nRF Toolbox vs BLE Terminal
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
nRF Toolbox
This utility app connects to various Bluetooth Low Energy accessories. It demonstrates multiple BLE profiles, including health and fitness sensors, allowing users to monitor data from devices like heart rate monitors and glucose monitors.
- Bluetooth Low Energy connectivity
- Demonstrates BLE profiles
- Heart Rate Monitor support
- Glucose Monitor support
- Cycling Speed and Cadence
- Running Speed and Cadence
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nRF Toolbox works with a wide range of Bluetooth Low Energy accessories. It contains applications demonstrating BLE profiles: Cycling Speed and Cadence, Running Speed and Cadence, Heart Rate Monitor, Blood Pressure Monitor, Health Thermometer, Glucose Monitor, Continuous Glucose Monitor, Monitoring & Diagnostic and more. The source code of this application is available on GitHub: https://github.com/nordicsemi/iOS-nRF-Toolbox
BLE Terminal
Connect, scan, and communicate with Bluetooth Low Energy devices. Discover nearby devices, view their properties, and interact using read, write, and notify functions. Supports pre-filled and hex commands for efficient interaction.
- Scan for nearby BLE devices
- View device properties and descriptions
- Connect to devices
- Read, write, and notify BLE characteristics
- Pre-filled command lists
- Hex and ASCII command support
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BLE Terminal is a scanner and communicator between your iPhone, iPad or Mac and any Bluetooth Low Energy device. You can find all the devices nearby, see their properties and description, signal strength, all services and characteristics. It is also possible to connect to any device, watch detailed information and communicate with it using read, write and notify properties. For convenience, pre-filled commands are provided, the list of which can be expanded and edited. We also added support for Hex commands with a convenient keyboard. You can always switch between Hex and ASCII modes.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: nRF Toolbox at Free against BLE Terminal's $9.99. BLE Terminal's advantage is rating (4.2 vs 2.6) and review sentiment (56% vs 22%). On ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases 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
nRF Toolbox is free to download; BLE Terminal costs $9.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
BLE Terminal holds the better App Store score, 4.2 against 2.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 8 and 5 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 22% of nRF Toolbox's written reviews are positive against 56% of BLE Terminal's.
nRF Toolbox ships an update every 5 weeks, BLE Terminal every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 16, 2026 and October 12, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | nRF Toolbox | BLE Terminal |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free — better | $9.99 |
| Rating | 2.6 (8 ratings) | 4.2 (5 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 22.2% of reviews | 55.6% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 8 — better | 5 |
| Update frequency | Every 5 weeks | Every 2 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Paid |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better |
| Requires iOS | 18.0 | 15.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 9 MB | 13 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Nordic Semiconductor ASA | LANARS LLC |
Customer experience
nRF Toolbox
BLE Terminal
In-app purchases
nRF Toolbox
No in-app purchases
BLE Terminal
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is nRF Toolbox free?
Is BLE Terminal free?
Which has better reviews, nRF Toolbox or BLE Terminal?
Do nRF Toolbox or BLE Terminal have ads?
Which is updated more often, nRF Toolbox or BLE Terminal?
Other comparisons
