Top Hat vs NC State University Guides
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Top Hat
This app enhances your learning experience by providing interactive textbooks, in-class response systems, and discussion forums. Engage with course content and professors through dynamic resources and assessments, both inside and outside the classroom.
- Interactive textbooks
- In-class response system
- Professor and peer discussions
- Lecture slide following
- Quizzes and polls
- Graded and non-graded homework
Read full descriptionHide full description
Top Hat is the perfect companion app to our comprehensive assessment platform that helps you learn better before, during and after class. Top Hat makes learning fun and engaging (seriously!) and sets you up for success, helping you connect with your professors, your peers and the content you’re learning in and out of the classroom. Here’s what Top Hat offers you: Compelling resources, delivered on your smartphone or laptop: • Follow your prof’s lecture slides on your own device • Contribute in class with an easy-to-use response system that’s always with you • Participate with your profs and peers using in-app discussions Content tailored to your course: • Experience dynamic, interactive textbooks loaded up with images, videos, audio clips and more • Read your digital materials from anywhere and keep them forever Quizzes, tests and polls that improve learning comprehension: • Challenge yourself by taking polls and quizzes on your own devices • Improve your knowledge retention with interactive assessment elements • Check for gaps in your understanding with graded and non-graded homework and short quizzes Thanks for using Top Hat. As you experience the app, we’d love to get your feedback: support@tophat.com or follow us on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook @TopHat
NC State University Guides
Find essential information for NC State University, including orientation schedules, event details like Wolfpack Welcome Week, and resources for academic success and student leadership. Explore career fairs, conferences, and valuable links to support your university experience.
- Orientation schedules
- Event details (Wolfpack Welcome Week, Packapalooza)
- Career fair information
- Student leadership opportunities
- Academic success suggestions
- Links to valuable resources
Read full descriptionHide full description
Looking for important information, schedules for orientation, or details about events like Wolfpack Welcome Week and Packapalooza at NC State? The NC State Guides app is the place to go. We have everything from career fairs, to student leadership opportunities, conferences, academic success suggestions, links to valuable resources, event information, and much more.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ratings volume: Top Hat at 23K against NC State University Guides's 20. Top Hat also leads on rating (4.6 vs 4.3) and update cadence (fortnightly vs every 2 months). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Top Hat holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Top Hat has 23K ratings behind it against 20, so its average is the more settled of the two.
Top Hat ships an update fortnightly, NC State University Guides every 2 months. Both last shipped on November 6, 2026.
| Parameter | Top Hat | NC State University Guides |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (23K ratings) — better | 4.3 (20 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 15.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 23K — better | 20 |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly — better | Every 2 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Best chart rank | #202 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 16.6 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 152 MB | 53 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 17+ |
| Developer | Top Hat Monocle | North Carolina State University |
Customer experience
Top Hat
NC State University Guides
Bugs and requests
Top Hat
Reported bugs
3 issues- Answers not registering correctly
- Slides not loading properly on mobile devices
- Inconsistent performance across platforms
Requested features
3 requests- Add page numbers and search functionality to ebooks
- Improve syncing between mobile and web versions
- Allow more flexible location settings for attendance
NC State University Guides
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Top Hat
No in-app purchases
NC State University Guides
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Top Hat free?
Is NC State University Guides free?
Which has better reviews, Top Hat or NC State University Guides?
Do Top Hat or NC State University Guides have ads?
Which is updated more often, Top Hat or NC State University Guides?
Other comparisons
