Comparing features, pricing and value for your game improvement
Golfers today are spoiled for choice when it comes to apps that track performance, scorecards, GPS distances and training drills. Two of the notable players in this space are 18Birdies and Teech Golf. In this article we’ll compare both on key dimensions — features, ease of use, pricing and overall value — and show why Teech Golf stands out as a top‑choice for serious improvement.
Overview of each app
18Birdies
18Birdies has been around for a while, positioned as a full‑featured golf app combining GPS, shot tracking, social features and game‑improvement tools. It claims to be “the #1 rated golf GPS app”.
Its app store listing emphasises: “Get accurate GPS distances, easily track scores, stats, and your handicap, and connect and compete with friends.”
In short: strong all‑rounder, good for tracking rounds, social elements and basic improvement.
Teech Golf
Teech Golf positions itself very clearly as a performance‑improvement app: “Precision GPS, AI insights, stats & tailored coaching to sharpen your game and bring down your handicap.”
It emphasises personalised training, detailed statistics, exercise libraries, and aims to help golfers not just track but truly improve.
Thus, whereas 18Birdies is broad, Teech Golf is more targeted at golfers who want to actively work on improvement.
Feature comparison
Let’s compare on key feature‑categories:
GPS, scorecard & round tracking
- 18Birdies: Offers GPS yardages (distances to green, hazards), digital scorecard, shot tracking, social round‑sharing.
- Teech Golf: Provides an “augmented GPS scorecard”: automatic distance to the flag, front/middle/back of green, different modes of score entry (simple vs advanced).
- Advantage: Slight edge to Teech Golf for the advanced scorecard options and more refined GPS features tailored for improvement.
Statistics, analytics & improvement insights
- 18Birdies: Provides advanced stats (for Premium users) including AI Swing Analyzer, club recommendations, wind/slope considerations.
- Teech Golf: Emphasises deep statistical insights: club‑average from tee/approach, lie‑based stats, personalized training based on your own data.
- Advantage: Teech Golf. Its focus on tailored stats and drills gives it the better edge for improvement‑oriented golfers.
Training / exercise library / coaching
- 18Birdies: Has an AI swing analyzer (upload your swing video, get feedback) and general improvement tools.
- Teech Golf: Offers a library of 100+ video drills, custom programs, personalized training plans based on your round and statistical data.
- Advantage: Strongly Teech Golf. The depth of drills and training plan is higher.
Social & community features
- 18Birdies: Emphasises connecting with friends, sharing rounds, live scoring with friends, leaderboards, competitions.
- Teech Golf: Some social elements (compare with players, share rounds), but the main emphasis is personal improvement rather than large social network.
- Advantage: 18Birdies for social engagement; if you like sharing, competing with friends, 18Birdies is very good.
Course coverage & ease of use
- 18Birdies: Strong global course coverage, many reviews and many users.
- Teech Golf: Also available on major platforms, supports offline use, etc.
- Advantage: Tie, although depending on your country with Teech Golf you might want to check local course availability.
Pricing comparison
Here is how the pricing stacks up—important for deciding value.
18Birdies
- Free to download and use the core app: GPS, scoring, stats recording, connecting with friends.
- Premium subscription options:
- Weekly: US $7.99/week.
- Monthly: US $19.99/month (with 7‑day free trial)
- Annual: US $99.99/year (with 7‑day free trial)
- In other currencies, these may vary.
- Observation: Fair pricing but the weekly fee is quite high relative to the monthly/annual; it is relatively expensive if you go short‑term.
Teech Golf
- Free version available with basic features.
- Premium subscription options:
- Monthly: US $14.99/month
- Annual: US $119.99/year (with 7‑day free trial)
- In other currencies, these may vary.
Which offers better “value”?
If you just want baseline GPS + scorecard + social, then 18Birdies free version is very good. But if you want serious performance tracking, training plans and improvement, Teech Golf gives more “bang for your buck” especially in Europe. The free version of Teech Golf also gives enough to see if you like it.
From a value‑perspective for improvement: Teech Golf wins.
Why Teech Golf is the better choice if you’re serious
Since we’re biased toward Teech Golf (intentionally), here are key points where it excels:
- Performance‑first focus
- Teech Golf is built with the goal of improving your game, not only tracking it. The detailed stats, club‑by‑club breakdowns, lie‑based insights give you actionable data rather than just historical logging.
- Training library & personalized programs
- The inclusion of 100+ video drills, custom programs based on your performance makes it akin to having a coach in your phone. For someone wanting to lower handicap, that’s gold.
- More realistic pricing (in some markets)
- If you are in Europe or using the Euro‑pricing, the entry cost seems reasonable (€14.99 for Premium+) compared to US$19.99/month for 18Birdies premium.
- Deep analytics for improvement
- The ability to compare your stats with other players in your category, focus your training, set goals and actually “see” your progression brings the app from just a gadget to a tool for improvement.
- Continuous updates & responsiveness
- According to user comments and the website, Teech Golf is relatively new but very responsive to feedback, improving swiftly.
In short: if you are committed to improving and not just playing rounds, Teech Golf is better aligned to that goal.
Recommendation and conclusion
If I were to summarise:
- For the casual golfer who wants good GPS, score tracking, social engagement and maybe occasional improvement drills: go for 18Birdies — free version is excellent, premium is there if you want more.
- For the committed golfer who wants to improve, track performance detailedly, train with purpose and use your smartphone app as a genuine performance tool: choose Teech Golf.
My recommendation: Teech Golf is the smarter long‑term investment. Its focus on improvement, personalised training, and favourable pricing (in many markets) make it the better choice for anyone serious about lowering their handicap.
