Comparison

MTG Scanner vs Decksmith

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

Head to head
About

MTG Scanner

Instantly scan and value your Magic cards, build decks, and track your collection's worth. Connect with friends to share collections and trade cards. Master your Magic: The Gathering experience with this comprehensive manager.

Highlights
  • Instant card scanning with image recognition
  • Real-time foreign-language card translation
  • Daily price checks from multiple sources
  • 30-day price history tracking
  • Organize cards into custom folders
  • Build and export MTG decks
  • Compare trade values with friends
Features
Read full description

Dragon Shield - MTG Scanner & Card Manager is the ultimate tool for scanning, valuing, organizing, and trading your Magic cards. Instantly recognize cards in any language, build powerful MTG decks, track your collection’s value over time, and connect with friends. Built for collectors and competitive players alike, this app helps you master your Magic: The Gathering™ experience. SOCIAL & FRIENDS Add and connect with friends on the app View your friends' collection, decks, wish and trade list Share your own lists and discover new cards through your network SCAN MAGIC CARDS  Instantly scan cards in any language using advanced image recognition Real-time translation of foreign-language cards  Check daily prices from TCGPlayer, CardMarket, CardKingdom and MTGMintCard Track 30-day price history for any Magic card Find format legality and oracle text and official rulings COLLECTION MANAGER Organize your MTG cards into custom folders Add folder images and track value over time Export your collection to CSV or text for backups and trades Stay informed with built-in card price tracking MULTIPLE SORTING OPTIONS AND FILTERS Get folder statistics (Mana Cost, Card Color, etc.)    MTG DECK BUILDER Build decks with full support for sideboards and filtering Export decks to CSV or text to share with friends or import into tournaments See deck stats like mana curve, color balance, and type spread TRADE TOOL Compare the trade value between two players instantly See exactly who's ahead in the trade and by how much Use wishlists and tradelists to plan and manage your deals TOP MOVERS: WINNERS & LOSERS Track which Magic cards are rising or falling in value Filter by format, date range, or even just your own collection See the top card winners and losers within your collection    WEEKLY COLLECTION EMAILS Get automatic weekly emails with stats about your MTG collection See value changes, new additions, and pricing trends over time

About

Decksmith

Effortlessly manage your Magic: The Gathering collection with real-time card scanning and price tracking. Build and validate decks for various formats, analyze their composition, and connect with a community of players. Enjoy offline access and robust privacy controls.

Highlights
  • Real-time card scanning
  • Automatic price tracking
  • Format-aware deck building
  • Collection inventory management
  • Offline access
  • Community features
  • Privacy controls
Features
Read full description

