# LIGHTIFY vs Hue Essentials

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: LIGHTIFY at none against Hue Essentials's 8. LIGHTIFY also leads on ratings volume (2.4K vs 138) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.0). Hue Essentials's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 2 months) and review sentiment (37% vs 26%). On price, rating and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Hue Essentials sells 8 one-off in-app purchases. LIGHTIFY asks for nothing beyond the download.

Hue Essentials holds the better App Store score, 4.2 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: LIGHTIFY has 2.4K ratings behind it against 138, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 26% of LIGHTIFY's written reviews are positive against 37% of Hue Essentials's.

LIGHTIFY ships an update every 2 months, Hue Essentials every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 2, 2026 and October 3, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | LIGHTIFY | Hue Essentials |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.0 (2.4K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/lightify/id911362586/reviews) | **[4.2 (138 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hue-essentials/id1462943921/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **2.4K** | 138 |
| Positive reviews | 25.7% of reviews | **37.2% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Every 2 weeks** |
| Monetization | **Free** | Freemium |
| Size | 117 MB | 271 MB |
| Requires iOS | **12.0** | 15.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac, Apple Watch** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [OSRAM GmbH](https://appshunter.io/developer/618335437) | [Thomas Vos](https://appshunter.io/developer/1462943920) |

## What reviewers say

### LIGHTIFY

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/lightify/id911362586)

Control your home and garden lighting from anywhere in the world with this mobile app. Customize colors, brightness, and create dynamic light effects to enhance your living space and improve safety, all while potentially reducing power consumption.

**Highlights:** Remote lighting control, Customizable colors and brightness, Create light effects, Control home and garden lighting, Remote access via internet, Energy saving features

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Easy to use
- 👍 Great product
- 🚀 Worked flawlessly
- 👍 Awesome product
- 👍 Very pleased

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Freezes on agree page
- 🐛 No support to install app
- 🐛 Completely abandoned
- 🐛 Current update won't support lights
- 🐛 Not intuitive

**Reported bugs**

- Gateway firmware update breaks connectivity
- Lights randomly turn on/off
- Schedules disappear after bulb turns on
- Lights default to cool white on power-on
- Upgrade process disables all other features

**Requested features**

- Sunset/sunrise scheduling
- Integration with smart assistants
- Ability to set dynamic presets
- Fading between scenes
- Ping-based scene triggers


### Hue Essentials

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hue-essentials/id1462943921)

Unlock the full potential of your smart lighting system. Create custom scenes, dynamic effects, and automate your lights with schedules and triggers. Control multiple smart home bridges and devices seamlessly for a personalized ambiance.

**Highlights:** Custom scenes and effects, Music and entertainment sync, Sunrise/sunset automation, Multi-bridge control, Device discovery and setup, Button and sensor automation, Away from home control

**Features:** Family Sharing, Apple Watch app, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (8)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Effects: Christmas | $0.99 | one-time |
| Effects: Universe | $0.99 | one-time |
| Effects: Wonders of nature | $0.99 | one-time |
| Effects: Romantic | $0.99 | one-time |
| Effects: Floral fantasy | $0.99 | one-time |
| Effects: Spooky | $0.99 | one-time |
| Multiple bridges | $4.99 | one-time |
| Premium | $7.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Excellent Hue lighting control
- 👍 Works well with multiple bridges
- 💡 Customizable remote controls
- 🚀 Faster than official Hue app

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Buggy and crashes frequently
- 🔒 In-app purchases required for key features
- 👎 Poor execution and user experience
- 🔋 Widgets and Apple Watch app not working

**Reported bugs**

- Fade feature not working
- Saving automations not working
- Crashes when checking 'About' section
- Widgets and Apple Watch app issues

**Requested features**

- Repeat/loop function for automations
- Strobing/flashing effects
- Dark mode
- Alexa integration


## Frequently asked questions

### Is LIGHTIFY free?

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

### Is Hue Essentials free?

Hue Essentials is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, LIGHTIFY or Hue Essentials?

Hue Essentials is rated higher. LIGHTIFY averages 4.0 out of 5 from 2.4K ratings, while Hue Essentials averages 4.2 from 138 ratings.

### Do LIGHTIFY or Hue Essentials have ads?

Neither LIGHTIFY nor Hue Essentials shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, LIGHTIFY or Hue Essentials?

LIGHTIFY ships an update every 2 months, and Hue Essentials every 2 weeks. Most recently, LIGHTIFY was updated on October 2, 2026 and Hue Essentials on October 3, 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.*