# TRMNL Companion vs Barely Notes

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: TRMNL Companion at none against Barely Notes's 1. TRMNL Companion also leads on iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.0). Barely Notes's advantage is update cadence (every 11 days vs every 6 months). On price, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Barely Notes sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. TRMNL Companion asks for nothing beyond the download.

TRMNL Companion ships an update every 6 months, Barely Notes every 11 days. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 8, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | TRMNL Companion | Barely Notes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.6 (5 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/trmnl-companion/id6752111280/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **5** | — |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 6 months | **Every 11 days** |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Size | 6 MB | 1 MB |
| Requires iOS | **17.0** | 26.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad** | iPhone |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [TRMNL](https://appshunter.io/developer/1817327674) | [Ashley Cornette](https://appshunter.io/developer/6796440920) |

## What reviewers say

### TRMNL Companion

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/trmnl-companion/id6752111280)

This app syncs your Calendar, Health, and Reminders data to create personalized ePaper dashboards. It allows for custom plugins and connects to a public marketplace for extended functionality, offering a focused experience without subscription fees.

**Highlights:** Personalized dashboards, Calendar integration, Health data sync, Reminders integration, Custom plugin support, Public marketplace access

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

**In-app purchases:** none


### Barely Notes

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/barely-notes/id6796440918)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Bokashi Themes | $2.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is TRMNL Companion free?

TRMNL Companion is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Barely Notes free?

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

### Do TRMNL Companion or Barely Notes have ads?

Neither TRMNL Companion nor Barely Notes shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, TRMNL Companion or Barely Notes?

TRMNL Companion ships an update every 6 months, and Barely Notes every 11 days. Most recently, TRMNL Companion was updated on October 24, 2026 and Barely Notes on October 8, 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.*