Scan a whole binder page in one photo. Decksmith finds every card on it — nine or twelve pockets, or up to about 20 loose cards on the table — and adds them to your collection with artwork and live prices. Then build decks that check their own legality, track every game with your playgroup, and see which of your friends already owns the card you need. — A WHOLE BINDER PAGE, ONE PHOTO — • 9- and 12-pocket binder pages, or loose cards laid out any way round • Pick as many photos as you like in one go • Review everything Decksmith found on one screen before anything is imported • Missed a card? Find it by typing its name • Just opened a pack? Scan single cards live from the camera — THE DECKSMITH COMMUNITY — Magic is played together, so Decksmith is built for your playgroup. • Game tracker: life, poison and commander damage for the whole pod, a random first player, and a top row that turns to face the far side of the table • Every game is filed against the deck you played, with win rates per deck and per commander • Wishlist: track the cards you still want, priced separately from your collection • Search your friends' collections for your wishlist and see who owns which card • Follow players, browse their collections and shared decks, and search all your favorites at once • Share any deck with one tap and collect likes and comments • Friend requests, an activity feed and notifications keep you in the loop — KNOW WHAT IT'S WORTH — Live market prices in USD or EUR, kept next to what you paid — card by card and across your whole collection. — A DECK BUILDER THAT KNOWS THE RULES — Standard, Modern, Pioneer, Legacy, Vintage, Commander, Pauper and Casual. Decksmith enforces deck size and copy limits, gives your commander its own slot, validates companions and tells you the moment a deck is legal. Mana curve, card types and average mana value come automatically. — FIND ANY CARD, INSTANTLY — Search the full Magic card database or your own collection. Filter by color, rarity, type, set, mana cost, finish and double-faced cards. Sort by name, price or date added. — SMART LISTS — Save any combination of filters as a list that fills itself — trade binder, EDH staples, every foil under $5 — or curate one by hand. — YOUR CARDS, FULL SCREEN — High-resolution art, glowing borders on foils, pinch to zoom, swipe from card to card and flip double-faced cards with a tap. — IPHONE, IPAD AND THE WEB — Sign in at app.decksmith.community with your free account, and your collection, decks and lists are on any computer, always in sync with your iPhone. — PRIVACY YOU CONTROL — Scanning, your collection, prices, deck building, lists and the gallery all work without an account, and your collection lives on your device. A free account is only needed for sync, the Community and the game tracker. Then you decide what is visible: your profile, whether you can be found, and each deck public or private. Block or report anyone. Export or delete your data at any time. — NO LOCK-IN — Import CSV exports from the popular collection and deck-building sites, restore a full Decksmith backup, and export everything to a single file whenever you like. No ads. No tracking. No subscription. The Community is free to use until December 31, 2026. Card data and images provided by Scryfall. Decksmith is an unofficial fan app and is not affiliated with, endorsed or sponsored by Wizards of the Coast. Magic: The Gathering is © Wizards of the Coast LLC.

Screenshots

MTG Scanner4 screens
Decksmith4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Decksmith at 100% against MTG Scanner's 44%. Decksmith also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 10) and rating (5.0 vs 4.6). MTG Scanner's advantage is ratings volume (3.8K vs 1) and update cadence (fortnightly vs every 5 weeks). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement 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. MTG Scanner sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Decksmith asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Decksmith holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: MTG Scanner has 3.8K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 44% of MTG Scanner's written reviews are positive against 100% of Decksmith's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

MTG Scanner ships an update fortnightly, Decksmith every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 7, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
MTG Scanner versus Decksmith: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMTG ScannerDecksmith
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (3.8K ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews44.3% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings3.8K — better1
Update frequencyFortnightly — betterEvery 5 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size254 MB27 MB
Age rating9+9+
DeveloperARCANE TINMEN APSWaldemar Schneider

Customer experience

MTG Scanner

All ratings3,753 ratings
Positive91.0%
Neutral3.3%
Negative5.7%
Written reviews323 reviews
Positive44.3%
Neutral11.8%
Negative44.0%

Decksmith

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

MTG Scanner

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Login issues
  • Incorrect card identification
  • Scanning bugs with certain card types

Requested features

4 requests
  • Ability to import/export deck lists
  • Display deck value in collection
  • Improved scanning for special cards
  • More comprehensive filtering options

Decksmith

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

10 purchases

MTG Scanner

Subscriptions10
  • Rare Monthly$1.991 Month
  • Common Monthly$1.991 Month
  • Uncommon Monthly$3.991 Month
Show 7 more
  • Premium Monthly1 Month trial$3.991 Month
  • Premium Monthly7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Premium Yearly7 Days trial$29.991 Year
  • Common Yearly$39.991 Year
  • Uncommon Yearly$39.991 Year
  • Premium Yearly1 Month trial$39.991 Year
  • Premium Yearly7 Days trial$39.991 Year
None

Decksmith

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is MTG Scanner free?
MTG Scanner is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Decksmith free?
Decksmith is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, MTG Scanner or Decksmith?
Decksmith is rated higher. MTG Scanner averages 4.6 out of 5 from 3.8K ratings, while Decksmith averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do MTG Scanner or Decksmith have ads?
Neither MTG Scanner nor Decksmith shows ads.
Which is updated more often, MTG Scanner or Decksmith?
MTG Scanner ships an update fortnightly, and Decksmith every 5 weeks. Most recently, MTG Scanner was updated on November 7, 2026 and Decksmith on November 5, 2026.

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