Comparison

Duet Display vs Touch Portal

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

Head to head
About

Duet Display

Transform your iPad or iPhone into an advanced, lag-free extra display for your Mac or PC. Interact with your computer using touch and gestures, and unlock professional drawing capabilities with Apple Pencil support.

Highlights
  • Extra display for Mac & PC
  • Lag-free performance
  • Touch and gesture support
  • Apple Pencil integration
  • Professional drawing tools
  • Portable productivity
Read full description

#1 best-selling iPad app in US, Japan, UK, Germany, and 17 other countries! Duet turns your iPad or iPhone into the most advanced extra display for your Mac & PC. Developed by a team of ex-Apple engineers, Duet offers unparalleled performance and display quality - all with zero lag. — DO MORE — Be twice as productive by multitasking with two screens. And for those that travel, have a portable way to stay productive. — INCREDIBLY SIMPLE — To get started, plug your iPad into your desktop using your charging cable. The free Duet desktop app will automatically detect your device, and transform it into a high performance touchscreen display. There’s no need to worry about unreliable Wi-Fi, laggy performance, pixelated screens or managing network passwords. — TOUCHSCREEN — Interact with Mac & PC like never before, with touch & gestures, including two-finger scrolling, pan and zoom. And with our latest release, you can even add a touch bar to any iPad with any Mac. — PERFECT FOR APPLE PENCIL — With Duet Pro, you can turn your iPad and Apple Pencil into a professional graphics tablet. We’ve re-engineered our rendering algorithms for ultra-responsive drawing, optimized specifically for designers, illustrators and artists. Duet Pro also unlocks pressure & tilt sensitivity, hover, palm rejection, and more to seamlessly draw in the most powerful programs for professionals. Get precise control in Photoshop, Corel Painter, Lightroom, ToonBoom, Illustrator, Manga Studio and more.  — PRESS — TechCrunch - "Feels Like Magic" TIME - "Getting Work Done Faster and More Efficiently" The Guardian - "Lag-free" Forbes - "The simple thing to note is this...Duet Display works." The Verge - "Glorious Fluidity" Lifehacker - "It's fast, easy to use, and works great" Business Insider - "Zero lag and true retina resolution” Wall Street Journal - “It’s as easy as just plugging it in" — REVIEWS — “Awesome! My iPad Pro can be an extra monitor! Cool app” ~CEO of T-Mobile, John Legere “Very smooth and responsive indeed, plus you could use the touch screen to “click” on screen interfaces!” ~Photographer, Lok Cheung “Love the ability to use my iPad as a monitor with Duet.” ~Former Chief Evangelist of Apple, Guy Kawasaki “Just started using this app called Duet… Kinda love it so far.” ~Comedian and Youtube, Phillip DeFranco “All my mac folks look at the Duet app… GREAT!” ~Actor and Comedian, Sinbad  "I really like the app, I suppose the biggest compliment I can give is that it's so easy to setup it almost seems like an Apple product.” ~Early Adopter, M. Nightingale "Amazing solution for me by the way. Works as I was hoping for and actually my main reason for getting an iPad : )” ~Early Adopter, M. Gemzoe Duet Works With: All iPhones and iPads with iOS 7.0 and later All Macs with 10.9 (Mavericks) and later All PCs with Windows 7 and later Duet Pro Works With: All iPad Pros with Apple Pencil All Macs with 10.9 (Mavericks) and later All PCs with Windows 8.1 and later (64 bit) Duet Pro is an optional upgrade for additional features, and price may vary by location. Duet Pro subscriptions will be charged to your credit card through your iTunes account. Your subscription will automatically renew unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. You will not be able to cancel the subscription once activated. Manage Duet Pro in Account Settings after the optional upgrade. Learn more at http://www.duetdisplay.com Terms: https://www.duetdisplay.com/help-center/duet-terms-and-conditions Privacy Policy: https://www.duetdisplay.com/help-center/duet-privacy-policy

About

Touch Portal

Transform your phone or tablet into a customizable macro deck for your PC or Mac. Streamline workflows for content creation, editing, and professional tasks with dedicated buttons and integrations.

Highlights
  • OBS Studio integration
  • Streamlabs OBS integration
  • Adobe Photoshop integration
  • Remote control PC/Mac
  • Macro buttons
  • Customizable look and feel
Read full description

