Comparison

Roon vs Crate

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Roon

This app serves as a controller for a Roon Server, enabling users to browse and play their music library. It offers a rich metadata-driven interface for musical discovery, connecting to over 1,000 compatible audio devices for seamless playback.

Highlights
  • Music library browsing and playback
  • Rich metadata for musical discovery
  • Connects to 1,000+ audio devices
  • Seamless in-home audio connection
  • Access music library remotely via Roon ARC
  • Bit-perfect playback and format support
Features
Read full description

*** The Roon experience requires a Roon Server on your network. *** The Roon App is another controller for your Roon Server. You browse and play your music library on over 1,000 compatible audio devices, and provides a seamless in-home connection. You can install the free Roon App on as many devices as you like. What is Roon? The very best way to experience your music: Roon reshapes the way you browse and explore music. Powered by rich metadata, Roon's interface invites you on a new journey of musical discovery every time you log in. Your music library becomes the starting point on a vast map of performers, composers, influences, and genres. Follow the path emanating from the music you love to discover exciting new sounds and reconnect with long-forgotten favorites. You can delve even deeper through lyrics, artist photos, bios, reviews, and tour dates - then continue the journey with recommendations specifically tailored to your tastes and listening habits. Listen anywhere, on all your gear: Roon lets you play from your collection of music files and TIDAL, Qobuz, and KKBOX libraries on thousands of Roon Ready, Airplay, Chromecast, and USB devices from one app inside your home. Meanwhile, Roon ARC provides access, playback, and precision audio control for your entire Roon music library directly from your phone, wherever you are in the world. Flawless playback. Everywhere, every time: Roon is built to ensure your music sounds perfect every time you hit play, no matter where you are. Roon guarantees the best possible sound quality from every piece of audio gear - our MUSE sound engine delivers bit-perfect playback, exhaustive format support, and precision audio control for a fully customizable and flawless listening experience. From headphones to your home hi-fi, and everything in between.

About

Crate

Features
Read full description

Crate is the beautiful, native way to catalog your vinyl. Point your camera at an album cover or spine and Crate identifies the record and creates the entry in seconds — no barcode hunting, no account required. Batch-scan a whole shelf in minutes. Your collection lives in a stunning album-art grid you'll actually want to open. Sort by artist, genre, year, or label. Grade each record's media and sleeve using the Goldmine standard (M, NM, VG+, VG, G), keep a want-list of records you're hunting, and track informational value estimates over time. Log what you're spinning, build a listening history, and let on-device AI write liner-style notes for an album or a taste profile of your whole collection — all private, all on your device. Then show it off: generate a gorgeous shelf card and share your collection to Instagram and Reddit. Crate syncs privately across your devices with iCloud. No account, no marketplace, no tracking. Free to start. Crate Pro unlocks unlimited records, AI notes, full value tracking, and watermark-free shelf cards — monthly, annual, or a one-time Lifetime purchase. Value figures are estimates for personal reference, not professional appraisals. Built for crate-diggers, by crate-diggers. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://brainrash.com/apps/crate/privacy

Screenshots

Roon4 screens
Crate4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Roon at none against Crate's 3. Roon also leads on update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months) and device support (3 vs 1). On price and ads there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Crate sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Roon asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Roon ships an update every 3 weeks, Crate every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 9, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Roon versus Crate: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRoonCrate
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.6 (558 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews33.2% of reviews—
Number of ratings558 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeks — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS15.0 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size632 MB4 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperRoon LabsJustin Pruskowski

Bugs and requests

Roon

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • App crashes on search
  • Audio devices disappearing
  • Volume issues after updates
  • Inability to find Roon core

Requested features

5 requests
  • Dark mode option
  • Offline music playback
  • Better Tidal/Spotify integration
  • Improved metadata editing
  • Apple Watch support

Crate

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Roon

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

Crate

Subscriptions2
  • Crate Pro Monthly$3.991 Month
  • Crate Pro Annual$19.991 Year
One-time1
  • Crate Pro Lifetime$39.99

Questions

Is Roon free?
Roon is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Crate free?
Crate is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Roon or Crate have ads?
Neither Roon nor Crate shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Roon or Crate?
Roon ships an update every 3 weeks, and Crate every 2 months. Most recently, Roon was updated on October 24, 2026 and Crate on October 9, 2026.

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