Comparison

MathWake vs Rooster

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

Head to head
About

MathWake

This alarm app requires users to solve math problems to turn it off. It offers adjustable difficulty levels and problem counts to ensure you wake up. Designed for reliability, it aims to prevent the common issue of alarms failing to sound.

Highlights
  • Solve math problems to dismiss alarm
  • Adjustable difficulty levels
  • Selectable problem count
  • Daily repeat settings
  • 5-minute snooze option
  • Volume control
Features
Read full description

Wake Up Smart with Math Mathwake is an alarm app that requires solving math problems to dismiss. Features: - Difficulty levels: Easy (addition/subtraction) / Normal (multiplication/division) / Hard (mixed operations) - Problem count: Choose 1-5 problems - Repeat settings: Set by day of week - Snooze: 5-minute delay - Volume control: Adjust to your preference Perfect for: - Those who struggle to wake up with regular alarms - People who tend to oversleep - Students and workers with early mornings Built for Reliability: We solved the common complaint of competing apps crashing and failing to sound. Mathwake delivers stable and dependable alarm performance.

About

Rooster

This alarm app is designed for heavy sleepers, ensuring you wake up with its loud, persistent ring. It bypasses silent modes and offers customizable missions to prevent snoozing, with an option for a wake-up check.

Highlights
  • Rings through Silent, Do Not Disturb, and Focus modes
  • Customizable missions to prevent snoozing (math, steps, photo, scan)
  • Wake-check feature to ensure you stay awake
  • Repeat schedules and custom snooze rules
  • Escalation that rings louder each round (Pro)
  • Shift-rotation schedules (Pro)
Features
Read full description

For people every other alarm has failed. Rooster is built on Apple's own alarm engine, the same system framework the iPhone's own Clock app uses. That means it rings through the Silent switch, Do Not Disturb, and every Focus mode. Every time. With the app closed. After a restart. At full volume, even when your ringer is at zero. START WITH A FREE WEEK. Setup ends by starting a free week of Rooster Pro, an auto renewing subscription you can cancel anytime. Every feature is yours for those seven days, nothing is charged up front, and if you cancel, the basic alarm keeps working. No ads. No account. Repeat schedules, custom labels, snooze rules you control, a nap timer for quick recharges, and a one tap alarm test that proves your phone will ring. A SNOOZE CAN NEVER DISMISS. Snooze and stop live at opposite ends of the screen, and a snooze always rings again. That's enforced by the system, not by a promise. PRO: THE PART THAT GETS YOU OUT OF BED. Stack up to three missions that must be completed before the alarm stays quiet: • Math: three difficulty levels • Steps: walk it off, counted by your phone • Photo match: photograph your bathroom sink to prove you're up • Scan: the barcode on your toothpaste • NFC tag: stick one across the room; works in the dark • Shake: the gentle one • Typing: copy the wake phrase, letter by letter, or set your own • Memory: the tiles flash, you tap them back • Pushups: the front camera counts your reps • Squats: stand back, the camera counts every rep • Item hunt: Rooster names something in your home, you go find it. A new target every wake, zero setup Pro also brings twelve bundled alarm sounds with Shuffle so your brain never learns one tune, escalation that rings louder every round, and your own alarm sounds. EVERY MISSION HAS AN ESCAPE HATCH. Hold ten seconds, type "I give up", and the alarm stops. It always works, even with a broken camera. Rooster makes waking effortful, never impossible. WAKE CHECK. Dismissed the alarm and gone back to sleep? Five minutes later Rooster asks "Still up?" If you don't answer, it rings once more. Part of Pro, and on from the start for every new alarm you create with Pro. PRIVATE BY ARCHITECTURE. Mission photos are compared on your phone and never uploaded. There is no account, no ads, and no tracking. What leaves your phone is crash reports and usage signals under random IDs, never your alarms or photos. HONEST PRICING. A yearly plan with a week free to test everything, plus one simple alternative. Every price shows the full amount you pay, right on the screen. No weekly tricks, no surprise tiers. SCHEDULES THAT MATCH REAL LIFE. Skip picked dates on the calendar so the holidays stay silent. Pause everything until the day you fly home, and alarms come back on their own. Set a one time alarm on a future date for the appointment you cannot miss. All part of the basic alarm. Rooster is for heavy sleepers, deep sleepers, shift workers, and everyone who currently sets fifteen alarms to survive one morning. Replace them with one that cannot fail. Terms of Use: https://wakerooster.com/terms/ Privacy Policy: https://wakerooster.com/privacy/

Screenshots

MathWake3 screens
Rooster4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Rooster at 4.4 against MathWake's 3.3. Rooster also leads on update cadence (every 6 days vs every 6 weeks) and ratings volume (135 vs 4). MathWake's advantage is review sentiment (100% vs 81%) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 26.0). 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. MathWake sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and Rooster sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Rooster holds the better App Store score, 4.4 against 3.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Rooster has 135 ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 100% of MathWake's written reviews are positive against 81% of Rooster's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

MathWake ships an update every 6 weeks, Rooster every 6 days. The most recent releases landed on October 31, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
MathWake versus Rooster: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMathWakeRooster
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.3 (4 ratings)4.4 (135 ratings) — better
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews — better81.3% of reviews
Number of ratings4135 — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeksEvery 6 days — better
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size94 MB36 MB
Age rating+44+
Developerkota tadaBillion Web Pte. Ltd.

Customer experience

MathWake

All ratings4 ratings
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Rooster

All ratings127 ratings
Positive83.5%
Neutral5.5%
Negative11.0%
Written reviews16 reviews
Positive81.3%
Neutral6.3%
Negative12.5%

In-app purchases

2 purchases

MathWake

Subscriptions2
  • Ad-free for 1 month7 Days trial$4.991 Month
  • Ad-free for 1 year14 Days trial$49.991 Year
10 purchases

Rooster

Subscriptions9
  • Rooster Pro Weekly3 Days trial$4.997 Days
  • Rooster Pro Monthly$4.991 Month
  • Rooster Pro Weekly$4.997 Days
Show 6 more
  • Rooster Pro Monthly$7.991 Month
  • Rooster Pro Monthly3 Days trial$12.991 Month
  • Rooster Pro7 Days trial$34.991 Year
  • Rooster Pro$34.991 Year
  • Rooster Pro7 Days trial$49.991 Year
  • Rooster Pro7 Days trial$59.991 Year
One-time1
  • Rooster Pro — Lifetime$34.99

Questions

Is MathWake free?
MathWake is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Rooster free?
Rooster is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, MathWake or Rooster?
Rooster is rated higher. MathWake averages 3.3 out of 5 from 4 ratings, while Rooster averages 4.4 from 135 ratings.
Do MathWake or Rooster have ads?
Both MathWake and Rooster show ads.
Which is updated more often, MathWake or Rooster?
MathWake ships an update every 6 weeks, and Rooster every 6 days. Most recently, MathWake was updated on October 31, 2026 and Rooster on November 5, 2026.

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