# Soil Explorer vs microBIOMETER® Reader

The clearest difference is rating: microBIOMETER® Reader at 5.0 against Soil Explorer's 4.1. microBIOMETER® Reader also leads on update cadence (every 5 weeks vs every 11 months) and review sentiment (20% vs 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.

microBIOMETER® Reader holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.1. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 9 and 7 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 0% of Soil Explorer's written reviews are positive against 20% of microBIOMETER® Reader's.

Soil Explorer ships an update every 11 months, microBIOMETER® Reader every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 27, 2026 and September 30, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Soil Explorer | microBIOMETER® Reader |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.1 (9 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/soil-explorer/id996159565/reviews) | **[5.0 (7 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/microbiometer-reader/id1211861156/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **9** | 7 |
| Positive reviews | 0.0% of reviews | **20.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 11 months | **Every 5 weeks** |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 172 MB | 106 MB |
| Requires iOS | **14.7** | 15.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 9+ |
| Developer | [Purdue University](https://appshunter.io/developer/371741257) | [Prolific Earth Sciences Corporation](https://appshunter.io/developer/1211861155) |

## What reviewers say

### Soil Explorer

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/soil-explorer/id996159565)

Discover detailed soil property and landscape maps for U.S. states and global soil distributions. Understand how map features relate to real-world observations. This educational tool uses data from USDA and USGS to illustrate complex soil-landscape relationships.

**Highlights:** Detailed soil property maps, Landscape visualizations, Global soil distribution maps, Field observation correlation, USDA NRCS data integration, USGS data integration

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


### microBIOMETER® Reader

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/microbiometer-reader/id1211861156)

This application offers a rapid, on-site soil testing solution to assess microbial biomass and fungal-to-bacterial ratios. It helps users understand soil health, track the effectiveness of management practices, and support sustainable farming by monitoring changes in soil biology and carbon storage.

**Highlights:** On-site soil testing, Microbial biomass analysis, Fungal to bacterial ratio, Track management practice effectiveness, Monitor soil biology changes, Cloud portal data export, Custom project creation

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Soil Explorer free?

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

### Is microBIOMETER® Reader free?

microBIOMETER® Reader is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Soil Explorer or microBIOMETER® Reader?

microBIOMETER® Reader is rated higher. Soil Explorer averages 4.1 out of 5 from 9 ratings, while microBIOMETER® Reader averages 5.0 from 7 ratings.

### Do Soil Explorer or microBIOMETER® Reader have ads?

Neither Soil Explorer nor microBIOMETER® Reader shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Soil Explorer or microBIOMETER® Reader?

Soil Explorer ships an update every 11 months, and microBIOMETER® Reader every 5 weeks. Most recently, Soil Explorer was updated on September 27, 2026 and microBIOMETER® Reader on September 30, 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.*