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Updated July 2026 · real, multi-region App Store reviews
Head-to-head

Google Arts & Culture vs Smartify

Google Arts & Culture 4.7★ · Free + IAP 75
Winner Google Arts & Culture
Smartify 4.5★ · Free to download 60

Google Arts & Culture offers a broader range of content and interactive features, but Smartify is a more focused tool for identifying art in person, despite its limitations.

Full reviews: Google Arts & Culture · Smartify

Google Arts & Culture provides a vast digital museum experience with educational content and interactive games, though recent AI integrations and technical glitches have drawn criticism. Smartify excels at identifying artworks in museums, but its database is limited, and its scanning feature can be unreliable.

Head to head

Features & Content edge: Google Arts & CultureR2R3R7R11
Google Arts & Culture Google Arts & Culture is praised for its extensive collection of artworks, historical information, and interactive virtual exhibits, offering a rich educational experience R11R44. Users appreciate the ability to explore art and culture in various engaging ways . However, recent updates pushing AI-generated content, like podcasts and drawing experiences, are a significant turn-off for many users who find them 'soulless' and an 'insult to humanity' R2R3R7R40. Some users also wish for a more complete oeuvre for artists and better organization of content .
Smartify Smartify's core feature is its ability to scan and identify artworks, providing descriptions and artist information . Users find it useful for learning about art in museums without needing to read wall labels . However, a major drawback is its limited database; many users report that the app fails to identify a significant number of paintings, even well-known ones, or works from specific artists and exhibits R63R64R72R73. The removal of the photo upload feature is also a point of frustration .
Ease of Use & Interface tieR4R9R12R13
Google Arts & Culture Users generally find Google Arts & Culture intuitive and easy to use for browsing and learning . However, recent updates have introduced significant usability issues. A major complaint is the lack of landscape mode support, especially on iPads, which frustrates users who prefer to view art or use their device with a keyboard in that orientation R9R12R13R18. Other interface issues include tiny unadjustable font sizes , a poor search function that requires exact phrasing , and an overall feeling that the app has become more convoluted . Some users also report difficulties removing favorited images R4 and a banner obstructing views when zooming .
Smartify Smartify's interface is generally liked , and some users find it easy to use for scanning . However, many users report that the app is not intuitive, especially concerning navigation and finding audio tours . The search function can be confusing, sometimes searching within previous results . Users also experience issues with the app reloading from scratch and difficulty figuring out where things are located when searching by general location .
Reliability & Performance tieR1R6R10R17
Google Arts & Culture Google Arts & Culture suffers from significant reliability issues. Many users report the app failing to open, showing 'app error', or crashing frequently R1. Games within the app often don't work or fail to load content R6R10. Users also experience glitches with scrolling through articles, incorrect descriptions for viewed birds, and an inability to access app support . Some features, like the widget, are reported as broken R17.
Smartify Smartify's scanning feature, while its main draw, is frequently reported as unreliable. Users complain that it often fails to recognize paintings, even well-known ones, or requires multiple attempts R73. Some users report the app closing immediately after opening . Image processing can be slow, and focusing can be difficult, especially with small images or reflections . There are also reports of the app not working with VPNs and not being available in certain regions .
Price & Value edge: Google Arts & CultureR26R44R63R72
Google Arts & Culture Google Arts & Culture is a free app, and users appreciate the value of having a vast, free resource for discovering and learning about art and culture R26R44. The extensive educational content and interactive experiences are seen as a significant benefit, offering an alternative to social media R44.
Smartify Smartify is free to download, but some users mention paying for audio tours and then having issues . The value is perceived as high when the scanning feature works effectively, bringing museum information directly to the user . However, the app's limitations in identifying art and its restricted database diminish its value for many users R63R72.
Pick Google Arts & Culture if

you want a broad, educational experience with a vast collection of art and cultural content, including interactive exhibits and games, and are willing to overlook recent AI integrations and some technical glitches.

Pick Smartify if

your primary goal is to identify artworks in museums using a scanning feature and you are visiting one of the museums partnered with Smartify, or you appreciate a focused tool for in-person art exploration.

Evidence note: Reviews for Google Arts & Culture are more numerous and detailed, covering a wider range of features and issues. Smartify's reviews are heavily focused on the success or failure of its scanning feature and the limitations of its database.

Frequently asked

Does Google Arts & Culture support landscape mode on iPad?
No, many recent reviews indicate that Google Arts & Culture no longer supports landscape mode on iPad, which is a significant frustration for users who prefer to view art or use their device with a keyboard in that orientation R9R12R13R18.
Can Smartify identify any painting I scan?
No, Smartify's ability to identify paintings is limited to its database, which primarily includes works from partnered museums, and many users report that it frequently fails to recognize even well-known artworks or those from non-partnered collections R63R64R72R73.
Are there many AI features in Google Arts & Culture?
Yes, recent updates to Google Arts & Culture have introduced a significant number of AI features, including AI-generated podcasts and AI drawing experiences, which have been met with strong negative feedback from users who find them intrusive and detracting from the art experience R2R3R7R40.

