# Soil Explorer vs Farming Basics

The clearest difference is rating: Farming Basics at 4.8 against Soil Explorer's 4.1. Farming Basics also leads on update cadence (every 2 months vs every 11 months). 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.

Farming Basics holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.1. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 9 and 9 respectively.

Soil Explorer ships an update every 11 months, Farming Basics every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and October 13, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Soil Explorer | Farming Basics |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.1 (9 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/soil-explorer/id996159565/reviews) | **[4.8 (9 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/farming-basics/id1378696723/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 9 | 9 |
| Positive reviews | 0.0% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 11 months | **Every 2 months** |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 172 MB | 93 MB |
| Requires iOS | **14.7** | 15.6 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Purdue University](https://appshunter.io/developer/371741257) | [Alabama Cooperative Extension System](https://appshunter.io/developer/632308093) |

## 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


### Farming Basics

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/farming-basics/id1378696723)

This app provides essential information for new and small-scale farmers. It covers crop details, pest and disease management, and offers tools for calculating fertilizer and irrigation needs to optimize resource use. Users can also receive alerts and find local resources.

**Highlights:** Crop descriptions, Pest and disease information, Fertilizer calculator, Irrigation calculator, Crop and pest alerts, Location-based resources, Event calendar

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Soil Explorer free?

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

### Is Farming Basics free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Soil Explorer or Farming Basics?

Farming Basics is rated higher. Soil Explorer averages 4.1 out of 5 from 9 ratings, while Farming Basics averages 4.8 from 9 ratings.

### Do Soil Explorer or Farming Basics have ads?

Neither Soil Explorer nor Farming Basics shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Soil Explorer or Farming Basics?

Soil Explorer ships an update every 11 months, and Farming Basics every 2 months. Most recently, Soil Explorer was updated on October 17, 2026 and Farming Basics on October 13, 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.*