MasterClass vs Uptime
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
MasterClass
Learn new skills from world-renowned experts across a vast range of subjects. Access thousands of bite-sized lessons on professional development, creative arts, wellness, and more. Watch on any device, with offline options available.
- Learn from world-renowned experts
- Vast range of premium courses
- Thousands of bite-sized lessons
- Accessible on multiple devices
- Offline learning options
- New content added regularly
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LEARN FROM THE BEST. BE YOUR BEST. Build crucial skills so you can thrive at work, at home, and beyond. Whether you want to negotiate a raise, write a book, dial in your health, or perfect your baking techniques, our instructors—world-renowned experts, industry leaders, and cultural icons—are here for you. Check out our online courses, and get ready to learn new skills and thrive. A VAST RANGE OF PREMIUM COURSES Choose from classes on professional development, business, wellness, creative skills, food, writing, home & lifestyle, sports & gaming, music, photography, and more—all featuring MasterClass’s cinematic storytelling. 200+ EXPERT INSTRUCTORS. THOUSANDS OF LESSONS. Each class is broken up into bite-size lessons. Quit doomscrolling and binge a whole class—or learn new skills in just 5 to 10 minutes. EDUCATION THAT’S ACCESSIBLE ANYWHERE Watch on your iPhone, iPad, Mac, or Apple TV. For on-the-go learning, switch to audio mode or download select classes to build skills offline. BOOST YOUR CAREER WITH BUSINESS LEADERS Access business training courses taught by top leaders, including Martha Stewart, Mark Cuban, Bob Iger, Rich Paul, Sir Richard Branson, and Anna Wintour. IMPROVE YOUR HEALTH & WELLNESS Tap into expert-led educational videos on healing and boosting your gut, brain, and skin, plus courses on everything from menopause to meditation. COOK TO IMPRESS WITH WORLD-CLASS CHEFS Enjoy immersive cooking classes with culinary titans like Gordon Ramsay, Roy Choi, Dominique Crenn, Massimo Bottura, Wolfgang Puck, and Thomas Keller. FINISH YOUR BOOK WITH BESTSELLING WRITERS Break through blocks and get your work out in the world with writing courses from Malcolm Gladwell, Margaret Atwood, James Patterson, Amanda Gorman, David Sedaris, R.L. Stine, and more. LEARN TO BE LEGENDARY FROM ICONIC ARTISTS Hone your creative skills with the likes of Amy Poehler, John Legend, Mindy Kaling, Issa Rae, RuPaul, Steve Martin, Shonda Rhimes, and Helen Mirren. Music lessons and photography courses are also available. LEVEL UP YOUR GAME WITH ALL-STAR ATHLETES Find out how champions like Lewis Hamilton, Serena Williams, Steph Curry, Wayne Gretzky, Tony Hawk, and Simone Biles (plus legendary coaches like Geno Auriemma and Mike “Coach K” Krzyzewski) train and win. NEW CONTENT ADDED REGULARLY Extend your online learning journey with new classes, playlists, and even offers to meet with our instructors. ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP TERMS The annual membership is an auto-renewing subscription plan. By signing up, you agree to the Terms of Service, Privacy Policy, and applicable notices below. Your Apple account will be charged the noted amount for the first year and will be charged annually thereafter at the then-current rate unless you cancel before the end of the current period. No refunds for partially unused periods. To cancel or update payment information, go to your App Store Subscriptions. See our Privacy Policy at https://www.masterclass.com/privacy See our Terms of Service at https://www.masterclass.com/terms CA Privacy Notice: https://www.masterclass.com/privacy/states#california For CA residents: Do Not Sell My Info: https://www.masterclass.com/privacy/states#do-not-sell
Uptime
Learn and grow in just 5 minutes with expert-designed summaries of books, podcasts, and courses. Access content as text, audio, or visual stories to retain information and take action in your daily life.
