Comparison

LIFX vs Meross

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

Head to head
About

LIFX

Control your smart lights with this app. Easily adjust brightness, color, and temperature. Automate schedules, create custom scenes, and explore fun lighting effects. Integrates with voice assistants and HomeKit for seamless control.

Highlights
  • Basic light control (on/off, dim, color, temperature)
  • Group lights for easy management
  • Automated schedules and scenes
  • Special lighting effects (music visualizer, fire, etc.)
  • Live color painting on compatible lights
  • Custom color palettes
  • HomeKit integration
Features
Read full description

Like you, LIFX wants smarter light. This means we care about the way you control your smart lights, as much as we do about the lights themselves. We make it easy to get started with WiFi-enabled, bright, colorful smart lights that need no hub. Yep, you can start with just one device. LIFX App 4 can not only help give you the best start, but will turn your experience “up to 11”. Automate your wake up Schedule, or set up your movie-watching Scene (then set up voice control so you don’t even have to leave the sofa), or play with Effects next time you’re entertaining. Features. The LIFX app is packed full of features like: - The Basics: on/off, dim, change color, change white temperature. - Groups: control all lights in a group easily, including on/off and dimming with one touch from the Home Dashboard. - Group personalization: choose a LIFX illustration to suit or personalize Group cards with your own pictures. - Schedules: automate your lights to fade, change color, and turn on/off, all visible in an easy calendar-style view. - Effects: play with special effects like the music visualizer, fire, move, candle flicker, strobe, color cycle & more, all in one place. - Scenes: set your lighting just the way you like it and save it for later. - Themes: a library of one click color combinations for a Group, from ‘Proud’ to ‘Soothing’. - Paint: with your finger in the app, paint color live onto your LIFX Z, Beam, Tile and Candle. - Custom color palettes: add your favorite colors to a custom color palette. - Discover Tab: find How To guides, learn about integration partners, or shop for LIFX - and much more. Example uses from our customers: - Ambiance: schedule warmer light in the evening - to calm - and whiter light in the morning - to energize. - “Moccupancy”: set irregular schedules to make it seem like you’re home when you’re not. - Sleep: set your bedroom lights to deep red just before bed to produce more melatonin which helps you get better quality sleep. - Stay put: you’ve settled into the sofa for a streaming binge but left the lights on. No need to jump up to the switch, just ask your voice assistant. - Pet owners: if you're unexpectedly late home from work, turn the lights on for your dog from wherever you are. - Silent notifications: use partner apps to give you a light flash if… your car is arriving, or the forecast says it will rain, or you are mentioned on social media, and much more. HomeKit Best color-changing smart bulb for HomeKit cnet Pairing LIFX with Apple HomeKit is easy using the HomeKit onboarding QR code available in the product packaging. Stay in touch. Need a helping hand, or want to offer us some advice? We would love to hear from you about your LIFX experience. You can reach us at support@lifx.com. LIFX lights are available at lifx.com

About

Meross

Control and manage a wide range of smart home devices remotely. Set schedules, create custom scenes, and integrate with voice assistants for automated control. Access troubleshooting guides, firmware updates, and community forums for support.

Highlights
  • Remote device control
  • Custom schedules and scenes
  • Voice assistant integration
  • Firmware updates
  • In-app hardware guides
  • Consumer forum
Features
Read full description

Meross app can help you set up and manage smart WiFi bulb, plug, switch, garage door opener, thermostat, air purifier, sensor, humidifier and so on. Meross app offers you special value that other platform apps can not offer such as in-app hardware guide and troubleshooting, in-app setup guide and dedicated troubleshooting, firmware update, cloud service maintenance notice, digital user manual, consumer forum, and new product release information. With Meross app, you can 1. Turn on and off your devices remotely from anywhere with internet. 2. Set schedules and scenes for your devices so that they can run automatically as you wish. 3. Link your devices to your voice assistant platform. 4. Check and update your devices to the latest firmware. 5. Share great product experience with others and discuss about how to use products in Forum. 6. Find information about special offer and new product release. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

