Comparison

LiveMath vs Surface Explorer

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

Head to head
About

LiveMath

Features
Read full description

A symbolic algebra and graphing platform for the rest of us - visual exploration and intuitive interaction without writing code. Looks like math. Feels like math. No programming headaches. Do algebra by picking up expressions and dragging or applying commands to them - you feel the tactile operations. Drag expressions onto graph windows to add them to the graph. Plot and compute: • Parametric and implicit curves and surfaces, including tubes • Differential equation solutions as numerical Flow plots • Inequalities plots for linear programming • Polygons and polyhedra with the Shapes plot • Embedded videos in notebooks • Full Unicode, including emoji, in math computations • Significantly improved integration and differentiation engines • Laplace Transform computations • Statistics and linear algebra built in, including SVD and Eigenfactor • Drag-and-drop matrix row operations for classroom presentation Free to read and interact with any premade notebook. LiveMath Pro unlocks adding new expressions and computations, saving and exporting. iPhone, iPad, Mac and Windows. Fifteen languages. LiveMath Pro is an auto-renewable yearly subscription. Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase; the subscription renews automatically unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Manage or cancel in Settings. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://www.livemath.com/privacy

About

Surface Explorer

Features
Read full description

Surface Explorer is a high-performance visualizer for intricate mathematical surfaces — 2D manifolds embedded in three- or four-dimensional space, and 3D slices of four-dimensional hypersurfaces — bringing abstract geometry to life with real-time GPU rendering. KEY FEATURES • Cross Section — slice four-dimensional hypersurfaces and watch their 3D sections change shape as you rotate them in 4D or slide the cutting plane along the fourth axis, even along a 4D camera path. • Ray Marching Engine — real-time rendering of implicit surfaces and signed-distance fields, with procedural displacement, transparency, adjustable shells, and a precise mode for high-degree equations. • Multi-Mesh Surfaces — build figures from several independent grids, each with its own color, transparency, texture and domain. • Geodesic Flow — explore intrinsic geometry on curved manifolds (S³, H²×R, SL(2,R) and more), integrating geodesics from initial conditions. • 4D Spatial Exploration — dedicated controls for hyperspatial rotation (Omega, Phi, Psi), projection, and 3D and 4D camera paths. • 4D Lighting Models — Directional, Observer, and Slice lighting designed for hyperspace. • Dynamic GLSL Scripting — write custom shaders for procedural textures and surface logic in the built-in editor. • Backgrounds — images and procedural effects, fixed on screen or wrapped around the scene as a sphere, cylinder or cube. • Audio-Visual Synthesis — synchronize geometric parameters with a mathematical sound synthesizer. • Video Recording — capture your explorations directly in the app and save them to your device. A library of ready-made presets ships with the app, from classic parametric surfaces to black-hole ergospheres, curved-space tori and slices of the 3-torus, together with a searchable built-in manual. Built with Qt and Metal for smooth, native performance on iPhone and iPad.

Screenshots

LiveMath4 screens
Surface Explorer4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Surface Explorer at none against LiveMath's 1. LiveMath's advantage is iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). On price, update cadence, ads and device support 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. LiveMath sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $149.00 per year. Surface Explorer asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

LiveMath ships an update every 9 days, Surface Explorer fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 8, 2026 and October 4, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 4 level
LiveMath versus Surface Explorer: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterLiveMathSurface Explorer
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 9 days — betterFortnightly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — betteriPhone, iPad, Mac
Requires iOS15.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size237 MB62 MB
Age rating9+4+
DeveloperMathMonkeys, LLCGAETANO MOSCHETTI

In-app purchases

1 purchases

LiveMath

Subscriptions1
  • Yearly$149.001 Year
None

Surface Explorer

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is LiveMath free?
LiveMath is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Surface Explorer free?
Surface Explorer is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do LiveMath or Surface Explorer have ads?
Neither LiveMath nor Surface Explorer shows ads.
Which is updated more often, LiveMath or Surface Explorer?
LiveMath ships an update every 9 days, and Surface Explorer fortnightly. Most recently, LiveMath was updated on October 8, 2026 and Surface Explorer on October 4, 2026.

Other comparisons