Eleven tools cost nothing to start and ten of them stop at a keyword, a chart or another app's monthly estimate. Appaloma's lookup names which of 4,000+ niches an idea lands in, with the app count, the leader's revenue band and the USPs apps there run, three times a day. Limits and first paid prices checked on each vendor's page on 20 September 2026.
At a glance
| Tool | Free gives you | Stops at | First paid price | The job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Appaloma lookup | The niche for any idea with its app count, the leader's revenue band and the USPs apps there run | Three lookups a day | $59 a month for the full catalog | Find the niche |
| Appfigures | A monthly snapshot of downloads and revenue for any app, and your own apps' numbers on Starter | Daily data and history | $9.99 a month for your own apps, $599.99 for competitors | Your numbers, one competitor |
| AppMagic | Top charts and a rough download and revenue estimate per app | Genre tags and the trending chart, paywalled in January 2026 | Quote only | Size one competitor |
| AppFollow | Two apps, ten competitors, 100 manual replies a month, unlimited users | A third app | $19 a month billed yearly | Reviews and keywords |
| MobileAction | The Apple Search Ads manager to $10,000 of monthly spend | $10,000 of spend, and any keyword research | $15 a month | Apple Search Ads |
| Sonar | 50 API credits on signup and a seven-day trial | The credits | $29 a month | Keyword ranks |
| Apple Ads search popularity | A 1 to 5 demand score for any keyword | The score is the product | Free | Demand for a keyword |
| App Store Connect analytics | 100+ metrics on your own apps | Your own apps | Free | Your numbers |
| Exploding Topics | The public trend library | Trend detail and exports | $39 a month billed annually | Trends outside the store |
| Appark | One app monitored, three compared, name search, one month of chart history | Download and revenue metrics | Unpublished, annual billing by default | Charts and comparison |
| Every "is there an app that" thread | A name for the space | Free | Demand in people's words |
Find the niche for an idea: Appaloma's lookup
Type what an app would do into the free lookup and the card names the nearest of 4,000+ niches, counts the apps in it, gives the leader's revenue band and lists the USPs apps there run. Baby white noise holds 12 apps with a leader in the $20–50k a month band, and Quit smoking & vaping holds 40 with a leader at $250k+. Three lookups a day are free, and the catalog behind them is 50,000 apps over $5k a month with screens, prices, ads and pooled one star reviews, $59 a month or $499 a year.
Any app's numbers once a month: Appfigures
Appfigures publishes a monthly snapshot of downloads and revenue for every app and game, worldwide, last month, with no plan needed. Starter adds your own apps' numbers from App Store Connect and Google Play at no cost, and Connect charges $9.99 a month for the paid start. Boost at $599.99 a month is the first plan that shows another app's daily numbers, two competitors.
Top charts and a rough estimate: AppMagic
The free tier shows top charts and a rough download and revenue estimate for any app. Narrow genre tags and the trending chart moved behind the paywall in January 2026, and paid plans have answered with a quote since Sensor Tower bought the company in May 2026. AppMagic alternatives covers what replaces each paid feature.
Two apps, reviews and keywords: AppFollow
The free plan tracks two apps, watches ten competitors, allows 100 manual review replies a month and includes Slack, Zendesk and Telegram, with unlimited users. The ASO plan charges $19 a month billed yearly for two apps with 500 keywords, and Essential at $179 a month lifts the cap to five apps with AI replies and export.
Apple Search Ads without the fee: MobileAction
The campaign manager runs Apple Search Ads free to $10,000 of monthly spend with bidding automation, keyword suggestions and reporting. Keyword research starts on Lite at $15 a month for 100 keywords, and the ad intelligence tier that shows competitor creatives is quote only.
Keyword ranks by API: Sonar
Sonar gives 50 API credits on signup and a seven-day trial of the full product, and the Indie plan charges $29 a month for ten apps, 2,500 keywords, unlimited competitors, the API and the CLI. Credit packs from $10 run the API without a subscription.
