bee-keeperThere are more beekeeping apps than ever, and most of them promise the same thing: a hive diary on your phone. The differences show up in the yard — with gloves on, no signal, a colony open in front of you. That is where we compared them. One thing up front: we build bee-keeper, so read our number one with that in mind. Every claim about the other four apps is taken from their own websites and store listings as of September 2026, and where another app does something better, we say so.
How we compared them
- Offline work: does the app keep working with no signal, and sync later without losing anything?
- Inspection speed: how many taps from opening the hive to a saved record?
- Varroa: can you go from a mite count to a treatment to a check that it worked, with withdrawal periods in view?
- Harvest and traceability: harvest log, honey labels and a way to show a buyer where the jar came from.
- Forage and weather: does the app tell you anything about when the flow starts?
- Languages: can a beekeeper use it in their own language?
- Price: what the free tier really includes, and what a year costs.
- Your data: export, deletion and no lock-in.
1. bee-keeper — the all-in-one, offline-first choice
bee-keeper puts the whole beekeeping year in one place: a hive inspection diary, a visual apiary map, varroa tracking with treatments and withdrawal warnings, a feeding calculator, harvest records, compliant honey labels with a hive-to-jar QR code, a forage radar, task reminders, a month-by-month calendar, a community and a buy-and-sell board. It runs as a web app on any phone (including iPhone — add it to the home screen) and as an Android app on Google Play, in 40 languages.
Why it takes first place:
- Offline first, not offline as an afterthought. Every record is saved to a database on your phone and synced when a connection returns, so the app behaves the same at the far end of the apiary as it does at home.
- The inspection is fast. A quick log covers brood, queen seen, temper, stores and a note in a few taps, and the full history of every colony is always one tap away.
- Varroa is a cycle, not a field. Count with the photo test, log the treatment, then verify the drop — with the withdrawal period shown so honey is never harvested too early. The varroa guide explains the method.
- Harvest to jar. Log the harvest, print a compliant label, and give every jar a QR code that opens a public page showing which hive and apiary the honey came from. No other app on this list does that.
- The forage radar reads local bloom and weather to forecast when the nectar flow starts at your location, so supers go on in time.
- 40 languages, including right-to-left Arabic, Persian and Hebrew — the widest coverage of the five.
- Fair pricing. The free tier covers 1 apiary and up to 5 hives; every new account gets a 10-day trial of everything with no card. Premium is $3.99 a month, $9.99 for three months or $34.99 a year, and Business packs cover teams of 5 to 20 beekeepers. Full details on the pricing page.
- Your data stays yours: CSV export, account deletion in the app, passwordless sign-in and EU hosting.
Where it is weaker: there is no native iPhone app in the App Store yet (the web app fills that gap), it does not connect to hive scales or sensors, and it launched in June 2026, so it has a shorter track record than the veterans below.
Best for: hobby and small-commercial beekeepers who want the diary, the map, varroa, harvest, labels and forage in one app, in their own language, working without signal.
2. ApiManager — the most generous free tier, on every platform
ApiManager (apimanager.net) is record-keeping software that runs on iOS, Android, macOS, Windows and in the browser, with one account synchronised across all of them. The free plan covers up to 20 hives with all features; paid plans are $14.99 a year for 50 hives, $30.99 for 100 and $64.99 for up to 10,000. It exports to Excel and CSV, lets an account owner assign roles to helpers, supports customised inspection templates, works offline on mobile and is available in more than 33 languages.
What it does not advertise is a forage forecast, honey labels or jar traceability, and a community. If your need is records and reports on a desktop as well as a phone, and 20 free hives, it is the strongest alternative here.
Best for: beekeepers who want desktop and phone in sync and a large free allowance.
3. HiveTracks — the American veteran for clubs and data
HiveTracks, Inc. from North Carolina runs a mobile app plus a web dashboard, with more than 25,000 active users in over 145 countries by its own count. The app offers a bee weather forecast for choosing inspection days, recommended to-dos through the season, guided inspections by experience level, quick record templates, hive history, AI-assisted plant and pollinator identification and group management for beekeeping clubs. The company also runs a biodiversity data platform built on members' records.
The app is free to download; subscriptions listed on the App Store in September 2026 are $7.99 for the base subscription and $59.99 to $69.99 a year. The App Store lists English as the only language.
