# V2EX vs ILLU

The clearest difference is rating: V2EX at 4.0 against ILLU's 3.0. V2EX also leads on ratings volume (28 vs 2). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

V2EX holds the better App Store score, 4.0 against 3.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: V2EX has 28 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two.

V2EX ships an update every 2 months, ILLU monthly. The most recent releases landed on August 22, 2026 and June 1, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | V2EX | ILLU |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.0 (28 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/v2ex/id1078157349/reviews)** | [3.0 (2 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/illu/id1522192670/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **28** | 2 |
| Positive reviews | 78.9% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Monthly** |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 14 MB | 99 MB |
| Requires iOS | **12.0** | 13.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 17+ | 12+ |
| Developer | [丰 黄](https://appshunter.io/developer/1090589311) | [Shanghai Magic Net Technology Co., Ltd](https://appshunter.io/developer/1521831927) |

## What reviewers say

### V2EX

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/v2ex/id1078157349)

This app offers a comprehensive, unofficial client experience for a popular online community. It provides full access to topics, comments, and nodes, with enhanced features like image viewing, timely notifications, and user account management. Explore advanced functionalities such as threaded comment views and customizable reading settings.

**Highlights:** Full topic and comment experience, Image viewing similar to Twitter, Real-time unread notification alerts, Threaded comment views for clarity, Customizable reading settings (themes, font size), Automatic sign-in and multi-account management, Automatic daily check-ins

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

**In-app purchases:** none


### ILLU

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/illu/id1522192670)

A comprehensive creative community platform designed for users to share and discover content. It offers a clean interface, themed communities, and robust management tools for personalized creation spaces. Supports multiple content formats and collaborative editing.

**Highlights:** Themed communities for content aggregation, Customizable community management, Multiple content formats (chat, articles, images), Collection feature with collaborative editing, Detailed reporting and complaint system, Tagging and subscription options

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is V2EX free?

V2EX is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is ILLU free?

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

### Which has better reviews, V2EX or ILLU?

V2EX is rated higher. V2EX averages 4.0 out of 5 from 28 ratings, while ILLU averages 3.0 from 2 ratings.

### Do V2EX or ILLU have ads?

Neither V2EX nor ILLU shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, V2EX or ILLU?

V2EX ships an update every 2 months, and ILLU monthly. Most recently, V2EX was updated on August 22, 2026 and ILLU on June 1, 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.*