Comparison

ReefDrift vs ReefTracker

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

Head to head
About

ReefDrift

Features
Read full description

Log every reef parameter in seconds. ReefDrift calculates a Tank Stability Score โ€” Stable, Watch, or Danger โ€” the instant you save a reading. Catch a 0.3 dKH swing before it costs $500 in coral. No account. No cloud. Just your tank data, on your device. LOG THE BIG THREE AND EVERYTHING ELSE Alkalinity (dKH), Calcium, Magnesium โ€” the parameters reef keepers obsess over. Plus Nitrate, Phosphate, pH, Salinity, Temperature, Ammonia, and Nitrite. Last values pre-fill automatically so a full test set takes under ten seconds, not one screen per parameter. TANK STABILITY SCORE ReefDrift calculates a Stable, Watch, or Danger score the instant you save a reading. The score weights every parameter against your target band and flags drift between sessions. A single alk swing from 8.4 to 7.1 dKH registers as Danger before you wonder why a frag is pale. Out-of-range chips light up on the dashboard immediately โ€” no digging, no scrolling. DOSING CALCULATOR โ€” WIRED TO YOUR TANK BRS 2-part, ESV B-Ionic, Red Sea Foundation, Aquaforest KH Coralline, and custom products. Enter tank volume and current reading; ReefDrift gives you the exact dose to hit your target. Works for alk, cal, mag, NO3, and PO4. The math uses your real tank volume, not a generic estimate. TREND CHARTS WITH TARGET-RANGE BANDS Every reading plotted on a line chart with your target band overlaid. See whether alkalinity is riding the top of the band, drifting toward the floor, or cycling after a large dose. Adjust the time window from 7 days to 12 months. MAINTENANCE LOG Record water changes, GFO swaps, ATO top-offs, carbon additions, and frag-tank moves. Cross-reference maintenance events against parameter charts to see what actually moved the needle. TEST REMINDERS Set a reminder per parameter or per task. ReefDrift sends a local notification on schedule โ€” no server required. Never miss a Friday alk test again. HOME SCREEN WIDGET Your last three parameters and next task on your iPhone home screen or lock screen. See your tank status without opening the app. BUILT BY REEF HOBBYISTS We run SPS-dominant systems. We have watched a two-week alk drift destroy a $2,000 Acropora collection. We built ReefDrift because every existing option was either abandoned, clunky, cloud-first, or a bloated social network with a parameter logger bolted on. ReefDrift is ruthlessly focused: fast log, honest score, useful calculator. Nothing else. PRIVACY โ€” YOUR DATA STAYS ON YOUR DEVICE No account. No cloud. No login. All readings are stored locally on your iPhone and never leave your device unless you export them as CSV. Nothing to hack, nothing to lose in a server outage. ReefDrift Pro: Monthly $3.99 ยท Yearly $19.99 (save 58%) ยท Lifetime $59.99 โ€” unlimited tanks, no ads, home screen widget, advanced charts, dosing correlation, and PDF reports. Supports: dKH, meq/L, ppm ยท SG, ppt ยท ยฐC, ยฐF Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://lid-web-privacy.web.app/reefdrift-privacy-policy-ios.html

About

ReefTracker

Features
Read full description

ReefTracker is the offline reef-aquarium logbook built for hobbyists who want real insight into their tank's chemistry - not just a spreadsheet. Log your water tests and instantly see whether each parameter is healthy, borderline, or critical with clear green/amber/red zones. Watch trends over time, catch a slow drift before it becomes a crash, and get an overall tank Health Score at a glance. What you can track - Core parameters: temperature, pH, salinity, alkalinity, calcium, magnesium, nitrate, phosphate, ammonia, nitrite, ORP - 33-element ICP micro-panel for trace elements - import lab reports directly from Fauna Marin or any ZIMS-format export instead of typing every value by hand - Multiple tanks, each with its own parameter set, targets, and history - Water changes, carbon changes, and equipment cleaning logs - Supplement dosing plans and a dose calculator that estimates consumption from your own test history - Key ratios (PO4:NO3, Mg:Ca) and free-ammonia toxicity, computed automatically from your existing readings Read your equipment directly - Hanna checkers: connect over Bluetooth and save each result as it arrives, or point your camera at the display and let the app read the number - ReefFactory meters, Red Sea ReefBeat devices and Neptune Apex controllers (experimental): take probe values straight off the hardware and save them as measurements - All of it on one Connected devices page, over your own Wi-Fi - no cloud service in between Stay on top of maintenance - Reminders for testing, dosing, and recurring maintenance tasks (water changes, filter socks, glass cleaning, and more) - Reverse-osmosis filter stage tracking, so you always know when the next cartridge is due See the big picture - Tank Health Score and Stability Score summarize where you stand and how steady you've been - Trend detection projects when a value is headed out of range, and says so plainly when a parameter is merely swinging rather than guessing a direction - Smart insights surface the handful of things that actually deserve your attention this week Private by design Everything is stored locally on your device. There's no account, no sign-up, and no ads - your data is yours. Connections to aquarium hardware stay on your own network. Back up and restore anytime via the share sheet. Built for fish-only, soft coral, LPS, SPS, and mixed reef setups alike, ReefTracker adapts its default parameters and targets to the kind of tank you run.

Screenshots

ReefDrift4 screens
ReefTracker4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: ReefTracker at none against ReefDrift's 3. ReefTracker also leads on ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (every 4 days vs every 2 weeks). On price and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price ยท Rating ยท Positive reviews ยท Number of ratings ยท Update frequency ยท Ads ยท In-app purchases ยท Monetization ยท Best chart rank ยท Devices ยท Requires iOS

CostPrice ยท In-app purchases ยท Ads ยท Monetization

Both are free to download. ReefDrift sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. ReefTracker asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ReefDrift ships an update every 2 weeks, ReefTracker every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 9, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences ยท 2 level
ReefDrift versus ReefTracker: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterReefDriftReefTracker
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksEvery 4 days โ€” better
AdsYesNo โ€” better
In-app purchasesYesNo โ€” better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPod
Requires iOS18.215.0 โ€” better
Further details โ€” not scored
Size16 MB42 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMuge AkalinAlexandr Bobrovsky

In-app purchases

3 purchases

ReefDrift

Subscriptions2
  • ReefDrift Pro Monthly$3.991 Month
  • ReefDrift Pro Yearly$19.991 Year
One-time1
  • ReefDrift Pro Lifetime$59.99
None

ReefTracker

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is ReefDrift free?
ReefDrift is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is ReefTracker free?
ReefTracker is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do ReefDrift or ReefTracker have ads?
ReefDrift shows ads; ReefTracker does not.
Which is updated more often, ReefDrift or ReefTracker?
ReefDrift ships an update every 2 weeks, and ReefTracker every 4 days. Most recently, ReefDrift was updated on September 24, 2026 and ReefTracker on September 9, 2026.

Other comparisons