Comparison

Shut Up vs Element X

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

Head to head
About

Shut Up

This app helps you avoid unwanted online discussions by automatically hiding comment sections while browsing the web in Safari. You can customize which websites should always display comments.

Highlights
  • Hides comment sections in Safari
  • Customizable website exceptions
  • Simple and free to use
  • Works on websites only
Features
Read full description

Shut Up spares you the opinions of troglodytes by hiding comment sections when browsing the web in Safari. You can also set your favorite websites to show comments by default. That's it. Simple and free. Enjoy! NOTE: Shut Up can only hide comments on websites, not inside apps. Uses shutup.css by Steven Frank, with permission. https://github.com/panicsteve/shutup-css

About

Element X

Communicate securely and privately with instant messaging and video calls. This app offers robust features for individuals and communities, allowing you to own your data and choose where it's hosted. Enjoy real-time communication with synchronized history across all your devices.

Highlights
  • Real-time messaging
  • Video calls
  • Public and private rooms
  • Rich messaging features
  • Cross-device synchronization
  • Data ownership and server choice
Features
Read full description

Freedom to communicate on your own terms For individuals and communities - private communication between family, friends, hobby groups, clubs, etc. Element X gives you fast, secure and private instant messaging and video calls built on Matrix, the open standard for real-time communication. This is a free and open-source app maintained at https://github.com/element-hq/element-x-ios Stay in touch with friends, family and communities with: • Real time messaging & video calls • Public rooms for open group communication • Private rooms for closed group communication • Rich messaging features: emoji reactions, replies, polls, pinned messages and more. • Video calling while browsing messages. • Interoperability with other Matrix-based apps such as FluffyChat, Cinny and many more. Privacy-first Unlike some other messengers from Big Tech companies, we don’t mine your data or monitor your communications. Own your conversations Choose where to host your data - from any public server (the largest free server is matrix.org, but there are plenty of others to choose from) to creating your own personal server and hosting it on your own domain. This ability to choose a server is a large part of what differentiates us from other real time communication apps. However you host, you have ownership; it’s your data. You’re not the product. You’re in control. Communicate in real time, all the time Use Element everywhere. Stay in touch wherever you are with fully synchronised message history across all your devices, including on the web at https://app.element.io Element X is our next-generation app If you’re using the previous-generation Element Classic app, it’s time to try Element X! It’s faster, easier to use, and more powerful than the classic app. It’s better in every way and we’re adding new features all the time.

Screenshots

Shut Up4 screens
Element X4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Shut Up at 4.2 against Element X's 3.5. Shut Up also leads on review sentiment (56% vs 39%) and device support (4 vs 2). Element X's advantage is update cadence (fortnightly vs every 6 months) and ratings volume (168 vs 49). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Shut Up holds the better App Store score, 4.2 against 3.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 49 and 168 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 56% of Shut Up's written reviews are positive against 39% of Element X's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Shut Up ships an update every 6 months, Element X fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Shut Up versus Element X: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterShut UpElement X
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.2 (49 ratings) — better3.5 (168 ratings)
Positive reviews56.1% of reviews — better38.8% of reviews
Number of ratings49168 — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 monthsFortnightly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS12.0 — better18.5
Further details — not scored
Size9 MB341 MB
Age rating9+17+
DeveloperRichard RomeroVector Creations Limited

Customer experience

Shut Up

All ratings46 ratings
Positive78.3%
Neutral10.9%
Negative10.9%
Written reviews57 reviews
Positive56.1%
Neutral15.8%
Negative28.1%

Element X

All ratings162 ratings
Positive56.8%
Neutral13.6%
Negative29.6%
Written reviews188 reviews
Positive38.8%
Neutral19.7%
Negative41.5%

Bugs and requests

Shut Up

Reported bugs

24 issues
  • Does not work for YouTube comments
  • Does not work for mobile app versions
  • Stopped working on iOS 26 and later
  • Does not shut up Disqus
  • Does not block anything
Show 19 more
  • No longer works on iOS Safari
  • Misses some websites
  • Does not work on YouTube in Safari
  • Does not block comments on Instagram on iOS Safari
  • Does not work on Pinterest.co.uk
  • Does not work on mobile sites unless desktop version is requested
  • No good for social apps like Instagram
  • Reinstalling required after updates
  • App crashes at opening
  • Whitelist resets every time it's opened
  • Does not work in Ventura
  • Not blocking YouTube comments
  • Does not work on the YouTube app
  • Comments still show up after removing from exception list
  • Cannot turn on in app settings for Safari
  • Had to install twice before it worked
  • Stopped working on Safari 15.1 (Monterey)
  • Comments disappeared, but ALL comments disappear (not desired)
  • App crashes at opening

Requested features

8 requests
  • Block comments in mobile app versions
  • Improve blocking for YouTube comments
  • Improve blocking for Disqus comments
  • Improve blocking for Pinterest comments
  • Work on individual apps (not just Safari)
Show 3 more
  • Ensure compatibility with newer iOS/macOS versions
  • Fix whitelist reset bug
  • Fix app crashing bug

Element X

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Shut Up

No in-app purchases

None

Element X

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Shut Up free?
Shut Up is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Element X free?
Element X is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Shut Up or Element X?
Shut Up is rated higher. Shut Up averages 4.2 out of 5 from 49 ratings, while Element X averages 3.5 from 168 ratings.
Do Shut Up or Element X have ads?
Neither Shut Up nor Element X shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Shut Up or Element X?
Shut Up ships an update every 6 months, and Element X fortnightly. Most recently, Shut Up was updated on October 23, 2026 and Element X on November 3, 2026.

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