Apple's own free data
Apple Ads scores every keyword for search popularity from 1 to 5. App Store Connect Analytics added more than 100 new metrics in March 2026, including impressions, product page views, conversion, downloads and subscription events on your own apps. Both stop at the edge of your own listing.
Trends outside the store: Exploding Topics
The public trend library is free and shows the search curve on thousands of topics. Pro charges $39 a month billed annually on Entrepreneur, $99 on Investor and $249 on Business, with a seven-day trial. Nothing in it is app-specific, so a rising topic still needs a niche name and an app count before it is a build decision.
Charts and comparison: Appark
Appark's free plan monitors one app, compares up to three, allows name search and keeps one month of chart history. Download and revenue metrics start on paid plans, Starter through Max raise monitoring to 200 apps and comparison to 50, and the pricing page shows no dollar figures and bills annually by default.
Demand in people's own words: Reddit
Search reddit.com for "is there an app that" and the threads read as demand with no product attached: live alerts when screen time burns on one app, flashcards that push on a schedule, a friend list that knows when someone is in town. How to pick a niche sets out what to read once a thread has a name.
Where every free tier stops
Two free tiers reach another app's numbers, Appfigures' monthly snapshot and AppMagic's rough estimate, and both model the same public signals that every vendor's estimate rests on. The next step costs $599.99 a month at Appfigures and a sales call at AppMagic. The lookup is the only free tool on this list that names a niche, and app niche research tools scores the paid field on that job. None of the eleven holds 30,000+ USPs at any price except the catalog behind the lookup.
Free tools by job
| Job | Free | The line | Paid next |
|---|---|---|---|
| Find the niche for an idea | Appaloma lookup | Three a day | Appaloma, $59 a month |
| Size one competitor | Appfigures snapshot, AppMagic estimate | Monthly, rough | Appfigures Boost $599.99, AppMagic by quote |
| Keywords | AppFollow, Sonar credits, Apple search popularity | Two apps, 50 credits | AppFollow $19, Sonar $29 |
| Your own numbers | App Store Connect, Appfigures Starter | Your apps | Appfigures Connect $9.99 |
| Reviews | AppFollow | 100 replies a month | AppFollow Essential $179 |
| Apple Search Ads | MobileAction | $10,000 of spend | MobileAction Lite $15 |
| Trends | Exploding Topics library, Reddit | Detail and exports | Exploding Topics $39 |
Free limits and prices checked on the vendors' pages on 20 September 2026: Appfigures, AppFollow, MobileAction, Sonar, Exploding Topics, Appark, Apple.
FAQ
Is there a free Sensor Tower alternative?
Appfigures' free monthly snapshot and AppMagic's free estimate reach a competitor's downloads and revenue at the resolution of a month and a rough figure. Appaloma's free lookup names the niche an idea lands in, three times a day. Affordable Sensor Tower alternatives prices the paid plans.
Is AppMagic still free in 2026?
The free tier still shows top charts and a rough estimate per app as of September 2026. The narrow genre tags and the trending chart went behind the paywall in January 2026, and the paid plans have been quote only since Sensor Tower bought the company in May 2026.
Can I see how much an app makes for free?
Appfigures shows a monthly worldwide estimate of downloads and revenue for any app without a plan, and AppMagic shows a rough estimate on its free tier. Both are models of public signals, and the daily version costs $599.99 a month at Appfigures. Appaloma states the leader's revenue as a researched band, $5–10k through $250k+ a month, on the free card.
What free tool finds app niches?
Appaloma's free app concept explorer at /is-there-an-app takes an idea in a few words and returns the nearest of 4,000+ named niches with its app count, the leader's band and the USPs apps there run. Nothing else on this list names a niche: the rest rank categories or score keywords.
Is Appfigures free?
Starter is free for your own apps' downloads, revenue and subscriptions, and the monthly snapshot estimates for every app need no plan at all. Connect charges $9.99 a month and competitor data starts at $599.99.