# Are.na vs Sugar

The clearest difference is rating: Are.na at 4.9 against Sugar's 2.4. Are.na also leads on review sentiment (52% vs 32%) and ratings volume (359 vs 10). Sugar's advantage is update cadence (every 2 days vs every 2 weeks). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

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

Are.na holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 2.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Are.na has 359 ratings behind it against 10, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 52% of Are.na's written reviews are positive against 32% of Sugar's.

Are.na ships an update every 2 weeks, Sugar every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and November 8, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Are.na | Sugar |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.9 (359 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/arena/id1299153149/reviews)** | [2.4 (10 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/sugar-chat-beyond-the-bubble/id6470037899/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **359** | 10 |
| Positive reviews | **52.1% of reviews** | 31.6% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks | **Every 2 days** |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 85 MB | 285 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **16.0** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad** | iPhone |
| Age rating | 17+ | 12+ |
| Developer | [When It Changed Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1299153148) | [amo](https://appshunter.io/developer/1687141253) |

## What reviewers say

### Are.na

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/arena/id1299153149)

A distraction-free platform for creative individuals to save, organize, and connect ideas. Share content like links, videos, and images into collections, and collaborate on projects privately or publicly with a thoughtful community.

**Highlights:** Save any content into collections, Organize links, videos, images, texts, Distraction-free space, Share ideas and collaborate, Private or public collaboration, Thoughtful community

**Features:** Vision Pro support, iPhone Duo support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Fast and clean
- 👍 Minimalist and accessible
- 🖤 Great community and content
- 🖤 Inspiring and creative
- 🖤 Organically curated experience

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Crashes and stability issues
- 🐛 Laggy performance
- 🐛 Bugs and glitches
- 🐛 Unintuitive navigation
- 🐛 Limited functionality compared to website

**Reported bugs**

- Inability to login or sign up
- Blocks not loading or duplicating
- App crashing when viewing GIFs/animations
- Inconsistent behavior across iOS versions
- Navigation issues due to 'Dynamic Island'

**Requested features**

- Ability to sort channels by connections
- Landscape mode support on iPad
- Password reset functionality
- Multiple image/video uploads
- Improved channel management


### Sugar

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/sugar-chat-beyond-the-bubble/id6470037899)

Express yourself beyond standard chat bubbles with a unique canvas for text, images, GIFs, and drawings. Customize your message style for a more artistic and chaotic conversation experience.

**Highlights:** Unlimited conversation canvas, Text, image, GIF, and video sharing, Drawing tools, Customizable text styles, Unique chat experience

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Innovative concept
- 👍 Fun and refreshing social experience
- 💡 Unique way to interact with friends

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🔒 Forced access to contacts
- 🔒 Privacy concerns
- 🐛 Buggy and unstable
- 🤔 Unclear value proposition
- 😕 Frustrating onboarding process

**Reported bugs**

- Login issues
- Crashes and freezes
- Disappearing content
- Unresponsive controls

**Requested features**

- Add ability to delete content
- Improve navigation and UI
- Expand customization options
- Allow sign-up without inviting friends


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Are.na free?

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

### Is Sugar free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Are.na or Sugar?

Are.na is rated higher. Are.na averages 4.9 out of 5 from 359 ratings, while Sugar averages 2.4 from 10 ratings.

### Do Are.na or Sugar have ads?

Neither Are.na nor Sugar shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Are.na or Sugar?

Are.na ships an update every 2 weeks, and Sugar every 2 days. Most recently, Are.na was updated on November 6, 2026 and Sugar on November 8, 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.*