Best for: English-speaking beekeepers, clubs and anyone who likes the citizen-science angle. The yearly price is the highest of the five for an individual.
4. Apiary Book — the long-standing all-rounder with a voice assistant
Apiary Book (apiarybook.com, by Apiary Software SRL) has been downloaded more than 260,000 times and runs on iOS, Android and the web. Its standout features are a hands-free voice assistant for taking notes and creating reminders while suited up, QR and NFC hive identification, reports and personalised advice from colony and environmental data, and a community with a mentorship programme for PRO users. It is translated into 19 languages.
The website does not publish prices: there is a free version and a paid PRO tier, with the amounts shown in the app.
Best for: beekeepers who want voice notes and a mentor network, and are happy to check the price in the app.
5. Beekeeping Diary — a lean Android diary with a real free plan
Beekeeping Diary (beekeepingdiary.com) is an Android app by an independent developer in Serbia. The free plan covers up to 15 hives and 1 apiary; Premium removes the limits. It works offline and syncs when back online, generates a QR code for every hive, has quick templates for routine, treatment, harvest and feeding inspections, records voice notes and up to 3 photos per record, shows hive-health trends and places apiaries on a map with GPS coordinates.
There is no iPhone or web version listed, and the free plan is limited to one apiary.
Best for: Android users with a single apiary who want a simple, fast diary.
Side by side
- Platforms: bee-keeper — web app on any phone plus Android; ApiManager — iOS, Android, macOS, Windows, web; HiveTracks — iOS, Android, web dashboard; Apiary Book — iOS, Android, web; Beekeeping Diary — Android.
- Free tier: bee-keeper — 1 apiary, up to 5 hives, plus a 10-day trial of everything; ApiManager — 20 hives; HiveTracks — free download, features by subscription; Apiary Book — free version plus PRO; Beekeeping Diary — 15 hives, 1 apiary.
- Price for a year: bee-keeper — $34.99 (or $3.99 monthly); ApiManager — $14.99 to $64.99 by hive count; HiveTracks — $59.99 to $69.99; Apiary Book — shown in the app; Beekeeping Diary — Premium, shown in the app.
- Languages: bee-keeper — 40; ApiManager — 33 or more; HiveTracks — English; Apiary Book — 19; Beekeeping Diary — English and Serbian listed.
- Honey labels and hive-to-jar QR: bee-keeper only.
- Forage forecast: bee-keeper (forage radar); HiveTracks offers a bee weather forecast for inspection days.
Which one should you pick?
- Everything in one place, in your language, working without signal: bee-keeper. Start on the free tier or the 10-day trial — no card needed.
- More than five hives and no budget at all: ApiManager's 20-hive free plan.
- In the United States and part of a club: HiveTracks.
- Voice-first notes and a mentor to ask: Apiary Book.
- One apiary, Android, the simplest possible diary: Beekeeping Diary.
Whichever you choose, the habit matters more than the app. Inspect regularly, keep varroa numbers and write everything down the same day — an app only helps if the record is there when you need it. If you are just starting, read how to start beekeeping first.
Frequently asked questions
Is bee-keeper free?
There is a free tier (1 apiary, up to 5 hives, 1 marketplace listing) and every new account gets a 10-day trial of everything with no card. After that, Premium is $3.99 a month, $9.99 for three months or $34.99 a year. It is a capped free tier plus a free trial, not an unlimited free product.
Does bee-keeper work on iPhone?
Yes, as a web app: open bee-keeper.org in Safari, share, and add it to the home screen. It then opens like an installed app and works offline. The Android app is on Google Play.
Which beekeeping app works without internet?
bee-keeper is offline first: records are saved on the phone and synced later. ApiManager's mobile app and Beekeeping Diary also advertise offline use with sync when you are back online.
Can I take my records with me if I switch apps?
bee-keeper exports your inspections, treatments, harvests and hives to CSV at any time, and you can delete the account in the app. ApiManager exports to Excel and CSV. Check the export option before you commit to any app.
Which app is best for a beginner?
One that makes the first inspection easy and explains what you are looking at. bee-keeper opens with a first-inspection card, a quick log and a library of guides in your language, and the free tier is enough for a first hive or two.