Comparison

OBD2 Cat vs OBD2 Logger

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

Head to head
About

OBD2 Cat

This app reads diagnostic trouble codes and live vehicle data from compatible cars using a Bluetooth OBD2 adapter. It helps drivers understand dashboard warnings by checking engine codes, viewing sensor data, and retrieving vehicle identification information.

Highlights
  • Read diagnostic trouble codes (DTCs)
  • Clear supported trouble codes
  • View live engine and sensor data
  • Check VIN, make, model, and year
  • Auto Scan for codes
  • View OBD protocol and connection status
Read full description

Your car has a story. OBD2 Cat helps you read the clues. OBD2 Cat is a straightforward Bluetooth OBD2 car scanner for compatible vehicles and adapters. Read diagnostic trouble codes, view live vehicle data, and check key vehicle details from your iPhone. With OBD2 Cat, you can: - Read Check Engine diagnostic trouble codes (DTCs) - Clear supported trouble codes - View supported live engine and sensor data - Check and copy your VIN, plus available make, model, and model year - Turn on Auto Scan to scan for codes after connecting - See the active OBD protocol and connection status Designed for drivers who want a simple first look when a dashboard warning appears, without the clutter of a professional workshop tool. Use a Bluetooth OBD2 adapter compatible with your iPhone and vehicle. If you use an ELM327-style adapter, make sure it supports Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE). Important: Clearing a trouble code does not repair the underlying issue. A warning light may return if the fault remains. For safety-critical warnings or persistent problems, have the vehicle inspected by a qualified technician.

About

OBD2 Logger

Read full description

OBD2 Logger turns your iPhone into a precision data logger for any modern car. Plug a Bluetooth ELM327 adapter into your vehicle's OBD2 port, pair it once, and stream live engine, hybrid, battery, and emissions data straight into per-session CSV files on your phone. No accounts. No cloud. No analytics. Your driving data never leaves your device. LIVE READOUT • 40+ standard SAE J1979 PIDs, automatically discovered from your car: RPM, vehicle speed, coolant temp, throttle, MAF, intake MAP, fuel trims, catalyst temperatures, and more. • Manufacturer-specific Mode 21 PIDs on profiled vehicles — including HV pack voltage, MG1/MG2 motor torque, and battery cell-block temperatures on Toyota/Lexus hybrids. • Values grouped by category (Engine, Hybrid, Battery, Emissions, Diagnostics) and updated every second. • One CSV per logging session, written into the app's Files container — open it in Numbers, Excel, pandas, DuckDB, or any other tool with no preprocessing. • Wide-table format: ISO-8601 timestamps, one column per active PID, blank cells where the ECU returned no data (no spurious forward-fill). • Smart-stop after extended idle so you don't end up with a tail of empty rows when you forget to tap Stop. WORKS IN THE BACKGROUND • Keeps logging while you drive with Maps in the foreground or the screen off, using Apple's standard background location mode for trip-tracking apps. The system location indicator is shown the entire time. We don't store your location. VEHICLE PROFILES • Ships with three profiles: a generic Mode-01 fallback, a Toyota hybrid family profile, and a 2020 Lexus RX 450h/450hL profile validated against a real vehicle. • VIN auto-read on connect; year, make, model, and trim pre-filled from NHTSA's free public vPIC API. • Import any third-party profile JSON to add coverage for your car. The format is documented and human-readable. DON'T HAVE AN ADAPTER YET? • Tap "Try demo mode" on the second onboarding step to explore the app end-to-end with synthetic data — no hardware required. WHAT YOU NEED • Any Bluetooth Low Energy ELM327 adapter (Veepeak OBDCheck BLE+, vLinker MC+, OBDLink, etc. — most BLE clones work). USB-only and Wi-Fi-only adapters are NOT supported. • A car with an OBD2 port (1996+ in the US, 2001+ in the EU). PRIVACY • Nothing is collected, transmitted, or stored on our servers — we don't have servers. The only outbound call the app ever makes is one VIN decode per vehicle to NHTSA's vPIC API. • Your CSVs and vehicle records live in the app's Files container, accessible to you in the iOS Files app under On My iPhone → OBD2 Logger. • Open source: github.com/NathanNam/obd2-logger

Screenshots

OBD2 Cat4 screens
OBD2 Logger4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: OBD2 Cat at fortnightly against OBD2 Logger's every 6 weeks. On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

OBD2 Cat ships an update fortnightly, OBD2 Logger every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard1 real difference · 8 level
OBD2 Cat versus OBD2 Logger: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterOBD2 CatOBD2 Logger
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings1 — better—
Update frequencyFortnightly — betterEvery 6 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhoneiPhone
Requires iOS16.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size15 MB3 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperRoman TikhonychevDaehyun Nam

In-app purchases

None

OBD2 Cat

No in-app purchases

None

OBD2 Logger

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is OBD2 Cat free?
OBD2 Cat is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is OBD2 Logger free?
OBD2 Logger is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do OBD2 Cat or OBD2 Logger have ads?
Neither OBD2 Cat nor OBD2 Logger shows ads.
Which is updated more often, OBD2 Cat or OBD2 Logger?
OBD2 Cat ships an update fortnightly, and OBD2 Logger every 6 weeks. Most recently, OBD2 Cat was updated on October 30, 2026 and OBD2 Logger on October 31, 2026.

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