Comparison

Fencing Referee vs Piste IQ

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

Head to head
About

Fencing Referee

This app helps manage fencing matches by keeping score, timing bouts, and tracking cards. It offers various configuration options for a personalized experience, including light/dark modes and an always-on screen.

Highlights
  • Score keeping
  • Time keeping
  • Card management
  • Priority management
  • Passivity timer
  • Period counter
  • Light and dark mode
Features
Read full description

Features include: - Score keeping, time keeping, card management, priority management, and more. - A modern look and feel - Long press on scores to reset score. - Long press on the timer to modify minutes/seconds - Optional passivity timer, p-card tracking, period counter and more. - Light and dark mode. - Tons of configuration options - Always-on screen Created and supported by AskFRED. Regularly updated as rules change, regularly enhanced with new features and functionality.

About

Piste IQ

This app helps fencers scout opponents and analyze their own performance. Create detailed reports, track bout history, and share insights with teammates and coaches to gain a strategic advantage.

Highlights
  • Create in-depth opponent scouting reports
  • Track win/loss and score history
  • Record tournament pool scores
  • Add video clips to reports (Pro)
  • Create 'self' profile for strategy comparison
  • Share reports and databases with teams
  • Post-tournament reflections
Features
Read full description

Raise your Piste IQ. Win the bout with information. Scout the fencers you face, log every bout, and turn what you notice into a plan for next time. Free to download. BUILD YOUR OWN CARD You decide what a scouting report tracks. Pick the fields you actually use, drag them into the order you think in, and add your own: a line of text, multi-line notes, a 1 to 9 rating, a two-sided slider you label yourself, tappable choices, or a date. Set it up when you start, change it any time in Settings. SCOUTING REPORTS (Pro) - Build an in-depth report on every opponent you face - Rate traits and tendencies: habits, favorite actions, patterns - Attach video clips to any report - Share reports with teammates and coaches - See your win/loss record and score history against each one TOURNAMENTS (Pro) - Scan the paper pool sheet. Take a picture and Piste IQ reads the names and scores, matches each fencer to your cards, and creates a card for anyone new - See the bout order under every pool, with names. Tick bouts off as they happen and know when you're up next - Log direct elimination bouts, touch by touch if you like, period by period - Start typing an event name and pick it from fencingevents.org: date, location, and category fill in for you - Take notes on an opponent before and after each bout - Find what actually works for you with post-tournament reflections STATS & LEADERBOARD (Pro) - Your all-time record at a glance: victories, defeats, indicator, touches scored and received, and fencers scouted, built from every bout you've logged - Leaderboards by victories, indicator, touches, or fencers scouted, for this month, this season, or all time - Compete with your friends, or opt in to the public board and see where you stand across Piste IQ UNDERSTAND YOUR OWN FENCING - Create your own fencer profile - Compare yourself against any opponent, side by side, and build a strategy from the gaps - Set season goals with deadlines and break them into a step-by-step plan (Pro) SOCIAL - Add friends by username to share information quickly - Share a single scouting report or an entire database FOR COACHES (Pro) - Student profiles with lesson tracking and strip-coaching notes - Share what you see with the rest of your coaching staff MAKE IT YOUR OWN - Switch on PisteDex, an optional retro-handheld theme, any time in Settings PISTE IQ PRO $4.99/month, $29.99/year, or $129.99 lifetime. One purchase unlocks the full toolkit: scouting reports, tournaments with pool-sheet scanning, stats and leaderboards, student profiles with lesson tracking, and season goals. Anything you have already recorded stays yours to read, free, always. Bought Piste IQ when it was a paid app? You have lifetime Pro. Every feature, free forever. Just sign in. Available in English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Japanese, Russian, Simplified Chinese, Polish, and Korean. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://www.notion.so/Piste-IQ-Privacy-Policy-34c1d297df6c8008be4edc817e9f6d08

Screenshots

Fencing Referee3 screens
Piste IQ4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Fencing Referee at none against Piste IQ's 3. Fencing Referee also leads on iOS requirement (15.1 vs 18.6). Piste IQ's advantage is update cadence (every 8 days vs every 3 weeks). On price, rating, ratings volume 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. Piste IQ sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Fencing Referee asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Fencing Referee against 5.0 for Piste IQ. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 5 and 2 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Fencing Referee ships an update every 3 weeks, Piste IQ every 8 days. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Fencing Referee versus Piste IQ: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFencing RefereePiste IQ
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (5 ratings)5.0 (2 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings5 — better2
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 8 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.1 — better18.6
Further details — not scored
Size35 MB21 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperAskFRED IncLUKE ALEXANDER FENWICK

Customer experience

Fencing Referee

All ratings4 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Piste IQ

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Fencing Referee

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

Piste IQ

Subscriptions2
  • Piste IQ Pro7 Days trial$2.991 Month
  • Piste IQ Pro (Annual)1 Month trial$24.991 Year
One-time1
  • Piste IQ Pro (Lifetime)$99.99

Questions

Is Fencing Referee free?
Fencing Referee is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Piste IQ free?
Piste IQ is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Fencing Referee or Piste IQ?
Fencing Referee and Piste IQ are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 5 and 2 ratings respectively.
Do Fencing Referee or Piste IQ have ads?
Neither Fencing Referee nor Piste IQ shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Fencing Referee or Piste IQ?
Fencing Referee ships an update every 3 weeks, and Piste IQ every 8 days. Most recently, Fencing Referee was updated on October 30, 2026 and Piste IQ on November 5, 2026.

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