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. [R2] Google Arts & Culture 4/5 · US Good potential, but ditch the AI: This app has a lot of potential and I was really looking forward to using it as an alternative to mindless scrolling. Unfortunately Google is leaning into AI way too much, including having soulless AI-generated podcasts that “discuss” art. What an insult to humanity! I had to immediately uninstall.
  2. [R3] Google Arts & Culture 3/5 · US AI features are a miss: I think this app is a great resource in general for art fans. But these AI features being pushed upon the user base are a huge turn off. Why would a fan of visual art, likely an artist themselves, want to listen to an AI character podcasting about Starry Night? I think the AI audio stuff is downright useful in Notebook LM, but here? Just feels like a devaluing of human expr
  3. [R7] Google Arts & Culture 1/5 · US ai everywhere: the fact there is a large ai box on everything is so annoying it obstructs the view and is just so frustrating. why does ai have to be literally everywhere i turn even when im trying to learn about art. at least make an option to make it go away
  4. [R11] Google Arts & Culture 5/5 · US Art lover: I love this app, the great detail and the ability to ask question and engage with the topic. This would be amazing if there was one for famous scientists.
  5. [R4] Google Arts & Culture 1/5 · US This item no longer exists.: I don't use Arts & Culture that often; I only use this more for education. There is a glitch where you cannot remove favorite images (or images in the lists you have made) that show a greyed-out, squiggly/ripped icon. I can delete non-deleted artworks, but not the ones that show these symbols. First, I have tried to use uBlock Origin on my computer, but it won't let
  6. [R9] Google Arts & Culture 3/5 · US No landscape support: Works fine in portrait mode but desperately needs landscape mode.
  7. [R12] Google Arts & Culture 3/5 · US The iPad app needs more work: I was amused by this project when I saw it on web, however it was not so good when I downloaded the iPad app. The first main problem that I had was that the application does not work on landscape mode 🫠. It was a huge deception to me since I have a keyboard and I prefer to work on a landscape mode to see more images. 👎 The second enhancement that Google team should wo
  8. [R13] Google Arts & Culture 1/5 · US Terrible App: No landscape mode is honestly laughable coming from the biggest conglomerate. You’ll implement a bunch of useless tacky (ai) functions without even having a basic working system that allows for landscape mode. The search system makes it impossible to narrow down subject matter. Crashes all the time. When you’re looking through archives and go past a certain point it will crash and yo
  9. [R1] Google Arts & Culture 1/5 · US Broken App: This app has failed to work for the last two months. Opening it shows “app error” every time. It’s not a network connection as all my apps work properly except this one.
  10. [R6] Google Arts & Culture 3/5 · US What the heck?!: Bro literally the games don’t work! At school, we play on the website on our iPads and the games work perfectly. But all of a sudden I download it on my phone and the games don’t work! The learning stuff and the camera games work but not the real games like the viola game and the blob opera. Pls fix it!!!
  11. [R10] Google Arts & Culture 1/5 · US PLEASE READ: So I CANT GET IN GAMES BECAUSE “failing to load content”.I restarted and tried other stuff but it still WONT WORK please fix🥺🙏🏻🙏
  12. [R17] Google Arts & Culture 4/5 · US Needs iOS 26 update: Widget is broken in iOS 26
  13. [R26] Google Arts & Culture 4/5 · US Love the concept: I haven’t gotten too deep into using this app but just from my initial impression, I love the idea of a free app where I can discover and learn about arts & culture. My only request from the app developers is to please add a feature to mark if you have seen the famous artworks in person. So to add them to my “collection” and learn more about them as well.
  14. [R44] Google Arts & Culture 5/5 · US You need this app!!!: This is the first time I’ve ever been moved to write an app review. Google Arts & Culture has fully changed the way I use my phone and consume content. This app is full of incredible educational information and learning experiences, everything from fascinating interactive virtual exhibits on the da Vinci codices to articles on history, art galleries, and so much more. I recen
  15. [R63] Smartify 3/5 · US Lovely when it works: Very cool when it happens to have a painting in its database, which it usually doesn’t. E.g. some paintings in the Yale Center for British Art, but none of its Canalettos.
  16. [R72] Smartify 3/5 · US Many works and artists missing :(: I love the concept, I love the interface, but unfortunately so many works and artists that I would like to favorite are not among the collections on this app. For example, I just recently saw a wonderful exhibit with a hall of María Berrío works at the ICA in Boston, but I could not find them here.
  17. [R18] Google Arts & Culture 3/5 · US I love this app, but…: Since the moment I downloaded this app, I loved it. I love the easy access to a variety of artworks and their history, also that if you want to explore about any art content, it takes you to the correct websites. The only thing I have to complain is that the recent apps version does not support the screen rotation. I have it on my phone and on my iPad, and I can’t enjoy the
  18. [R64] Smartify 1/5 · US Can’t identify a lot of paintings: Corn poppy kees von dongen and a mattise with a cat i have could not identify
  19. [R73] Smartify 1/5 · US Won’t recognize anything: Attempted to identify a painting I have had for years. Using the scan it just states cannot recognize. So I used it on some well known paintings and artists, get the same response.
  20. [R40] Google Arts & Culture 1/5 · US AI garbage: I downloaded this hoping for a fun way to connect with the actual art world and escape the infiltration of ai slop in every single thing on the internet. Two seconds into using this app and I’m prompted to try an AI drawing experience. Lose the ai trash. It’s not art and it doesn’t belong in the art world.

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