Comparison

Dipole ck vs NetBar

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

Head to head
About

Dipole ck

Features
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Dipole shows you how much data you are really using โ€“ separated by cellular and Wi-Fi, by download and upload, for today and for your entire billing period. A PERIOD THAT MATCHES YOUR PLAN Most data counters can do one thing: reset on the 1st of the month. Dipole does both. โ€ข Monthly on any day you choose, from 1 to 31 โ€ข By number of days โ€“ 7, 28, 30 or whatever your plan uses, starting from a date you pick This is exactly where most apps fall short: prepaid plans almost never follow the calendar month. A 28-day bundle drifts forward a little every month. Dipole follows that drift and always shows you the real current period, the days remaining and the date of the next reset. THE OVERVIEW Two large tiles, one for cellular and one for Wi-Fi, each showing: โ€ข Today's usage, split into download and upload โ€ข Total usage in the current period โ€ข Daily average โ€ข A forecast for the end of the period, based on your last 30 days โ€ข Data remaining until your limit Below that you see at a glance when the last reset happened, when the next one is due and how many days are left. STATISTICS Bar charts by day, month and year. Filter by connection (all, Wi-Fi, cellular) and by direction (all, uploads, downloads), with total, average and maximum. Page back as far as Dipole has data. LIMITS AND WARNINGS Enter your data limit for cellular and Wi-Fi in MB or GB. Dipole shows a progress ring and a bar, and sends you a notification when you reach two freely chosen percentage thresholds of your cellular limit โ€“ say 80 % and 95 %. Each warning is sent once per period, not more. WIDGETS Five home screen widgets: Today's Usage, Current Period, Remaining Data, Next Reset, and a configurable Overview widget where you choose whether it shows cellular, Wi-Fi or both. WHAT DIPOLE DOES FOR FREE โ€ข Full tracking, permanently and in the background โ€ข The complete overview with both tiles, every figure and the reset dates โ€ข Statistics for the last 21 days โ€ข The small "Today's Usage" widget Tracking runs in full from day one. Unlock later and your entire history is there retroactively โ€“ nothing is lost. FULL VERSION โ€“ ONE PURCHASE, NO SUBSCRIPTION โ€ข Statistics without limits: months, years and paging back through the past โ€ข All five widgets in every size, including the configurable Overview widget โ€ข Limits with progress display and the two warning thresholds โ€ข iCloud backup, automatically on launch, daily or weekly โ€ข Adjust usage data manually, for example when you switch plans mid-month One purchase, unlocked for good, no subscription, no recurring cost. GERMAN AND ENGLISH You can switch the language inside the app, independently of your system language. GOOD TO KNOW Dipole counts from the moment you install it. Figures can differ from your carrier's or from iOS Settings, because those counters started at a different time and partly count differently. For your own overview and for spotting trends Dipole is exactly what you need โ€“ it is not meant as evidence for disputing a bill. PRIVACY Dipole measures entirely on your iPhone. No servers, no account, no sign-in, no tracking, no ads. Your data leaves the device only if you turn on iCloud backup yourself โ€“ and then only into your own iCloud.

About

NetBar

Features
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Check slow Wi-Fi with download and upload tests, ping checks and the network traffic observed by your iPhone. TEST MORE THAN DOWNLOAD SPEED Watch the speedometer respond to measured throughput. Each download and upload phase targets at least 10 seconds. Check idle and loaded latency, jitter, TCP connection-probe loss, and consistency to understand how your connection behaves during a test. Measurements depend on your network and the test server. CHECK PING BEFORE YOU PLAY Test public endpoints associated with popular games, streaming services, and websites. See reachability, latency, jitter, and consistency together. These are TCP connection checks, not private game-server ping, ICMP packet-loss tests, or playback-quality measurements. SEE LIVE TRAFFIC AND OBSERVED DATA USAGE View download and upload activity in bits or bytes per second. Review Wi-Fi and cellular traffic observed by NetBar, with daily and monthly charts. Observed usage is not a complete carrier bill, router total, or per-app report. KEEP A USEFUL HISTORY Review recent results locally on your iPhone. NetBar Pro adds retained history, comparisons, custom public targets, and CSV export for a closer look at your connection over time. LATEST READINGS AT A GLANCE Start a Live Activity to see the latest measured rates on the Lock Screen and Dynamic Island on supported iPhones. iOS can suspend background apps: readings are marked stale when NetBar cannot take new measurements. This is not continuous monitoring while the app is closed. START FREE. UPGRADE ONCE. Get 3 successful speed tests per day, 7 days of history, built-in service checks, and live traffic readings. Optional NetBar Pro is a one-time purchase for unlimited successful tests, retained history, comparisons, custom public targets, CSV export, and ad removal. No subscription is required. NO ACCOUNT OR VPN REQUIRED Results stay on your device. NetBar does not inspect packet contents, browsing history, or individual app activity. Tests contact public providers and transfer real data, potentially substantial amounts on fast connections. The free version displays Google AdMob banners in History; privacy choices are provided where required. See the privacy policy for provider and advertising data handling. NetBar is not affiliated with or endorsed by the services whose public endpoints it checks. The interface supports English, Hindi, Spanish, French, and German.

Screenshots

Dipole ck3 screens
NetBar1 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Dipole ck at none against NetBar's shown. NetBar's advantage is update cadence (every 2 days vs weekly) and iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.0). On price, in-app purchases 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. Dipole ck sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and NetBar sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Dipole ck ships an update weekly, NetBar every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on September 30, 2026 and October 1, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences ยท 3 level
Dipole ck versus NetBar: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDipole ckNetBar
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyWeeklyEvery 2 days โ€” better
AdsNo โ€” betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
DevicesiPhoneiPhone
Requires iOS26.017.0 โ€” better
Further details โ€” not scored
Size3 MB5 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperChristian KrauseAnita Goyal

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Dipole ck

One-time1
  • Full Version One-time$6.99
1 purchases

NetBar

One-time1
  • NetBar Pro Lifetime$4.99

Questions

Is Dipole ck free?
Dipole ck is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is NetBar free?
NetBar is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Dipole ck or NetBar have ads?
NetBar shows ads; Dipole ck does not.
Which is updated more often, Dipole ck or NetBar?
Dipole ck ships an update weekly, and NetBar every 2 days. Most recently, Dipole ck was updated on September 30, 2026 and NetBar on October 1, 2026.

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