# Energy Meter vs GemRed Instruments

The clearest difference is price: GemRed Instruments at Free against Energy Meter's $3.99. GemRed Instruments also leads on update cadence (every 10 days vs every 6 months) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.0). On ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

GemRed Instruments is free to download; Energy Meter costs $3.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Energy Meter ships an update every 6 months, GemRed Instruments every 10 days. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Energy Meter | GemRed Instruments |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $3.99 | **Free** |
| Positive reviews | 86.3% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 6 months | **Every 10 days** |
| Monetization | Paid | — |
| Size | 7 MB | 34 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | **12.0** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Heiko Pruessing](https://appshunter.io/developer/989638671) | [GemRed](https://appshunter.io/developer/1279222567) |

## What reviewers say

### Energy Meter

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/energy-meter/id989638672)

Monitor your SMA solar plant and identify energy wasters with real-time data. Connect locally to your PV system for instant insights into power grid performance and individual device readings.

**Highlights:** Monitor SMA Energy Meter real-time data, Supports SMA inverters via MODBUS, Automatic local network device detection, Energy flow display, Consumption measurement, Individual phase view, Collect values into charts

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

**In-app purchases:** none


### GemRed Instruments

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/gemred-instruments/id6754753413)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Energy Meter free?

Energy Meter costs $3.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is GemRed Instruments free?

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

### Do Energy Meter or GemRed Instruments have ads?

Neither Energy Meter nor GemRed Instruments shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Energy Meter or GemRed Instruments?

Energy Meter ships an update every 6 months, and GemRed Instruments every 10 days. Most recently, Energy Meter was updated on November 1, 2026 and GemRed Instruments on October 25, 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.*