# nRF Beacons vs BLE

The clearest difference is rating: nRF Beacons at 3.5 against BLE's 3.0. nRF Beacons also leads on update cadence (every 4 months vs every 64 months) and iOS requirement (8.0 vs 15.0). On price, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

nRF Beacons holds the better App Store score, 3.5 against 3.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2 and 1 respectively.

nRF Beacons ships an update every 4 months, BLE every 64 months. The most recent releases landed on October 9, 2026 and October 4, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | nRF Beacons | BLE |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[3.5 (2 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/nrf-beacons/id879614768/reviews)** | [3.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ble-rf-test/id1038061361/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **2** | 1 |
| Positive reviews | 0.0% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 4 months** | Every 64 months |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 3 MB | 80 MB |
| Requires iOS | **8.0** | 15.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Nordic Semiconductor ASA](https://appshunter.io/developer/497679114) | [Arendi AG](https://appshunter.io/developer/686379619) |

## What reviewers say

### nRF Beacons

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/nrf-beacons/id879614768)

This utility app demonstrates the capabilities of a Bluetooth beacon kit. It enables users to configure beacon settings and define actions triggered by proximity events. Supported actions include displaying content, opening web links, and playing alarms.

**Highlights:** Configure beacon UUID, Major, and Minor, Set calibrated RSSI, Define actions for proximity events, Trigger web browser opening, Play alarm sounds, Monitor multiple beacons simultaneously

**In-app purchases:** none


### BLE

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ble-rf-test/id1038061361)

This utility tool assists developers in creating and maintaining Bluetooth Low Energy products. It enables connection establishment, monitoring, and configuration for RF testing of BLE devices. Log files can be shared for further analysis.

**Highlights:** Connect to BLE devices, Monitor connections, Configure connection parameters, Start/stop test mode, Share log files

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

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is nRF Beacons free?

nRF Beacons is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is BLE free?

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

### Which has better reviews, nRF Beacons or BLE?

nRF Beacons is rated higher. nRF Beacons averages 3.5 out of 5 from 2 ratings, while BLE averages 3.0 from 1 ratings.

### Do nRF Beacons or BLE have ads?

Neither nRF Beacons nor BLE shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, nRF Beacons or BLE?

nRF Beacons ships an update every 4 months, and BLE every 64 months. Most recently, nRF Beacons was updated on October 9, 2026 and BLE on October 4, 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.*