- 5-minute content summaries (Hacks)
- Summaries of books, podcasts, documentaries, courses
- Content available as text, audio, or visual stories
- Science-based learning methodology
- Actionable insights and tips
- Save and categorize favorite content (Sparks, Boards)
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Designed by experts and scientifically proven to help you learn, Uptime is an exciting way for you to spend 5 minutes immersing yourself in content that will help turn you into the smartest person in the room. Whether it’s meditation, politics, or career advice you’re after, our Hacks can have you feeling confident and well-informed across any area of your life. WHY UPTIME? • It’s effortlessly engaging. Our 5-minute summaries (which we call Hacks) are easy to understand, quick to get through, and cover every topic imaginable. • We save you time. Uptime finds the world’s top non-fiction books, podcast episodes, documentaries, and online courses, and summarizes them so you can take away all the key information in a fraction of the time. • You choose what works for you. Our content is available as text to read, audio to listen to, or as visual stories you can tap through. Whether you’re sitting down to concentrate or out on the go, Uptime is designed to suit your needs. • We’re built for learning. Designed by experts, Uptime has a science-based methodology that’s proven to foster long-term information retention. • We help you take action. We don’t just leave you to consume facts. Our Insights in Action provide you with tips and tricks that you can implement in your everyday life. • Uptime helps you reach your goals. Watch your streak go up and see how many hours you’ve saved — a book might take hours, but a Hack only needs 5 minutes. • You can bank the best bits for later. Save your favorite quotes, insights, and actions as Sparks to refer back to, and even categorize them into Boards to share with your friends. • Our content is one of a kind. Many of our Hacks are written by the creators themselves, not only guaranteeing authenticity but offering unique insight you can’t get anywhere else. • We guarantee quality. We curate only the top creators – with New York Times best sellers, the latest Netflix documentaries, top-rated Apple and Spotify podcasts, and courses from the world’s most prestigious universities. WHAT IS EVERYONE SAYING ABOUT UPTIME? "Uptime: the app that helps you appear well-read (without actually reading). No time for those big books everyone talks about? With a new app you can grasp Hawking, Piketty and Gladwell in five minutes." – The Times “Uptime has a crucial role to play in making education and knowledge more accessible and affordable..” – Lily Cole, author "Read less, absorb more: Unless you have unlimited free time, you’ll never be able to consume everything that strikes your interest. Uptime provides a workaround…" – Fast Company's best new apps of 2021 TRY UPTIME PREMIUM It's free for 7 days with no ads, unlimited content, and access to perks such as audio voice and speed selection, monthly streak repair, and deeper learning. If you purchase Uptime Premium, payment will be charged to your Apple account. Subscriptions will automatically renew at the end of your current period, unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the subscription period. You will still have access to all your subscription features and content for the remaining time of your then-current period.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Uptime at 67% against MasterClass's 29%. Uptime also leads on monetization model (free with in-app purchases vs subscription) and update cadence (every 6 days vs every 3 weeks). MasterClass's advantage is ratings volume (123K vs 2.7K) and rating (4.9 vs 4.7). On price, ads, in-app purchases 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. MasterClass sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $119.99 per year and Uptime sells 7 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
MasterClass holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: MasterClass has 123K ratings behind it against 2.7K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 29% of MasterClass's written reviews are positive against 67% of Uptime's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
MasterClass ships an update every 3 weeks, Uptime every 6 days. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 22, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | MasterClass | Uptime |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.9 (123K ratings) — better | 4.7 (2.7K ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 28.9% of reviews | 67.2% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 123K — better | 2.7K |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Every 6 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Subscription | Free with in-app purchases — better |
| Best chart rank | #30 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Apple TV | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch |
| Requires iOS | 17.6 | 16.4 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 129 MB | 86 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 17+ |
| Developer | MasterClass | UPTIME APP LIMITED |
Customer experience
MasterClass
Uptime
User reviews
MasterClass
From 123K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Great content from experts
- 🤩 Inspiring and educational
- 👍 High-quality production
- 💡 Diverse range of topics
Room to improve
- 🐛 Buggy and glitchy app
- 🤔 Confusing navigation and UI
- 💰 Expensive subscription
- 🔌 Unreliable offline support
Uptime
From 2.7K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Great way to preview books
- 🚀 Convenient and engaging format
- 🚀 Helpful for busy people
- 👍 Enjoyable learning experience
- 👍 Useful for those who don't like reading
Room to improve
- 🔒 Requires paid subscription
- 🔒 Limited content for free users
- 🐛 Repetitive or diluted summaries
- 🐛 Robotic voice can be unpleasant
- 🐛 Unreliable cancellation process
Bugs and requests
MasterClass
Reported bugs
4 issues- App crashes and freezes
- Downloaded content disappears
- Playback issues and random pauses
- Inconsistent behavior across devices
Requested features
4 requests- Ability to download more content offline
- Progress tracking and resume functionality
- Filtering and sorting options
- Transcript search and note-taking
Uptime
Reported bugs
3 issues- Subscription issues and unexpected charges
- App crashes or freezes on some devices
- Recommendation algorithm needs improvement
Requested features
4 requests- Offline access to downloaded content
- Better organization and management of saved content
- More diverse content beyond just progressive/liberal views
- Family sharing or discounted plans for multiple users
In-app purchases
MasterClass
- MasterClass Individual$119.991 Year
- Duo (Free Upgrade)$179.991 Year
- All-Access Pass upgrade1 Year trial$179.991 Year
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- MasterClass Duo$179.991 Year
- Family (Free Upgrade)$239.991 Year
- MasterClass Family$239.991 Year
Uptime
- Uptime Premium$3.991 Month
- Uptime Premium$19.991 Month
- Uptime Premium7 Days trial$29.991 Year
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- Uptime Premium1 Year trial$29.991 Year
- Uptime Premium7 Days trial2 variants$55.991 Year
- Uptime Premium7 Days trial$69.991 Year
- Uptime Premium1 Year trial2 variants$69.991 Year









