Verithiathe honest score on any app
Updated July 2026 · real, multi-region App Store reviews
The verdict on

Voice recorder

65
User verdict / 100 High confidence Divided

Voice recorder by Hieu Nguyen is a generally well-regarded app for its clear audio quality and ease of use, but it is heavily criticized for intrusive ads in the free version and significant bugs in both free and paid versions, particularly regarding file saving and Bluetooth playback.

4.6★ lifetime (25,543) Free + in-app purchases since 2018 by Hieu Nguyen updated 2.0 mo ago recent negative 25% 120 reviews across 2 regions
Ads & Monetization File Saving & Loss Audio Quality Ease of Use Background Recording & Multitasking Bluetooth Connectivity
5★76
4★26
3★10
2★8
1★30
recent reviews across 2 regions, vs the 4.6★ lifetime average

This voice recorder app offers good audio quality and is praised for its user-friendly interface, making it suitable for various recording needs. However, the free version is plagued by frequent and disruptive ads, and users report critical issues with recordings not saving and Bluetooth playback, especially in the paid version.

What users like

  • Offers clear and high-quality audio recordings, often surpassing built-in phone appsR4R13R25R44
  • User-friendly and easy to operate for basic recording and sharing functionsR1R4R11R34
  • Supports long recordings and can record in the background or with the screen lockedR3R69R95R110
  • Allows easy downloading and sharing of filesR3R9R68R69

What users complain about

  • Free version is heavily impacted by frequent, intrusive, and sometimes unclosable full-screen adsR2R6R16R19
  • Critical bug where recordings frequently fail to save or are lost, causing significant frustrationR8R12R17R21
  • Paid/Pro version has issues with Bluetooth playback, while the free version often works fineR24R33R35R51
  • Users report losing files after accidental deletion of the app or phone resets, with difficulty recovering themR18R20R103R142
  • The app stops recording when users switch to other apps or the screen locks, which is not ideal for background recording needsR3R28R71
  • Some users find file management difficult, including locating saved files, mass exporting, and storage replenishmentR5R27R45R63
  • Paid version is described as simplistic and may install as a separate app, leading to file migration issuesR15R51
  • Some users report issues with editing tools not saving changes or being difficult to useR61R87R105
  • A cookie banner requesting tracking permission for third-party advertisers appears upon opening, raising privacy concernsR14

Latest update · v3.4

What the developer says changed (the verdict above weighs this against what reviewers report):

- Improved recording file quality - Save files to the Files app - Fixed some bugs

Recurring themes

Ads & Monetization negative
Many users are highly frustrated by the constant, intrusive, and sometimes unclosable full-screen ads in the free version, which often appear at critical moments like during recording or playback. Some users are willing to pay to remove ads but find the paid version lacking or still displaying ads.R2R6R16R19
File Saving & Loss negative
A significant number of reviews report critical issues with recordings not saving after completion, leading to the loss of important audio. Users also express difficulty recovering files after accidental deletion or phone resets.R8R12R17R18
Audio Quality positive
Many users praise the app for its excellent and clear audio recording quality, often noting it picks up sounds well from a distance and is superior to other apps or built-in phone recorders. The developer's notes mention 'Improved recording file quality', which aligns with positive user feedback.R4R13R25R37
Ease of Use positive
The app is frequently described as simple, user-friendly, and easy to navigate for basic recording, saving, and sharing.R1R4R11R34
Background Recording & Multitasking mixed
Some users appreciate the ability to record in the background or with the screen locked. However, others report that the app stops recording when they switch to other programs or the screen locks, which is a significant drawback for their use cases.R3R28R69R71
Bluetooth Connectivity negative
A recurring issue is that the paid/pro version of the app does not play back audio through Bluetooth speakers or headphones, while the free version often does. This is a frustrating bug for users who rely on Bluetooth audio.R24R33R35R51

Who it's for

This app is for users who need a simple, free voice recorder for clear audio quality and don't mind frequent ads R1R4R25. It's also suitable for those who need to record long sessions or in the background R3R69R95. It is NOT for users who require reliable file saving, seamless Bluetooth playback in a paid version, or an ad-free experience without significant bugs R8R12R24.

Evidence note: The recent reviews skew negative, with a significant portion highlighting critical issues like unsaved recordings and intrusive ads. While the lifetime rating is high, the recent sentiment suggests a decline in user experience, possibly due to increased ad frequency or new bugs. The developer's notes mention 'Fixed some bugs' but recent reviews still report numerous bugs, particularly with saving and Bluetooth.

