BlindBuddy vs The Retrieve
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
BlindBuddy
This app uses federal band recovery data and AI-driven weather analysis to predict optimal duck hunting conditions. It maps public lands, boat ramps, and provides legal shooting hours. Capture and share your successful hunts with detailed condition logs.
- 1M+ band recovery records on interactive map
- AI-powered weather analysis for hunting conditions
- Public lands and boat ramp mapping
- GPS-precise legal shooting hours
- Hunt camera with condition logging
- Supports all four flyways
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BlindBuddy reads the morning before you leave the truck. THE READ Every blind you save gets one score built from the conditions that actually move birds: wind speed and direction against your blind's facing, front timing, pressure trend, temperature swing, moon, and migration traffic. Tap the score and it decomposes. Every factor shows its number and its pull on the total. And when something was not measured that morning, the app says so instead of faking it. THREE DAY MATRIX Dawn and evening windows for the next three days, scored per blind. Pick the morning worth burning a vacation day on before the front gets here. THE LIVING MAP Scout mode surfaces hot areas computed from live bird sighting traffic and public hunting ground, anywhere in the country. Drop a pin, vet the spot against wind history and sightings, save it. My Ground keeps your blinds, pins, and field notes in one place. BAND HISTORY 3.1 million real USGS band recovery records on a map. See what was banded near your spots, where those birds came from, and how far they traveled. Sixty plus years of recoveries, not a sample. TIDES NOAA tide stations with the day's curve, in the station's own time zone. For the coastal crowd that hunts the moving water. SCOUTBUMP Pre-season scoring for new ground. Point your blind, set the wind you expect, and see how the spot grades before opening day. YOUR LOG Log hunts, birds, and bands. Season stats and personal bests are kept and counted, season over season. BUILT FOR EVERY FLYWAY Pacific, Central, Mississippi, Atlantic. Nothing in the app is hardcoded to one state. Some features require a BlindBuddy Pro subscription with auto renewal. Payment is charged to your Apple account at confirmation of purchase. Subscriptions renew unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the period. Manage or cancel in your Apple account settings. Data sources: Open-Meteo, NOAA CO-OPS, USGS Bird Banding Laboratory, eBird. Privacy policy: https://www.blindbuddyapp.com/privacy Terms of use: https://www.blindbuddyapp.com/terms
The Retrieve
Log and track all your dog's training sessions and hunts. Monitor retrieve rates, performance trends, and health metrics like weight and diet. Organize your memories with custom hashtags and share moments with beautiful session summaries.
- Log training sessions with notes
- Record hunts with results
- Search sessions by keyword/hashtag
- Organize with custom hashtags
- Session summaries with photos/stats
- Track retrieve rates and trends
- Manage multiple dogs and health logs
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Remember every moment in the pursuit of the retrieve. Every retriever lives for the moment the bird falls and the retrieve begins. The Retrieve helps you remember the hunts, the training, and the dogs that made those moments unforgettable. Log every training session, record every hunt, and see your dog improve over time with clear, simple tracking. Features: Log training sessions with notes, weather, and duration Record hunts with results and conditions Search your sessions instantly by keyword or hashtag Organize sessions with custom hashtags like #mallard or #AKC Beautiful session summaries with photos, stats, and notes at a glance Share training and hunt moments with the perfect photo Weekly training recap notifications to keep you on track Track retrieve rates and performance trends Track your dog's health with weight logs, diet tracking, and vaccine reminders Manage multiple dogs View your dog's full history in one place Built for serious handlers who want better insight into their dog's progress.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: The Retrieve at 5.0 against BlindBuddy's 4.2. BlindBuddy's advantage is update cadence (every 3 days vs every 5 weeks) and ratings volume (6 vs 2). 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. BlindBuddy sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $89.99 per year and The Retrieve sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
The Retrieve holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.2. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 6 and 2 respectively.
BlindBuddy ships an update every 3 days, The Retrieve every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on August 22, 2026 and September 9, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | BlindBuddy | The Retrieve |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.2 (6 ratings) | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 66.7% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 6 — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 days — better | Every 5 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 — better | 26.2 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 199 MB | 18 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | ROBERT ANTHONY HANSEN | Samantha Bohlman |
Customer experience
BlindBuddy
The Retrieve
In-app purchases
BlindBuddy
- BlindBuddy Pro3 Days trial$89.991 Year
- BlindBuddy Pro Lifetime$299.99
- BlindBuddy Pro Lifetime$399.99
The Retrieve
- The Retrieve: Premium Upgrade$4.99





