Comparison

Fluid Simulation vs Driftlight

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

Head to head
About

Fluid Simulation

Read full description

Art you can touch. LIQUIDTOUCH is an art app for iPhone and iPad that lets you explore light, liquids, metal and geometry through taps and drags. Tap to send ripples across the screen. Drag to change what you see. When you want to move your fingers without thinking or take a break, enjoy a little time with art at your own pace. • Find your favorite among 45 artworks Ripples of light, the clarity of glass, undulating metal, color set loose in water, scenery rushing past. Five styles, each with a feel of its own. • Tap, drag and hold Art responds to where and how you touch. Hold to speed up the motion and repeat effects in supported artworks. Feel haptic feedback on supported devices. • Save and share the motion Record a 3-second Live Photo, a 4K image or a video of up to 60 seconds while interacting with an artwork. Save it to Photos or send it through the system share sheet. Videos are saved in portrait Full HD. On compatible iPhones, Live Photos can be set as Lock Screen wallpapers through iOS. Playback depends on the device, iOS version and photo eligibility. This is not a continuously animated Home Screen wallpaper feature. • Listen Mode responds to sound Turn on Listen Mode to make art respond to sounds around you. The microphone is used when you enable this feature. Microphone audio is not recorded in exported videos. • Enjoy a bigger canvas Enjoy LIQUIDTOUCH on iPad, or display art on a larger screen when connected to a compatible external display. • Try every artwork first The first-launch guide lets you touch every artwork before you choose a plan. Access to the artworks is offered with a weekly or yearly auto-renewing subscription. The yearly plan includes a free trial for eligible new subscribers. See the purchase screen for prices and available offers. Weekly and yearly plans renew automatically unless canceled at least 24 hours before the current period ends. Payment is charged to your Apple Account. Manage or cancel subscriptions in your Apple Account subscription settings. Restore previous purchases using Restore Purchases in the app. Terms of Use (Apple Standard EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Driftlight

Features
Read full description

Driftlight makes original animated wallpapers on your phone. Choose a scene, pick a palette, and save it as a Live Photo that plays each time you wake your phone. Scenes • Six original scenes: Aurora Veil, Liquid Glass, Silk, Orbital Sunrise, Halo and Nebula • Eight palettes, from Glacier and Ember to Neon and Graphite • Each motion lasts about three seconds and settles on a finished still • The top of every scene stays dark so the clock is easy to read Make Your Own • Adjust motion and glow, and make new variations of any scene • Rendered on the device at your screen’s full resolution • Wallpaper imagery is never uploaded Free and Complete • Every scene is free in its signature palette, at full quality, with no watermark • Complete is a one-time purchase that adds every palette, motion and glow controls, variations and the premium collections • The same purchase unlocks Driftlight on Mac with the same Apple Account • No subscription and no ads Setting It Up • Saving adds a Live Photo to Photos, and the app shows the steps to set it as your wallpaper • Low Power Mode stops wallpaper motion; the app tells you when it is on • Live Photo wallpapers play on iPhone models other than iPhone SE Privacy No account and no ads. Driftlight sends anonymous product interaction, purchase outcome and a random device-level identifier for analytics. This data is not linked to your identity and is not used for tracking. Wallpaper imagery and Photos library contents are never uploaded.

Screenshots

Fluid Simulation4 screens
Driftlight4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Driftlight at none against Fluid Simulation's shown. Fluid Simulation's advantage is update cadence (every 3 days vs every 2 weeks). On price, in-app purchases, device support and iOS requirement 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. Fluid Simulation sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per 7 days and Driftlight sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Fluid Simulation ships an update every 3 days, Driftlight every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 11, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 7 level
Fluid Simulation versus Driftlight: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFluid SimulationDriftlight
PriceFreeFree
Rating1.0 (1 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews0.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings1 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 3 days — betterEvery 2 weeks
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, Mac
Requires iOS17.017.0
Further details — not scored
Size13 MB2 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAppnics, LLCisaiah dupree

In-app purchases

5 purchases

Fluid Simulation

Subscriptions3
  • LIQUIDTOUCH Weekly$1.997 Days
  • LIQUIDTOUCH Monthly$1.991 Month
  • LIQUIDTOUCH Yearly3 Days trial$14.991 Year
One-time2
  • LIQUIDTOUCH Lifetime$19.99
  • LIQUIDTOUCH Lifetime$29.99
1 purchases

Driftlight

One-time1
  • Complete$9.99

Questions

Is Fluid Simulation free?
Fluid Simulation is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Driftlight free?
Driftlight is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Fluid Simulation or Driftlight have ads?
Fluid Simulation shows ads; Driftlight does not.
Which is updated more often, Fluid Simulation or Driftlight?
Fluid Simulation ships an update every 3 days, and Driftlight every 2 weeks. Most recently, Fluid Simulation was updated on November 11, 2026 and Driftlight on October 31, 2026.

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