Frequently asked

Does the app save recordings automatically?
No, many users report that recordings frequently do not save automatically or are lost, even after hitting stop, which is a major point of frustration R8R12R17R21.
Are there ads in the app?
Yes, the free version of the app is heavily plagued by frequent, intrusive, and sometimes unclosable full-screen ads that often appear during recording or playback R2R6R16R22.
Can I use Bluetooth with the app?
While the free version sometimes works with Bluetooth, many users report that the paid/pro version specifically has a bug that prevents audio from playing back through Bluetooth speakers or headphones R24R33R35R51.
Does the app record in the background?
The app is capable of background recording and recording with the screen locked according to some users R69R95R110, but others report that it stops recording if they switch to another app or if the screen locks R3R28R71.

What reviewers actually said

Built only from these 120 real reviews (foreign ones translated). Superscripts jump to the quote here. Apple has no per-review links, so [ref] opens that app's reviews on the App Store.

  1. [R4] 5/5 · US Great App: Very user friendly. Recording quality is great
  2. [R13] 5/5 · US Incredible audio quality: Me and my team use this app for recording episodes of our paranormal podcast and it never fails to amaze us with the way it works! We highly recommend this app for anyone who wants to have crystal clear audio for any occasion such as recording sessions of a podcast for example!
  3. [R25] 5/5 · US Honest review: The best thing about this app is that it will pick up sounds and voices clearly from far away and it records so clear that the playback is like you were right next to the people talking, even though they were on the other side of a wall. I’ve never had anything free like this app that works this well. thank you for keeping this app Free. I do need some help files somewhere that inst
  4. [R44] 5/5 · US Audio quality is great: This app makes recording and organizing your files super easy. What makes it stand above the rest is the audio quality. It’s superb!
  5. [R1] 5/5 · US Good App: Simple and does the job. Thank you!
  6. [R11] 5/5 · US Voicemail app: Very easy to use, good enough fidelity, very functional and practical.
  7. [R34] 5/5 · US Does the job and easy to use: Perfect for me!
  8. [R3] 5/5 · US Long recordings, but hard on the battery: I love this app, for being able to easily download the files onto my computer and make long recordings. I preferred when the app stayed on during dictating text messages and such. now it turns off if I move to any other program/page. I’d prefer that it turns off when I decide to turn it off.
  9. [R69] 5/5 · US Honestly, love this app!!!!: I love how easy it is to record save send you could even record when you’re not on the app like it. There’s a background recording it’s a dope app
  10. [R95] 5/5 · US Multi purpose: Record yourself reciting your pre trip inspection you have to recite to your tester on test day, college lectures, your boss sexually harassing you in private, or even your narcissistic abusive partner gaslighting you. You can even be low key about it. No need to worry about your phone screen lighting up, you can open other apps while recording! lengthy recording time and even an op
  11. [R110] 5/5 · GB Excellent voice recorder - highly recommended: This is a great app. Good quality recording, and the recording whilst the screen lock is on is an excellent feature. Recommended
  12. [R9] 5/5 · US I Love This App!: It does all I needed it to do: Stealthy recording, playback quality is awesome and easy to save and share! Thank You!
  13. [R68] 5/5 · US Great sound quality: Way better and clearer sound compared to other apps - easy to use, save and share
  14. [R2] 1/5 · US Every time I open it, I'm bothered by ads and can't record immediately. So annoying! · translated
  15. [R6] 3/5 · US Good, but intrusive ads.: Has great options and features that I need in a voice recorder app (multiple file formats/etc), but has annoying ads that pop up every now and again. I’d happily pay a single fee to remove them, but no option exists.
  16. [R16] 1/5 · US Ads impossible to close: After hitting “play” button add pops up covering whole screen and no place to close or cancel, so no way to get back to the original screen to stop recording, save, rename etc. Very frustrating.
  17. [R19] 1/5 · US How do I remove ads on this program?: This is a pretty good program. I found a better on android than on Apple because on Apple, they just bugged to death with ads so I guess I have to pay for it, but I can’t see where to pay for it help
  18. [R8] 1/5 · US Sickened: Twice now I've had buggy screwed up issues using this app. But this time, the second time is just heart breaking. When I hit STOP after a one hour recording, someone asked me a question (it was SUCH an important interview) and I did not name the file but I also did not delete it. I did not exit out of the app. Later I went to get the file and it did not save. WHY would you have a d
  19. [R12] 1/5 · US Recordings Not Saved: Seems like a good app but my calls are not being saved. My last 3 recordings show me that they are being recorded & when I end the call, it is not being saved. Not sure how to fix this. Please help.
  20. [R17] 1/5 · US Half the time doesn’t record anything: And then you don’t realize until an hour later that you got nothing. Useless.
  21. [R21] 2/5 · US Not able to save file: I couldn’t save a file for some reason. I can’t figure out how to get the file back. It’s gone.
  22. [R24] 2/5 · US Pro Version: The pro version does not play over my Bluetooth. The free version does, why? Is a fix coming, seriously needed
