Comparison

HISTORY Vault vs BBC America

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

Head to head
About

HISTORY Vault

Explore thousands of documentaries and specials about history, from ancient times to modern conflicts. Watch full-length, commercial-free videos on demand, with new content added weekly. Access classic series and discover the events and people that shaped our world.

Highlights
  • Thousands of documentaries and specials
  • Commercial-free viewing
  • New videos added weekly
  • Classic HISTORY Channel series
  • No TV provider needed
  • On-demand streaming
Features
Read full description

Now with over 2,000 videos – HISTORY Channel brings you thousands of documentaries and specials exploring the events and people that shaped our world, from ancient empires to modern warfare, all commercial-free. Watch commercial-free, full-length videos with no TV provider needed. New videos are added weekly, featuring everything from ancient civilizations and World Wars to space exploration. Plus your favorite classic HISTORY Channel series. Watch: • America: The Story of Us • Days That Shaped America • The Men Who Built America • Founding Fathers • Ice Road Truckers And many more! Note: HISTORY Vault content is only available to stream in the United States. Free Trial is only valid for first-time subscribers. Video can only be streamed in the U.S. and U.S. Territories. Payment is charged to the iTunes account at confirmation of purchase. Your account will be charged for renewal at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. You can manage your subscription and auto-renewal by visiting Account Settings on your device. If you turn off auto-renew during the current subscription period, your subscription will be canceled for the subsequent period. Please visit support.historyvault.com if you are experiencing any issues. Terms of Use: http://www.aenetworks.com/terms Privacy Policy: http://www.aenetworks.com/privacy

About

BBC America

Stream full episodes of popular BBC America series like Killing Eve and Top Gear. Access video extras, sneak peeks, and live TV with your cable provider login. Resume watching where you left off.

Highlights
  • Full episode streaming
  • Video extras and sneak peeks
  • Live TV streaming
  • Cable/satellite provider login
  • Resume watching
  • Searchable library
  • Airplay/casting support
Features
Read full description

Get caught up in your favorite BBC America shows with full episodes, video extras, and sneak peeks at upcoming series. Log in with your cable or satellite provider to watch BBC America LIVE or full episodes of Killing Eve, Top Gear, The Graham Norton Show, and more of your favorite series. Plus you can search the library and track recently-viewed episodes and resume where you left off. Most full episodes require a cable or satellite login, though season premieres are sometimes made available with no login required. You can also sample trailers and behind-the-scenes clips. New episodes are available in-season, usually the day after broadcast. Use your iPhone or iPad to Airplay or cast to your television.

Screenshots

HISTORY Vault4 screens
BBC America4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: HISTORY Vault at 3.9 against BBC America's 1.8. HISTORY Vault also leads on ads (none vs shown) and review sentiment (29% vs 5%). BBC America's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.6). On price, ratings volume, update cadence 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. HISTORY Vault sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. BBC America asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

HISTORY Vault holds the better App Store score, 3.9 against 1.8. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1.1K and 590 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 29% of HISTORY Vault's written reviews are positive against 5% of BBC America's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly monthly. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and November 2, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
HISTORY Vault versus BBC America: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHISTORY VaultBBC America
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.9 (1.1K ratings) — better1.8 (590 ratings)
Positive reviews29.1% of reviews — better5.0% of reviews
Number of ratings1.1K — better590
Update frequencyMonthlyMonthly
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple TViPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV — better
Requires iOS17.615.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size106 MB63 MB
Age rating12+12+
DeveloperA+E Global MediaBBC America

Customer experience

HISTORY Vault

All ratings1,096 ratings
Positive72.7%
Neutral5.8%
Negative21.4%
Written reviews165 reviews
Positive29.1%
Neutral6.7%
Negative64.2%

BBC America

All ratings589 ratings
Positive17.1%
Neutral5.9%
Negative76.9%
Written reviews101 reviews
Positive5.0%
Neutral6.9%
Negative88.1%

User reviews

HISTORY Vault

From 1.1K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Great content
  • 🚀 Interesting documentaries
  • 👍 Variety of historical topics
  • 👍 Reasonable subscription price

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Buggy app with frequent crashes
  • 🐛 Streaming and downloading issues
  • 🐛 Inconsistent user experience across devices
  • 🔒 Difficult to cancel subscription
  • 🔒 Billing and account issues

BBC America

From 590 App Store ratings

What we love

  • ⭐ Great app for watching shows
  • 🚀 Streams in high quality
  • 👍 Straightforward and easy to use

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent crashes and glitches
  • 🤯 Frustrating navigation and controls
  • 💸 Too many ads and interruptions
  • 🤔 Inconsistent content availability

Bugs and requests

HISTORY Vault

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Login and password reset problems
  • Incompatibility with certain devices
  • Inconsistent content availability

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add more recent and popular shows
  • Improve search and navigation
  • Implement resume playback and favorites
  • Add Chromecast/casting support
  • Provide multi-language options

BBC America

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Login issues and sign-in problems
  • Playback freezes and restarts randomly
  • Closed captions not working as expected
  • Casting and mirroring features broken

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add search and browse functionality
  • Improve rewind/fast-forward controls
  • Provide a paid ad-free subscription option
  • Sync playback progress across devices

In-app purchases

2 purchases

HISTORY Vault

Subscriptions2
  • History Vault7 Days trial$5.991 Month
  • History Vault7 Days trial$59.991 Year
None

BBC America

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is HISTORY Vault free?
HISTORY Vault is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is BBC America free?
BBC America is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, HISTORY Vault or BBC America?
HISTORY Vault is rated higher. HISTORY Vault averages 3.9 out of 5 from 1.1K ratings, while BBC America averages 1.8 from 590 ratings.
Do HISTORY Vault or BBC America have ads?
BBC America shows ads; HISTORY Vault does not.
Which is updated more often, HISTORY Vault or BBC America?
HISTORY Vault ships an update monthly, and BBC America monthly. Most recently, HISTORY Vault was updated on November 6, 2026 and BBC America on November 2, 2026.

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