Bon Calendar vs Shantideva
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Bon Calendar
Access the Tibetan Bön calendar with daily lunar dates, observances, and element combinations. View Tibetan dates for any year between 1901 and 2100, and access Bön prayer books in multiple languages. This app works fully offline.
- Tibetan lunar date and Bönpo year
- Daily practice and observance
- Month view with special days marked
- Tibetan dates for 1901-2100
- Bön prayer books in multiple languages
- Offline functionality
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Bon Calendar brings the Yungdrung Bön calendar to your iPhone and iPad, in Tibetan and English, from the Gyalshen Institute. • Each day’s Tibetan lunar date, month and Bönpo year beside the Western date • The day’s practice, special observance and element combination • A month view with full moon, new moon, double days and skipped days marked • Tibetan dates for any year from 1901 to 2100 • Bön prayer books in Tibetan, English, Chinese and Polish Works fully offline. No account, no ads, no data collected.
Shantideva
Access daily verses from a classic Buddhist text, "Engaging in Bodhisattva Behavior." Explore the entire work by a renowned 8th-century Indian Buddhist master. This app offers a practical and inspiring guide to the Buddhist path.
- Daily verse display
- Full text access
- Buddhist teachings
- Practical guide
- Inspiring content
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This App displays one verse a day from Shantideva's text "Engaging in Bodhisattva Behavior" (Bodhisattvacharyavatara) and allows to read through the entire text. "Engaging in Bodhisattva Behavior" is an outstandingly practical and inspiring Buddhist text that covers all the aspects of the Buddhist path. Shantideva was a great Indian Buddhist master who lived during the 8th century CE. Two of his texts survive - the Bodhicharyavatara (the text that is displayed in this app) and the Shikshasamuccaya ("Compendium of Trainings"). Both texts are still used to the present day by and especially the Bodhicharyavatara is one of the most cherished and most frequently taught texts in the Tibetan tradition. Please report bugs to shantideva@christian-steinert.de
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Shantideva at 100% against Bon Calendar's 33%. Shantideva also leads on iOS requirement (11.0 vs 15.0). Bon Calendar's advantage is update cadence (every 6 months vs every 20 months). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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.
Bon Calendar ships an update every 6 months, Shantideva every 20 months. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 3, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Bon Calendar | Shantideva |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | — | 5.0 (4 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 33.3% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | — | 4 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 6 months — better | Every 20 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 11.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 73 MB | 6 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | GYALSHEN INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF ZHANG ZHUNG AND TIBETAN CULTURE INC | Berzin Archives e.V. |
Customer experience
Bon Calendar
Shantideva
In-app purchases
Bon Calendar
No in-app purchases
Shantideva
No in-app purchases
