# SubStreamer vs Narjo

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: SubStreamer at none against Narjo's 2. SubStreamer also leads on ratings volume (144 vs 37). On price, rating, review sentiment and update cadence there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Narjo sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. SubStreamer asks for nothing beyond the download.

Narjo holds the better App Store score, 4.2 against 4.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 144 and 37 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 72% of SubStreamer's written reviews are positive against 79% of Narjo's.

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | SubStreamer | Narjo |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.0 (144 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/substreamer/id1012991665/reviews) | **[4.2 (37 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/narjo/id6748359006/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **144** | 37 |
| Positive reviews | 72.2% of reviews | **79.1% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks | Every 2 weeks |
| Monetization | **Free** | Freemium |
| Size | 55 MB | 83 MB |
| Requires iOS | 16.4 | **16.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch** |
| Age rating | +4 | 4+ |
| Developer | [Gaven Henry](https://appshunter.io/developer/925249622) | [Arturo Yumpo](https://appshunter.io/developer/1823416320) |

## What reviewers say

### SubStreamer

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/substreamer/id1012991665)

Access and stream your personal music library from a Subsonic-compatible server on your mobile device. Enjoy offline playback, personalized mixes, and detailed listening analytics without ads or subscriptions.

**Highlights:** Stream and download music library, Offline listening with background processing, Personalized smart mixes, Listening analytics and scrobbling, Playlist and library management, Background playback with lock screen controls, Open source

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Siri integration, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🎨 Beautiful and modern UI design
- ⚡ Clean, intuitive interface
- 🎵 Excellent Navidrome server compatibility
- 📱 Works seamlessly with self-hosted music servers
- 🔄 Reliable background playback functionality

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent playback failures and stalling
- 🐛 Random crashes during playback
- 🐛 Scrobbling not working reliably
- 🐛 Large file playback issues (10MB+)
- 🐛 AirPlay/Apple TV streaming broken

**Reported bugs**

- Songs fail to play without double-pressing play button
- Playback stops with 4 seconds remaining in track
- Skipping back crashes the app
- Large files (10MB+) require pause-then-play to start
- Scrobbling fails despite server support

**Requested features**

- CarPlay support for in-car use
- Traditional Chinese language support
- Simplified Chinese language support
- All-songs library view (not just albums/artists)
- Lyrics API integration


### Narjo

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/narjo/id6748359006)

Stream your personal music library from various servers or local storage. Enjoy lossless playback, synced lyrics, and extensive library exploration. Cast to multiple devices and customize your listening experience with a powerful equalizer and offline downloads.

**Highlights:** Connect to Navidrome, Subsonic, Jellyfin, Emby, Plex, Lossless playback and gapless support, Real-time synced lyrics with translation, Browse by artist, album, genre, decade, folder, UPnP/DLNA casting and Sonos support, 10-band graphic equalizer, Offline downloads and full offline mode

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Siri integration, Apple Watch app, Vision Pro support, SharePlay

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Narjo Pro Monthly | $1.99 | per month |
| Narjo Lifetime | $29.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is SubStreamer free?

SubStreamer is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Narjo free?

Narjo is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, SubStreamer or Narjo?

Narjo is rated higher. SubStreamer averages 4.0 out of 5 from 144 ratings, while Narjo averages 4.2 from 37 ratings.

### Do SubStreamer or Narjo have ads?

Neither SubStreamer nor Narjo shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, SubStreamer or Narjo?

SubStreamer ships an update every 2 weeks, and Narjo every 2 weeks. Most recently, SubStreamer was updated on November 1, 2026 and Narjo on October 30, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*