LIFX4 screens
Meross4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Meross at 77% against LIFX's 18%. Meross also leads on rating (4.5 vs 3.7) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 18.0). LIFX's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 8). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and ads 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. Meross sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. LIFX asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Meross holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 3.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 7.1K and 7.9K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 18% of LIFX's written reviews are positive against 77% of Meross's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly fortnightly. Both last shipped on October 23, 2026.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
LIFX versus Meross: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterLIFXMeross
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.7 (7.1K ratings)4.5 (7.9K ratings) — better
Positive reviews18.2% of reviews77.2% of reviews — better
Number of ratings7.1K7.9K — better
Update frequencyFortnightlyFortnightly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple WatchiPhone, iPod, Apple Watch
Requires iOS18.013.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size259 MB232 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperLIFXChengdu Meross Technology Co.,Ltd.

Customer experience

LIFX

All ratings7,109 ratings
Positive65.7%
Neutral4.8%
Negative29.5%
Written reviews719 reviews
Positive18.2%
Neutral11.1%
Negative70.7%

Meross

All ratings7,880 ratings
Positive89.6%
Neutral2.8%
Negative7.6%
Written reviews1,595 reviews
Positive77.2%
Neutral6.1%
Negative16.7%

User reviews

LIFX

From 7.1K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🌟 Excellent color quality and brightness
  • 🔍 Customizable lighting effects and scenes
  • 🔌 Easy setup and connectivity
  • 📱 Responsive and intuitive app
  • 🤖 Good integration with smart home platforms

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Connectivity issues and unreliable performance
  • 🤯 Confusing and cluttered app UI
  • 🔄 Frequent app and firmware updates breaking functionality
  • 🤖 Poor integration with smart home platforms
  • 🕰️ Scheduling and automation issues

Meross

From 7.9K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Easy to use app
  • 🚀 Reliable and stable performance
  • 💡 Useful features like power consumption monitoring
  • 🔒 Secure and private
  • 🔌 Seamless integration with smart home platforms

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional connectivity issues and device disconnections
  • 🔧 Setup can be tricky at times
  • 📱 Limited customization options in the app
  • 🕰️ Routines and scheduling could be more flexible

Bugs and requests

LIFX

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Lights randomly disconnecting from app
  • Scenes and effects not working as expected
  • Scheduling issues and lights not responding to timers
  • Compatibility problems with newer iOS versions
  • Frequent app crashes and freezes

Requested features

5 requests
  • More granular control over individual lights
  • Improved scene and effect customization
  • Better scheduling and automation options
  • Seamless integration with smart home platforms
  • Simplified onboarding and setup process

Meross

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Unreliable garage door status reporting
  • Compatibility issues with iOS 16 updates
  • Inconsistent device discovery and pairing

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add support for more smart home platforms
  • Improve app interface and allow for more customization
  • Enhance scheduling and automation features
  • Provide more detailed energy consumption reporting

In-app purchases

None

LIFX

No in-app purchases

8 purchases

Meross

Subscriptions6
  • 10 SMS for a month$0.991 Month
  • 优惠测试-月$1.991 Month
  • 优惠测试-年$1.991 Year
Show 3 more
  • 优惠测试-周$1.997 Days
  • 30 SMS for a month1 Month trial$2.491 Month
  • 100 SMS for a month$6.991 Month
One-time2
  • 30 SMS$3.49
  • 100 SMS$9.99

Questions

Is LIFX free?
LIFX is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Meross free?
Meross is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, LIFX or Meross?
Meross is rated higher. LIFX averages 3.7 out of 5 from 7.1K ratings, while Meross averages 4.5 from 7.9K ratings.
Do LIFX or Meross have ads?
Neither LIFX nor Meross shows ads.
Which is updated more often, LIFX or Meross?
LIFX ships an update fortnightly, and Meross fortnightly. Most recently, LIFX was updated on October 23, 2026 and Meross on October 23, 2026.

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