Panels vs Microdose
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Panels
Enhance your comic and manga reading with a clean, customizable interface. Enjoy universal file compatibility, cross-device syncing, and advanced reading presets. Organize your library, secure your content, and import from various cloud services and local networks.
- Universal file compatibility (CBR, CBZ, PDF, ePUB)
- Cross-device reading progress sync
- iCloud Drive integration
- Customizable reading presets
- Right-to-left reading for manga
- OPDS server support
- Content security with password/Face ID
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Improve your comic reading experience with Panels. Enjoy reading your favorite titles in a clean and delightful interface, with plenty of customization and advanced features — fully DRM-free, with first-class support for OPDS, your own library, and your own files. Key features: - Universal Compatibility: Support for most common comic types: CBR, CBZ, CB7, PDF and comic ePUB (not text eBook). Support for multiple image formats, including WebP. - Cross-Device Sync: Synchronize your reading progress across iPhone, iPad and Mac and resume reading exactly where you left off. - Full iCloud Drive support: store your entire library on iCloud and access it from different devices. - Library Organization: Effortlessly manage your comic library with intuitive tools for easy navigation, custom folder colors, logos and cover images. * Themes: support for Light and Dark modes, and many others. * Reading Presets: Choose from a multitude of reading presets or create your own, including horizontal, vertical, or panel-by-panel guided view. - Right to Left reading (manga): read any comic with Panels. * OPDS support: Stream, search and download comics from your OPDS compatible server (Komga, Kavita, Codex, Ubooquity and others). * Secure your content: Keep files locked using a password or Face ID for your collections and files. Use Incognito mode to keep your reading sessions hidden. * Live Text and Subject detection. * Experimental Features: Access experimental features like panel-by-panel navigation. Panels Store — DRM-free comics from independent creators: - Browse and buy comics directly inside Panels, no extra apps or accounts. - 100% DRM-free: every purchase is yours to keep, read offline and back up. - Creators keep 80% of revenue, so your purchases directly support the people making the comics. - Purchased issues are added to your library and sync across your devices automatically. Native support for importing files from: * iCloud Drive * Dropbox * Microsoft OneDrive - Substack * OPDS: Komga, Kavita, Codex and others * Local network shared files and folders via SMB and Embedded web server - iTunes - External drives - Airdrop - Drag&Drop from other apps Page Filters: * Reduce Noise * Increase Sharpness * Reduce Moiré * Crop Borders * Require an active subscription or a one-time purchase. • You may purchase an Auto-Renewing Subscription to unlock all the premium features while it\'s active; or a one-off purchase to unlock the current major version features forever. • Your subscription will be charged to your iTunes account at confirmation of purchase and will automatically renew (at the duration selected) unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. • Current subscription may not be cancelled during the active subscription period; however, you can manage your subscription and/or turn off auto-renewal by visiting your iTunes Account Settings after purchase • Read our privacy policy and terms of use: https://panels.app/privacy / https://panels.app/terms
Microdose
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Microdose is a reader for original webtoons and comics. New episodes every week, designed for vertical scroll, sized for a five-minute read. Every series on Microdose is original. Written for the phone, drawn for the format. One tap to open, swipe down to read, double-tap to like. WHAT YOU'LL FIND Fantasy and epic worlds: The Hollow King, Song of Unmaking, The Somnambulist Guild, Teacup Dragons. Romance and slow-burn: The Quiet Hours, Velvet Reckoning, Off the Record, The Winter Knot, The 2:17. Horror and cosmic dread: Tides of the Ancient, Void Choir, The Deep Broadcast, The Hollow Audience, Billionaire Body Horror. Crime, noir, and thrillers: Last Sunday Dinner, Sal's Last Roll, Cooling Period, Pulpit, Accidental Hitman, Cognitive Cascade. Action and adventure: Seven & The Silence, Hollow Saints, The God in the Engine, New Hero New Era, The Last Scanline. Comedy and slice of life: Dead or Wed, Petty Detectives, The Backlog, My Roommate Is a Time Traveler, Wave Rider Dreams. Sci-fi and mecha: AI Unleashed, The Solar Run, Ninety Days of Memory, Neon Heartbeat, Iron Covenant. LGBTQ stories: The Salt Bride, Deadname.exe, The Art of Staying, Bloodline Oath. Plus middle-grade adventures, mythology retellings, mystery procedurals, sports drama, post-apocalyptic survival, and more arriving weekly. READER FEATURES - Vertical-scroll first, with pinch-zoom on every page - Save issues for offline reading on planes, subways, and dead zones - Push notifications when your followed series drop new issues - Personalized recommendations across genres and shelves - Browse by tag, mood, or category - Free intro issues on every series - Subscribe to Microdose Unlimited for unlimited access to the full library WHY MICRODOSE Most comic apps are libraries of stuff from somewhere else. Microdose is a publisher. Every series is built here, by writers and artists we work with directly, for the way you actually read on a phone. Built for binge reading. Built for getting lost in a story between subway stops. Read Microdose. Five minutes, one issue, then one more.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Microdose at none against Panels's 5. Panels's advantage is chart position (#170 vs unranked). On price, update cadence, 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
Both are free to download. Panels sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $1.49 per month. Microdose asks for nothing beyond the download.
Panels ships an update every 8 days, Microdose weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 16, 2026 and October 5, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Panels | Microdose |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (13K ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 70.3% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 13K — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 8 days | Weekly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Best chart rank | #170 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 166 MB | 3 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Produkt Studio | North Bay OPCO I, Inc. |
Bugs and requests
Panels
Reported bugs
5 issues- Crashes when opening large files
- Issues with page order and navigation
- Problems with zooming and scrolling
- Syncing and importing bugs
- Compatibility issues with older devices
Requested features
6 requests- Ability to create sub-folders and nested collections
- Automatic sorting and organization of comics
- Option to lock reading direction
- Double-tap to zoom functionality
- Progress tracking and bookmarking features
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- Support for more file formats like ePub
Microdose
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Panels
- Panels+ Monthly7 Days trial$1.491 Month
- Panels+ Yearly7 Days trial$14.991 Year
- Panels 3 Upgrade$9.99
- Panels 2$19.99
- Panels 3$19.99
Microdose
No in-app purchases









