Essential QR code reader vs PassPony
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Essential QR code reader
Easily scan QR codes and various other barcode types. View scanned content, copy text, open URLs, and even recreate QR codes from text. Your scan history is automatically saved for quick access.
- Scan QR codes and barcodes
- View and copy text content
- Open URLs directly
- Recreate QR codes from text
- Automatic scan history
- Supports multiple barcode types
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Free QR code reading app, and no ad! This is completely free. This app allows you to scan QR Code, and shows contents easily. You can copy text and share, or go to browser if it is URL. History is automatically recorded, so you can use it later. Result screen shows not only text reading from QR code, but also be able to re-create QR code from text. Supports other types of bar code other than QR Code: UPC-E Code 39 Code 39 mod 43 EAN-13 (including UPC-A) EAN-8 Code 93 Code 128 PDF417 Aztec Interleaved 2 of 5 ITF14 DataMatrix QR Code is registered trademark of DENSO WAVE INCORPORATED.
PassPony
This app is an open-source password manager that allows you to own your encrypted password files. It syncs with Git and is interoperable with command-line tools, offering features like QuickType autofill and live one-time codes.
- File-based encrypted password storage
- Git synchronization
- Interoperable with pass/passage CLI
- QuickType autofill
- Live one-time codes (TOTP)
- Face ID/Touch ID unlock
- Ephemeral clipboard
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PassPony is a password manager for people who want to own their passwords. Every entry is one encrypted file in a store you control, in the same format as the pass and passage command line tools. Your Mac, your server, and your phone can all work on the same store. WHY A FILE-BASED STORE One entry, one file: the password on the first line, anything else after it. Encrypted with your keys: age identities for passage stores, OpenPGP keys for pass stores. Synced with git over HTTPS or SSH: clone your existing store, publish a new one, and resolve conflicts per entry, never with a silent merge. Interoperable: commits match the pass CLI format, so the store stays fully usable from the desktop tools. EVERYDAY USE AutoFill: your passwords appear above the keyboard when you sign in. Only entry names are indexed; nothing decrypts until you fill. Passkeys: save a passkey for a site and sign in with it. It lives in that site's entry, encrypted with your keys, and syncs like everything else. One-time codes: TOTP with a countdown ring, HOTP counters, and import from an authenticator app's export QR codes. Face ID or Touch ID unlock, with a five-minute grace window shared with AutoFill. Ephemeral clipboard: copies are local only and clear after 45 seconds. Field-level editing that preserves the exact bytes of lines it does not touch. YOUR KEYS STAY YOURS Back up every key on your phone to one file locked with a recovery code, and restore it on a new phone. SSH sync uses a key made on your phone or imported; hosts are trusted on first use and a changed host key is refused. Phones that share a store each add their own public key to it when they sync, and you approve every new key before your entries are re-encrypted for it. Secret keys never leave a device. PRIVATE BY ARCHITECTURE No account, no signup, no PassPony server. The only network connection is the git remote you configure. No analytics, no ads, no tracking. Open source, Apache-2.0. The full app and its Rust core are published in a public git repository for anyone to audit. FORMATS passage stores encrypt with modern age identities. pass stores encrypt with OpenPGP keys (Cv25519 and X25519/Ed25519 in software). RSA-keyed stores need a smartcard, which is not supported yet. Each format keeps its own store; switching never touches the other. Localized in English, Spanish, French, German, Simplified Chinese, Brazilian Portuguese, and Russian. If you already run pass or passage, PassPony is the missing phone half of your setup. If you have never used them, the first-run tour will have you adding your first pass in about a minute.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: PassPony at every 10 days against Essential QR code reader's every 12 months. Essential QR code reader's advantage is device support (3 vs 1) and iOS requirement (11.0 vs 18.0). On price, review sentiment, ads and in-app purchases 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Essential QR code reader ships an update every 12 months, PassPony every 10 days. The most recent releases landed on October 18, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Essential QR code reader | PassPony |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | — | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | — | 1 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 12 months | Every 10 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 11.0 — better | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 14 MB | 23 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | WeServe Co.,Ltd. | Kevin Stewart |
Customer experience
Essential QR code reader
PassPony
In-app purchases
Essential QR code reader
No in-app purchases
PassPony
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Essential QR code reader free?
Is PassPony free?
Do Essential QR code reader or PassPony have ads?
Which is updated more often, Essential QR code reader or PassPony?
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