The compound bow and recurve bow are very different, but they both are alike too. Both bows have limbs, however, the limbs on the compound bow are short and have pulleys attached on both ends. On the contrary, the limbs of the recurve are long and have a recurve bend in them. Both bows have strings, however, the compound has a string that gets pulled around the pulley and the recurve bow has a string that pulls back the limbs of the bow. In conclusion, the strings, limbs, and other various parts of the recurve bow and compound bows are different in some ways and alike in others.