# cmdTower vs Life

The clearest difference is monetization model: cmdTower at free against Life's paid. Life's advantage is ratings volume (4 vs 1). On price, rating, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for cmdTower against 5.0 for Life. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1 and 4 respectively.

cmdTower ships an update every 9 days, Life weekly. The most recent releases landed on September 30, 2026 and October 1, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | cmdTower | Life |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [5.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/cmdtower/id6517348395/reviews) | [5.0 (4 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/life-pad/id6759831411/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | 1 | **4** |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 9 days | **Weekly** |
| Monetization | **Free** | Paid |
| Size | 8 MB | 44 MB |
| Requires iOS | 18.6 | 18.6 |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Hellish Creative](https://appshunter.io/developer/1726115744) | [Joseph Bertolini](https://appshunter.io/developer/1881039207) |

## What reviewers say

### cmdTower

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/cmdtower/id6517348395)

This companion app simplifies tabletop gaming by allowing players to easily track commander damage, various counters, and game configurations. It supports up to six players and is designed for quick setup and focus on gameplay.

**Highlights:** Track commander damage, Support for up to 6 players, Track storm, poison, energy, and radiation counters, Customize starting values, Works for 60-card formats

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


### Life

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/life-pad/id6759831411)

A streamlined life tracker for competitive 1v1 Magic: The Gathering matches. It offers simple controls, game state tracking for common counters, and integrated note-taking for post-game analysis. Supports deck importing and Scryfall integration for quick card lookups.

**Highlights:** 1v1 life tracking, Game state counter tracking, Integrated note-taking, Deck importing and linking, Scryfall card lookup, Event history logging, Match timer

**Features:** Family Sharing

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is cmdTower free?

cmdTower is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Life free?

Life is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, cmdTower or Life?

cmdTower and Life are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 1 and 4 ratings respectively.

### Do cmdTower or Life have ads?

Neither cmdTower nor Life shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, cmdTower or Life?

cmdTower ships an update every 9 days, and Life weekly. Most recently, cmdTower was updated on September 30, 2026 and Life on October 1, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*