, Masters 2019), Woods (12x12, 8x10), Decoy, Touchstone, Grasshopper and So iLL. Boardsesh is a community effort that works with these boards and is not affiliated with or endorsed by any board manufacturer.
Screenshots
Verdict
Beta Bud and Boardsesh are too close to call on the numbers: across 6 compared parameters — price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases among them — neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.
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.
Beta Bud ships an update every 6 days, Boardsesh every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on September 19, 2026 and September 29, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Beta Bud | Boardsesh |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | — | 4.6 (24 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | — | 75.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | — | 24 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 6 days — better | Every 9 days |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | — | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 — better | 16.4 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 63 MB | 100 MB |
| Age rating | 9+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Beta Bud | Marco de Jongh |
In-app purchases
Beta Bud
No in-app purchases
Boardsesh
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Beta Bud free?
Is Boardsesh free?
Do Beta Bud or Boardsesh have ads?
Which is updated more often, Beta Bud or Boardsesh?
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