# Exam Countdown vs SIMS Student

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Exam Countdown at 82% against SIMS Student's 12%. Exam Countdown also leads on rating (4.7 vs 1.6) and ratings volume (1.7K vs 9). SIMS Student's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 5) and ads (none vs shown). On price, update cadence and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Exam Countdown sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per 3 months. SIMS Student asks for nothing beyond the download.

Exam Countdown holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 1.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Exam Countdown has 1.7K ratings behind it against 9, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 82% of Exam Countdown's written reviews are positive against 12% of SIMS Student's.

Exam Countdown ships an update every 5 weeks, SIMS Student every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 2, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Exam Countdown | SIMS Student |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.7 (1.7K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/exam-countdown-school-and-uni/id873279955/reviews)** | [1.6 (9 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/sims-student/id1191484989/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **1.7K** | 9 |
| Positive reviews | **82.2% of reviews** | 12.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | **Every 5 weeks** | Every 2 months |
| Monetization | Freemium | **Free** |
| Size | 102 MB | 36 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | **11.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [ROOT38 LIMITED](https://appshunter.io/developer/1206411222) | [Education Software Solutions Ltd](https://appshunter.io/developer/1568267003) |

## What reviewers say

### Exam Countdown

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/exam-countdown-school-and-uni/id873279955)

This app helps students, teachers, and schools keep track of important dates. It provides countdown timers for exams, tests, and coursework deadlines, with options for reminders and sharing progress with others. Users can organize their academic schedule and stay on top of their responsibilities.

**Highlights:** Countdown timers for exams and tests, Unlimited exam countdowns, Color-coded exams, Icon customization, Share countdowns with others, Add notes to exams, Basic and detailed notifications

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (5)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Premium 3 Months | $2.99 | per 3 months |
| Premium Yearly | $4.99 | per year |
| Premium Access | $4.99 | per year |
| Premium Yearly Subscription | $5.49 | per year |
| Lifetime Premium | $9.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Helpful for organizing exams
- 🎨 Customizable with colors and icons
- ⏱️ Countdown timer for exams
- 🎯 Tracks completed exams
- 🆓 Free with optional premium features

**What reviewers complain about**

- 💰 Some features locked behind paywall
- 🔍 Limited customization options in free version
- 🔋 High battery consumption reported
- 🐛 Occasional crashes and bugs

**Reported bugs**

- Login issues after device change
- Subscription not working as expected
- Loading screen freezes
- Incompatibility with newer devices

**Requested features**

- Calendar view
- Sync with device calendar
- Customizable exam reminders
- Widget support
- More icons and color options


### SIMS Student

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/sims-student/id1191484989)

Access your school life details with this application. You must be invited by your school to use its features.

**Highlights:** Access school life details, School-specific access, Student portal

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Works well for some users
- 💡 Useful for timetables and homework
- 🚀 Loads quickly for some
- 👍 Easy to submit work and receive feedback
- 👍 Informs about attendance

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Constantly logs out users
- 🐛 Fails to load or is very slow
- 🐛 Login issues (incorrect details, unauthorized access)
- 🐛 Password reset emails not sent
- 🐛 Homework not showing or disappearing

**Reported bugs**

- App logs users out randomly
- App gets stuck on loading screen
- Timetables not showing with poor internet
- Cannot log in even with correct details
- Password reset emails are not sent

**Requested features**

- Allow offline timetable access
- Improve login process for non-English speakers
- Add option to delete old homework
- Auto-delete messages after a certain period
- Ability to manually delete messages


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Exam Countdown free?

Exam Countdown is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is SIMS Student free?

SIMS Student is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Exam Countdown or SIMS Student?

Exam Countdown is rated higher. Exam Countdown averages 4.7 out of 5 from 1.7K ratings, while SIMS Student averages 1.6 from 9 ratings.

### Do Exam Countdown or SIMS Student have ads?

Exam Countdown shows ads; SIMS Student does not.

### Which is updated more often, Exam Countdown or SIMS Student?

Exam Countdown ships an update every 5 weeks, and SIMS Student every 2 months. Most recently, Exam Countdown was updated on November 1, 2026 and SIMS Student on November 2, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*