Comparison

Trinote vs HomeLab Watcher

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

Head to head
About

Trinote

A native, open-source iOS client for self-hosted note servers. Browse, organize, and search your entire note tree, including text, code, and image files. Enjoy offline access to cached content and customize the app's appearance.

Highlights
  • Browse and organize note tree
  • Full-text search on server
  • Read and edit text, code, images, files
  • Offline caching of content
  • Customizable appearance with dark mode
  • Privacy-focused client-only design
Features
Read full description

Trinote is a native, open-source iOS client for your self-hosted Trilium (TriliumNext) note server. Your notes stay on your server and your device — Trinote is a client only. Browse & organize Explore your full note tree with lazy loading, clones, and branches — the way Trilium models your workspace. Create, move, duplicate, and delete notes; keep favorites and recents at hand; optionally work with open-note tabs. Find anything Run full-text search on the server to jump to the right note fast. Offline, search titles in your cached notes. Use find-on-page once a note is open. Read & edit Open and edit text notes with a rich editor — formatting, lists, task lists, tables, callouts, code blocks, images, links, and math. Work with code, images, and files too. Also supported: canvas, Mermaid diagrams, mind maps, spreadsheets, geo maps, calendars, kanban boards, and presentations (availability can depend on your Trilium version). Attachments Add from Camera, Photos, or Files. Preview, download, rename, and share. Share & capture Save text, links, images, and files into Trinote via the iOS Share extension (Markdown becomes HTML). Manage public Trilium share links, or send notes to a nearby device over your local network. Stays useful offline Caches tree structure and note content so you can keep browsing and editing when the network drops. Changes sync when you’re back online. Full-text search and some live actions still need the server. Connect your way Sign in with your Trilium password (TOTP supported). Use multiple server profiles, and optional Cloudflare Access for protected setups. Appearance & security Choose light, dark, or system appearance, plus color themes and custom accents. Lock the app with a PIN and Face ID / Touch ID. Privacy Trinote does not host your notes. Your data lives on your Trilium server and your local device.

About

HomeLab Watcher

Features
Read full description

HomeLab Watcher gives you one calm, private glance at the latest known health of the homelab resources you care about. ONE HONEST DASHBOARD • See HTTP services, Beszel machines, and Proxmox VE nodes together • Separate the last successful observation from the latest refresh attempt • Recognize healthy, attention, unhealthy, unknown, aging, and stale states • Refresh all resources or one system directly from your iPhone USEFUL WIDGETS • Small Home Screen status widget • Medium resource overview • Lock Screen status • Interactive refresh without automatically opening the app • Explicit observation age because iOS controls background timing PRIVATE BY DESIGN • No HomeLab Watcher account • No cloud relay or hosted backend • No analytics, ads, tracking, or remote logs • Configuration stays on device • Credentials stay in Apple Keychain • Requests go directly to systems you configure READ ONLY HomeLab Watcher checks status and metrics. It does not start, stop, restart, delete, update, or otherwise administer your infrastructure. TRY BEFORE YOU BUY Sample Lab demonstrates every important presentation state without credentials or a reachable homelab. The free app also supports two HTTP or HTTPS resources and the small widget. LIFETIME UNLOCK A one-time purchase unlocks unlimited resources, Beszel, Proxmox VE, and every widget family. There is no subscription. SUPPORTED CONNECTIONS HomeLab Watcher works with addresses reachable from your iPhone over LAN, an existing private network route, or public HTTPS. iOS system certificate trust is required; the app never bypasses TLS security. HomeLab Watcher is not affiliated with or endorsed by Proxmox Server Solutions GmbH or the Beszel project.

Screenshots

Trinote4 screens
HomeLab Watcher4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Trinote at none against HomeLab Watcher's 1. Trinote also leads on ratings volume (14 vs 2). On price, rating, update cadence and ads 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. HomeLab Watcher sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Trinote asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Trinote against 5.0 for HomeLab Watcher. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Trinote has 14 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Trinote ships an update every 4 days, HomeLab Watcher every 5 days. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Trinote versus HomeLab Watcher: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTrinoteHomeLab Watcher
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (14 ratings)5.0 (2 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings14 — better2
Update frequencyEvery 4 days — betterEvery 5 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS18.017.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size68 MB15 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperVero Fide LLCYANCY SHEPHERD

In-app purchases

None

Trinote

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

HomeLab Watcher

One-time1
  • HomeLab Watcher Lifetime$4.99

Questions

Is Trinote free?
Trinote is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is HomeLab Watcher free?
HomeLab Watcher is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Trinote or HomeLab Watcher?
Trinote and HomeLab Watcher are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 14 and 2 ratings respectively.
Do Trinote or HomeLab Watcher have ads?
Neither Trinote nor HomeLab Watcher shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Trinote or HomeLab Watcher?
Trinote ships an update every 4 days, and HomeLab Watcher every 5 days. Most recently, Trinote was updated on October 24, 2026 and HomeLab Watcher on October 24, 2026.

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