  23. [R33] 4/5 · US App Won’t Connect to Bluetooth Speaker: I love this app as it is great for quickly recording musical ideas when I get them. One frustrating problem that I am having is that it won’t work with Bluetooth speakers for some reason… I have the Pro (ad free) version. Hope this gets fixed soon…
  24. [R35] 3/5 · US Great But…: I love this app so I bought the premium version to get rid of the ads. The paid version doesn’t playback with Bluetooth so I’m using the free version which for some reason does. I hope the developers fix this bug!
  25. [R51] 4/5 · US Pay version is terrible: The free version works perfectly. You get some ads, but when you try to upgrade to the pro version with no ads, you lose all your files that you’ve already recorded on the free version and there is no way to bring them in to the newer version. It installs a second app on your phone rather than to just update the free version. For some reason mine also does not play on Blue
  26. [R18] 1/5 · US Please help recover Recordings: My phone was Factory reset, without my knowledge and all my recordings have been deleted. I’ve been trying to contact support, no luck! Is there any way to recover my files? I would be so grateful and give a 5 starrr. Please help!
  27. [R20] 5/5 · US Need help: My daughter accidentally deleted the app which contained some important recordings. I reinstalled the app but the old files are not there anymore. Is there any way I can get back my lost files?
  28. [R103] 5/5 · GB Amazing: Can someone please tell me how can I get back my deleted recording it was deleted by accident please and thank you. Someone please help.
  29. [R142] 1/5 · GB Lost/deleted recordings: How do I retrieve the deleted recordings? Is there a way or option .
  30. [R28] 3/5 · US 90% useless to me: Idk if it’s different in android. On iPhone, it never lets you record when you get off the app, it stops recording as soon as you get out. Most of my recording is done when I’m off the app. So it’s useless for me. I wanted to give 0 rating but it actually records but that is no different from other apps
  31. [R71] 1/5 · US It was garbage because the recording stopped when the screen locked, and I lost an important recording. · translated
  32. [R5] 3/5 · US It’s okay…: This App is okay. I would have given it 5 stars if it replenished storage instantly. It takes far too long to recognize deleted files and replenish the storage. That is the only thing that I don’t like about the App.
  33. [R27] 2/5 · US difficult to use and hard to find the files in your phone: you can record but you will have a hard time finding the recordings on your iphone … it doesn’t give you any good options to scan your iphone directory for the files plus it’s plagued by too many ads
  34. [R45] 2/5 · US Fills up internal storage with no way to mass-download via USB: This would be a GREAT app: fine recording, pretty good text-to-speech… BUT there’s no way to simply hook up a usb connection to a computer and move GBs of files. My storage is complete eaten up with years of thousands of tiny files that I can’t export (except by emailing thousands of files one by one).
  35. [R63] 5/5 · US It works great: The app it self is good, and they don’t charge you for recording anything. I however do have a slight problem with the porting to files part. It makes you port them 1 by 1 and I’m not sure if it’s a way to select multiple and I haven’t found it but this is sorta slow and inconvenient porting multiple files 1 by 1.
  36. [R15] 1/5 · US The free version is better than the paid version: I tried the free version and thought it was okay, so I decided to buy the paid version. But the paid version is so poorly made.... Isn't this a rip-off? · translated
  37. [R61] 2/5 · US The app is not working!: Download the app while trying to edit, it would not save what was edited. Explain how you could edit your work, but one shoe edited a small section of you and moved to another section of your work it would not save it. Obviously, this is a flaw, so I cannot see the full potentials of this app, which is a dealbreaker. Also, if you try to save other files, the app would not
  38. [R87] 1/5 · US Seriously?: I got the app and recorded a 3 minute session to see if I could learn it. With three college degrees, I thought I could. I tried to use the editing tools and they let me mark a section to remove but did not remove it.. Finally, I saved the piece and it disappeared. The app did not tell me where it saved it or where I can find it. Wasted my time. Don’t bother to waste yours. There
  39. [R105] 4/5 · GB Brilliant app: Brilliant app...only observation is that it is a little complicated to cut sections etc.....but then that could just be me
  40. [R14] 1/5 · US A cookie banner on an app???: Opened the app and the first thing I get is a box demanding my permission to track me for third-party advertisers. I've seen a lot of really stupid stuff from apps on here, but I have never seen this. There is no way I would trust crucial recordings to an app that pulls this sort of nonsense. Couldn't delete it fast enough.
  41. [R37] 5/5 · US I love this App: This is one of my most favorite apps on my phone, it’s so precise and the sound is so realistic. It blows me away. I spend hours at a time and fun. I highly recommend this app to everyone.
  42. [R22] 1/5 · US Bad bad bad: I mean when you need to watch fullscreen ads and then search for a special hidden X button, you probably already forgot your thought you wanted to record because of the current anger and frustration. It was a better experience on a hike in no service area.

Synthesized from 120 recent App Store reviews · updated July 2026 · View on the App Store