# Decibels vs SoundMeter

The clearest difference is ads: Decibels at none against SoundMeter's shown. SoundMeter's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 5 months). On price, in-app purchases, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Decibels sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and SoundMeter sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Decibels ships an update every 5 months, SoundMeter every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 28, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Decibels | SoundMeter |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 5 months | **Every 2 weeks** |
| Size | 6 MB | 6 MB |
| Requires iOS | 18.0 | **17.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Merano Studio Limited](https://appshunter.io/developer/1783493234) | [Yusuke Takeuchi](https://appshunter.io/developer/1103617788) |

## What reviewers say

### Decibels

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/decibels/id6749821741)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Leave a Tip | $0.99 | one-time |


### SoundMeter

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/soundmeter-decibel-db-meter/id6794570606)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Remove Ads | $2.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Decibels free?

Decibels is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is SoundMeter free?

SoundMeter is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Do Decibels or SoundMeter have ads?

SoundMeter shows ads; Decibels does not.

### Which is updated more often, Decibels or SoundMeter?

Decibels ships an update every 5 months, and SoundMeter every 2 weeks. Most recently, Decibels was updated on October 28, 2026 and SoundMeter on October 29, 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.*