Comparison

Thyme vs America's Test Kitchen

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

Head to head
About

Thyme

This app offers a simple and intuitive kitchen timer experience with a unique stove-like interface. It allows users to set multiple timers simultaneously for various cooking tasks, ensuring precise timing for delicious meals.

Highlights
  • Multiple timers simultaneously
  • Stove-inspired UI
  • Easy timer setting
  • Hours and minutes support
  • Modern design
Features
Read full description

IT ONLY DOES ONE THING, BUT DOES IT VERY WELL. Over half a million home-chefs uses Thyme and knows that fine dining needs fine timing. “It gets the job done and makes those complicated meals a little bit easier." - Lifehacker “Thyme is a simple, yet cleverly designed app with an interface that looks like a kitchen stove and has a separate timer for each part..” - BuzzFeed “Thyme offers a unique combination of features that easily sets it apart from the rest.” - Beautiful Pixels Thyme is the simplest and easiest kitchen timer you could envision. It covers all your timer needs in the kitchen. This is so you can give full focus on that delicious food you’ve got cooking. Our kitchen timer gives you a simple and clean layout over your kitchen stove. Four hot plates on top and an oven in the front. To set a timer you simply tap it, swipe it. Boom! You’re done! It´s really that simple! Because fine dining needs fine timing. - The smart and simple UI makes setting new timers super easy. - Multiple timers running at the same time - Our timers support setting hours as well as minutes - Gorgeous and modern UI design that fits right in with iOS - It just works as you’d expect it to Since its launch in Christmas 2013 Thyme has won numerous awards and continues to receive critical acclaim.

About

America's Test Kitchen

Access thousands of rigorously tested recipes, cooking videos, and expert product reviews. Enhance your culinary skills with on-demand classes taught by test kitchen professionals. Save favorites, create shopping lists, and discover new dishes for any occasion.

Highlights
  • 14,000+ tested recipes
  • Expert-led cooking classes
  • App-exclusive content
  • Product reviews and ratings
  • Save favorite recipes
  • Create shopping lists
  • Ad-free cooking episodes
Read full description

The America's Test Kitchen app delivers the best-tasting recipes, cooking videos, product reviews, and more than 30 years of test kitchen discoveries! Get every rigorously tested recipe from America’s Test Kitchen, Cook’s Illustrated, and Cook’s Country. Recipe collections for every occasion: Weeknight recipes, healthy recipes, desserts, slow cooker recipes, and more all include “Why This Recipe Works” so you’ll know every test kitchen discovery. Save favorite recipes, cook great food, and get the recipe app that has it all. New app-exclusive feature! ATK Classes add on with expert-led cooking classes for all skill levels and personal connections with ATK instructors. Download America’s Test Kitchen today and become a culinary master! America’s Test Kitchen Features: Save Favorite Recipes - Cooking app with 14,000+ best-ever recipes - Recipes tested by test cooks and 70,000 volunteer home cooks - Recipe Collections: slow cooker recipes, seasonal picks, quick meals & more - Recipes added every month and cooking articles added every day! - Save favorite recipes, customize recipes with personal notes & get quick access on any device Kitchen Reviews - Kitchen appliance reviews and ingredient ratings at your fingertips - Save money and time with 8,000+ rigorously researched product reviews & trusted kitchen reviews Full Episodes, Ad-Free - Cooking episodes from 42 seasons of our top-rated TV shows America’s Test Kitchen and Cook’s Country And More! - Get Fresh Pick recommendations based on your favorites with Recipe Recommendations - Find, compare, save favorite recipes & share with others - Shopping lists are created with ease and you’ll never forget anything again New Feature: Add On ATK Classes! - Focused, fun on-demand classes taught by test kitchen experts - Build your skills and refine your cooking intuition - Use “Cook Along” mode to see every step - Enjoy a personal connection with instructors - Access classes for all skill levels Try out the entire app with a free trial. - Current ATK Essential members can access this app at no additional charge after logging in - Access to the ATK app requires a monthly or annual ATK Essential membership, which also includes all the content across the America’s Test Kitchen, Cook’s Illustrated, and Cook’s Country sites. - Bundle ATK Essential + ATK Classes and save! Privacy Policy: https://www.americastestkitchen.com/guides/corporate-pages/privacy-policy CA Privacy Notice: https://www.americastestkitchen.com/guides/corporate-pages/privacy-policy Terms of Service: https://www.americastestkitchen.com/guides/corporate-pages/terms-of-use Contact Us: support@Americastestkitchen.com All subscriptions start at the end of the applicable free trial period. Free trials are only available upon an initial subscription. Payment will be charged to your iTunes account after your free trial period or at confirmation of purchase. Your subscription will automatically renew each month or year 24 hours before the end of the current period and your credit card will be charged through your iTunes account unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period. You can turn off auto-renew at any time from your iTunes account settings. Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when you purchase a subscription to that publication, where applicable. All products reviewed by America’s Test Kitchen are independently chosen, researched, and reviewed by our editors. We buy products for testing at retail locations and do not accept unsolicited samples for testing. We list suggested sources for recommended products as a convenience to our readers but do not endorse specific retailers. When you choose to purchase our editorial recommendations from the links we provide, we may earn an affiliate commission. Prices are subject to change.

