Comparison

RETRO FORTH vs MySQL Client by SQLPro

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

Head to head
About

RETRO FORTH

A compact and adaptable concatenative programming language designed for ease of learning and customization. It features a code editor, interactive listener, and support for Gopher servers, allowing for flexible development.

Highlights
  • Concatenative programming language
  • Code editor with Markdown subset
  • Literate programming style
  • Interactive listener interface
  • Gopher server data fetching
  • File manager
  • Documentation browser
Features
Read full description

RETRO FORTH is a concatenative programming language with roots in Forth. Designed to be compact, learnable, and easy to adapt to specific needs, it has been developed and refined through continual use by a small community over more than a decade. Forth is a stack based programming language created in the late 1960's by Chuck Moore. Over the intervening decades it has evolved through use, with many dialects along the way. The Retro dialect was created in the late 1990's, and has been continually developed and supported for over 15 years. It is a structured, imperative stack-based language with modern facilities including quotations and reflection. It features: - latest version of the RETRO language - a code editor using Markdown subset - literate programming style - code is extracted from fenced blocks in Markdown source allowing easy mixing of code and commentary - allows use of unicode & emoji in source & commentary - interactive listener interface for quick interactions - simple console output and text input - editor provides quick access to numbers and symbols - support for fetching textual data from Gopher servers - file manager - documentation browser It also includes documentation and several optional examples.

About

MySQL Client by SQLPro

This app provides a powerful yet lightweight interface for accessing and managing MySQL and MariaDB databases. It offers features like SQL autocompletion, syntax highlighting, and support for cloud services. Users can execute multiple queries, export data, and utilize SSH tunneling for secure connections.

Highlights
  • SQL autocompletion
  • Syntax highlighting
  • Tabbed interface
  • Execute multiple queries
  • Cloud service support
  • SSH tunneling
  • Data export (CSV, XML, JSON)
Features
Read full description

SQLPro for MySQL is a lightweight but powerful MySQL and MariaDB database client, which allows quick and simple access to MySQL/MariaDB Servers including cloud services such as Amazon RDS, Microsoft Azure and Digital Ocean. Some of the great features include: + Intellisense/SQL autocompletion. + Syntax highlighting. + Tabbed based interface for an optimal user experience (iPad). + Support for executing multiple queries at once. + Quick access to tables, columns and more. + Dark & Light themes which can be switched manually or automatically adjusted by your devices brightness. + Netbios support. + Export options including CSV, XML and JSON. + SSH Tunnelling (password authentication & private key auth). SQLPro for MySQL works with MySQL & MariaDB. It will not work with other database servers such as MSSQL, PostgresSQL or Oracle. Privacy Policy: https://hankinsoft.com/privacypolicy.html Terms of Use: https://hankinsoft.com/termsofuse.html Price: SQLPro requires a Premium upgrade in order to interact with database result sets. Premium is available as either a Lifetime Purchase or through a Subscription with Monthly and Yearly options. Subscriptions auto-renew within 24 hours of the expiration date unless auto-renewal is turned off in the iTunes account settings. Your Account will be charged for renewal (based on your selected plan) within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period. Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when the user purchases a subscription to that publication, where applicable. Payment will be charged to your iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase.

Screenshots

RETRO FORTH4 screens
MySQL Client by SQLPro4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: RETRO FORTH at 4.4 against MySQL Client by SQLPro's 3.9. RETRO FORTH also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 4) and iOS requirement (12.4 vs 17.0). MySQL Client by SQLPro's advantage is update cadence (every 10 days vs monthly) and ratings volume (96 vs 5). On price, review sentiment, ads and device support 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. MySQL Client by SQLPro sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. RETRO FORTH asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

RETRO FORTH holds the better App Store score, 4.4 against 3.9. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: MySQL Client by SQLPro has 96 ratings behind it against 5, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 33% of RETRO FORTH's written reviews are positive against 29% of MySQL Client by SQLPro's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

RETRO FORTH ships an update monthly, MySQL Client by SQLPro every 10 days. The most recent releases landed on September 6, 2026 and September 26, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
RETRO FORTH versus MySQL Client by SQLPro: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRETRO FORTHMySQL Client by SQLPro
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.4 (5 ratings) — better3.9 (96 ratings)
Positive reviews33.3% of reviews — better28.8% of reviews
Number of ratings596 — better
Update frequencyMonthlyEvery 10 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS12.4 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size4 MB31 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperCharles ChildersHankinsoft Development Inc

Customer experience

RETRO FORTH

All ratings5 ratings
Positive80.0%
Neutral20.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive33.3%
Neutral66.7%
Negative0.0%

MySQL Client by SQLPro

All ratings96 ratings
Positive71.9%
Neutral5.2%
Negative22.9%
Written reviews59 reviews
Positive28.8%
Neutral15.3%
Negative55.9%

Bugs and requests

RETRO FORTH

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

MySQL Client by SQLPro

Reported bugs

9 issues
  • Garbled Chinese characters in export
  • App crashes on SSH connection
  • Plugin sha256_password could not be loaded
  • Cannot connect without password
  • Cannot view query results on free version
Show 4 more
  • Cannot edit data after upgrade
  • Cannot restore subscription
  • Cannot set timezone
  • Access denied for root@randomId.skybroadbrand

Requested features

6 requests
  • XLSX export with Chinese characters
  • Chinese language version
  • Support for private SSH keys
  • Refresh icon for queries
  • Set timezone for connections
Show 1 more
  • Allow empty password field

In-app purchases

None

RETRO FORTH

No in-app purchases

4 purchases

MySQL Client by SQLPro

Subscriptions3
  • SQLPro Premium3 Days trial$5.991 Month
  • SQLPro Premium7 Days trial$59.991 Year
  • SQLPro Premium1 Year trial$59.991 Year
One-time1
  • SQLPro Premium - Lifetime$149.99

Questions

Is RETRO FORTH free?
RETRO FORTH is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is MySQL Client by SQLPro free?
MySQL Client by SQLPro is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, RETRO FORTH or MySQL Client by SQLPro?
RETRO FORTH is rated higher. RETRO FORTH averages 4.4 out of 5 from 5 ratings, while MySQL Client by SQLPro averages 3.9 from 96 ratings.
Do RETRO FORTH or MySQL Client by SQLPro have ads?
Neither RETRO FORTH nor MySQL Client by SQLPro shows ads.
Which is updated more often, RETRO FORTH or MySQL Client by SQLPro?
RETRO FORTH ships an update monthly, and MySQL Client by SQLPro every 10 days. Most recently, RETRO FORTH was updated on September 6, 2026 and MySQL Client by SQLPro on September 26, 2026.

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