Touch Portal is the #1 All-in-One Remote Control Macro and Stream app for Phones and Tablets with a deck of buttons as a board on your desk and workspace. You will get the following features: - OBS STUDIO INTEGRATION (OBS web-socket required) - STREAMLABS OBS INTEGRATION - STREAMELEMENTS OBS.LIVE INTEGRATION (OBS web-socket required) - ADOBE PHOTOSHOP INTEGRATION - ADOBE LIGHTROOM CLASSIC INTEGRATION - REMOTE CONTROL PC AND/OR MAC - XSPLIT INTEGRATION - TWITCH INTEGRATION - HOME AUTOMATION - PHILIPS HUE INTEGRATION - MACRO BUTTONS - SMART TOUCH BUTTONS - CUSTOMIZABLE LOOK AND FEEL - COMMUNITY-DRIVEN DEVELOPMENT Touch Portal is a companion app to control a PC or a Mac by using a deck of buttons to improve the workflow & productivity of game streamers, content creators and professionals. Touch Portal gives you all the essential controls you’d need, we keep adding more features every update! With Touch Portal you are allowed up to 110 unique buttons per page for the Pro version, not to mention you could use the pages to even increase this! Use it as a Macro Deckboard or Shortcut Board for your video and photo editing software and edit faster and more efficient. Use cases: - Game streamers: Stream your games while having total control of your broadcast overlays with a deck of buttons. - Video editors: Edit your videos faster, easier and smarter with a fully customizable page with the buttons you use most often on your Touch Portal deck. Create macros and shortcut buttons to optimize your workflow. - Photo editors: Edit your photos faster, you don't have to learn all the shortcuts the photo editing software gives you, just add the action you want to the "Touch Portal Desktop" app and start editing. - Professionals: Create your own customizable page to improve your productivity and workflow. The app is an extension of your keyboard, with much more features. IMPORTANT!: * You need to download the "Touch Desktop" app on your PC or your Mac to use this app. Please go to our website to download it from our website. https://www.touch-portal.com/ Please join us at our Discord server for the fastest help. We are daily available on discord, our community is also willing to help you further with your Touch Portal experience. Discord server: https://discord.gg/MgxQb8r

Screenshots

Duet Display3 screens
Touch Portal4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Touch Portal at none against Duet Display's shown. Touch Portal also leads on review sentiment (55% vs 45%). Duet Display's advantage is ratings volume (49K vs 800) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 3 months). On price, rating, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Duet Display sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month and Touch Portal sells 6 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.4 for Duet Display against 4.5 for Touch Portal. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Duet Display has 49K ratings behind it against 800, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 45% of Duet Display's written reviews are positive against 55% of Touch Portal's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Duet Display ships an update every 3 weeks, Touch Portal every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 18, 2026 and October 13, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Duet Display versus Touch Portal: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDuet DisplayTouch Portal
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.4 (49K ratings)4.5 (800 ratings) — better
Positive reviews45.5% of reviews54.9% of reviews — better
Number of ratings49K — better800
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeks — betterEvery 3 months
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Vision Pro — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS13.012.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size57 MB20 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperDuet, Inc.Rils

Customer experience

Duet Display

All ratings48,726 ratings
Positive86.2%
Neutral3.1%
Negative10.7%
Written reviews2,383 reviews
Positive45.5%
Neutral6.7%
Negative47.8%

Touch Portal

All ratings800 ratings
Positive88.4%
Neutral3.1%
Negative8.5%
Written reviews293 reviews
Positive54.9%
Neutral6.5%
Negative38.6%

User reviews

Duet Display

From 49K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Works seamlessly as a second screen
  • 👍 Useful for productivity and multitasking
  • 🎨 Great for artists and designers
  • 💻 Extends desktop to iPad
  • ⭐ Excellent customer support

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Connectivity issues and crashes
  • 🔋 High battery consumption
  • 🔒 Subscription model for full functionality
  • 🔍 Confusing setup process
  • 💸 Expensive for the features provided

Touch Portal

From 800 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Efficient and time-saving
  • 👍 Highly customizable
  • 💡 Versatile for various use cases
  • 🔒 Reliable and stable
  • 👍 Great value for money

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Connectivity issues
  • 🔍 Complicated setup
  • 💰 Paywall for some features
  • 🔧 Compatibility problems with updates
  • 🤔 Confusing user interface

Bugs and requests

Duet Display

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Incompatibility with certain software and drivers
  • Laggy performance and input delays
  • Unreliable connection and frequent disconnects

Requested features

4 requests
  • Improved resolution and scaling options
  • Better support for older devices and Windows
  • More customization and control over settings
  • Wireless connectivity without subscription

Touch Portal

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • App crashes after updates
  • Buttons not working as expected
  • Connectivity issues between devices
  • Incorrect button sizing when rotating device
  • Paid version not unlocking all features

Requested features

5 requests
  • Multi-device support
  • More pre-built templates and integrations
  • Improved button customization options
  • Ability to close applications from the app
  • Support for more fonts and visual styles

In-app purchases

6 purchases

Duet Display

Subscriptions6
  • Duet Starter (Monthly)$3.991 Month
  • Duet Air (Monthly)7 Days trial$5.991 Month
  • Duet Pro7 Days trial$7.991 Month
Show 3 more
  • Duet Starter (Annual)$39.991 Year
  • Duet Air (Annual)7 Days trial$49.991 Year
  • Duet Pro (Annual)7 Days trial$79.991 Year
6 purchases

Touch Portal

One-time6
  • Edge Graphics Upgrade$0.99
  • RGB Graphics Upgrade$0.99
  • Retro SciFi Graphics Upgrade$0.99
Show 3 more
  • Icon Editor Graphics Upgrade$3.99
  • Multiple Devices Upgrade$6.99
  • Touch Portal Pro version$13.99

Questions

Is Duet Display free?
Duet Display is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Touch Portal free?
Touch Portal is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Duet Display or Touch Portal?
Touch Portal is rated higher. Duet Display averages 4.4 out of 5 from 49K ratings, while Touch Portal averages 4.5 from 800 ratings.
Do Duet Display or Touch Portal have ads?
Duet Display shows ads; Touch Portal does not.
Which is updated more often, Duet Display or Touch Portal?
Duet Display ships an update every 3 weeks, and Touch Portal every 3 months. Most recently, Duet Display was updated on October 18, 2026 and Touch Portal on October 13, 2026.

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