Screenshots

Thyme3 screens
America's Test Kitchen4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: America's Test Kitchen at 4.9 against Thyme's 3.0. America's Test Kitchen also leads on ratings volume (18K vs 73) and review sentiment (64% vs 46%). Thyme's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 6) and ads (none vs shown). On price, update cadence 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. America's Test Kitchen sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Thyme asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

America's Test Kitchen holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 3.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: America's Test Kitchen has 18K ratings behind it against 73, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 46% of Thyme's written reviews are positive against 64% of America's Test Kitchen's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Thyme ships an update every 10 days, America's Test Kitchen every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 28, 2026 and October 2, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard8 real differences · 3 level
Thyme versus America's Test Kitchen: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterThymeAmerica's Test Kitchen
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.0 (73 ratings)4.9 (18K ratings) — better
Positive reviews46.2% of reviews64.4% of reviews — better
Number of ratings7318K — better
Update frequencyEvery 10 days — betterEvery 2 weeks
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaid — betterSubscription
Best chart rank—#9 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS9.0 — better15.6
Further details — not scored
Size31 MB128 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperThuy Gia NguyenAmerica's Test Kitchen LP

Customer experience

Thyme

All ratings73 ratings
Positive46.6%
Neutral6.8%
Negative46.6%
Written reviews91 reviews
Positive46.2%
Neutral13.2%
Negative40.7%

America's Test Kitchen

All ratings17,854 ratings
Positive98.6%
Neutral0.4%
Negative1.0%
Written reviews491 reviews
Positive64.4%
Neutral7.7%
Negative27.9%

Bugs and requests

Thyme

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

America's Test Kitchen

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Recipes and content not loading properly
  • Inability to access account after updates
  • Syncing issues between app and website
  • Frequent log-outs and need to re-login

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add ability to categorize and organize saved recipes
  • Improve search functionality and filtering options
  • Implement sharing capabilities to easily share recipes
  • Add support for metric measurements alongside imperial

In-app purchases

None

Thyme

No in-app purchases

6 purchases

America's Test Kitchen

Subscriptions6
  • ATK Essential - Monthly14 Days trial$9.991 Month
  • Classes Monthly$9.991 Month
  • Essential + Classes - Monthly$19.991 Month
Show 3 more
  • Classes Annual$39.991 Year
  • ATK Essential - Annual14 Days trial$49.991 Year
  • Essential + Classes - Annual14 Days trial$89.991 Year

Questions

Is Thyme free?
Thyme is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is America's Test Kitchen free?
America's Test Kitchen is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Thyme or America's Test Kitchen?
America's Test Kitchen is rated higher. Thyme averages 3.0 out of 5 from 73 ratings, while America's Test Kitchen averages 4.9 from 18K ratings.
Do Thyme or America's Test Kitchen have ads?
America's Test Kitchen shows ads; Thyme does not.
Which is updated more often, Thyme or America's Test Kitchen?
Thyme ships an update every 10 days, and America's Test Kitchen every 2 weeks. Most recently, Thyme was updated on September 28, 2026 and America's Test Kitchen on October 2, 2026.

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