# D&D Beyond vs Monster Compendium

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Monster Compendium at none against D&D Beyond's 29. Monster Compendium also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.7). D&D Beyond's advantage is ratings volume (92K vs 1) and chart position (#66 vs unranked). On price, update cadence, ads and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. D&D Beyond sells 28 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Monster Compendium asks for nothing beyond the download.

Monster Compendium holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: D&D Beyond has 92K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 18, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | D&D Beyond | Monster Compendium |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.7 (92K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/d-and-d-beyond/id1501810129/reviews) | **[5.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/monster-compendium/id6763808338/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **92K** | 1 |
| Positive reviews | 54.0% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Every 3 weeks |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | **#66** | — |
| Size | 321 MB | 59 MB |
| Requires iOS | **16.0** | 16.2 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 9+ | 9+ |
| Developer | [Wizards of the Coast](https://appshunter.io/developer/491192018) | [Alexandre Gomes Pereira](https://appshunter.io/developer/1895500192) |

## What reviewers say

### D&D Beyond

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/d-and-d-beyond/id1501810129)

**Currently charting:** #66 Top Grossing · Entertainment (US App Store)

Manage your Dungeons & Dragons characters, access your digital library of adventures and sourcebooks, and roll dice with a built-in dice roller. This app provides offline access to your content and tools to make gameplay faster and more convenient for players and Dungeon Masters alike.

**Highlights:** Digital character sheets, Built-in dice roller, Offline library access, Guided character creator, Monster stat lookup, Spell and item management

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (28)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Hero Monthly | $2.99 | per month |
| Master Monthly | $5.99 | per month |
| Hero Annual | $25.99 | per year |
| Master Annual | $54.99 | per year |
| The Magus Class | $14.99 | one-time |
| Valda’s Spire of Secrets:... | $14.99 | one-time |
| The Pugilist Class (2024) | $14.99 | one-time |
| Valda’s Spire of Secrets | $14.99 | one-time |
| The Illrigger Revised | $14.99 | one-time |
| Grim Hollow: Player Pack | $14.99 | one-time |
| Eberron: Forge of the... | $19.99 | one-time |
| Monster Manual | $29.99 | one-time |
| The Book of Many Things | $29.99 | one-time |
| Arcana Unleashed | $29.99 | one-time |
| Dungeon Master's Guide | $29.99 | one-time |
| Xanathar's Guide to Everything | $29.99 | one-time |
| Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything | $29.99 | one-time |
| Player's Handbook | $29.99 | one-time |
| Monsters of the Multiverse | $29.99 | one-time |
| Player’s Handbook (2024) | $29.99 | one-time |
| Heliana’s Guide to Monster... | $29.99 | one-time |
| Obojima: Tales from the... | $29.99 | one-time |
| Monster Manual (2024) | $29.99 | one-time |
| The Griffon’s Saddlebag:... | $29.99 | one-time |
| Dungeon Master’s Guide (2024) | $29.99 | one-time |
| Ravenloft: The Horrors Within | $39.99 | one-time |
| Lord of the Rings Roleplaying | $39.99 | one-time |
| Book of Ebon Tides | $39.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Powerful resource
- 👍 Best fit for purpose
- 🚀 Brilliant idea
- 👍 Crazy useful
- 👍 Great app to help keep track of things

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Slow online, barely usable offline
- 🔒 Can't play the game
- 🔒 Poor UI for perusing books
- 🐛 Styling broken on iPad
- 🔒 Paywall

**Reported bugs**

- Artificial character creation issues
- Inconsistent character sheet data
- Crashes and freezes
- Incompatibility with older devices
- Login issues

**Requested features**

- Ability to scan physical books
- More customization options
- Game log tracker
- Integrate ApplePay for subscription
- Ability to manage experience, levels, items, etc. within the app


### Monster Compendium

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/monster-compendium/id6763808338)

This app is a comprehensive resource for Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition players, offering detailed monster entries with stat blocks, lore, and images. It features intuitive navigation, a powerful search function, and the ability to organize monsters into custom folders for campaign management.

**Highlights:** Comprehensive monster entries, High-resolution monster images, Detailed spell information, Powerful search function, Customizable monster folders, SRD content and custom content support

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is D&D Beyond free?

D&D Beyond is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Monster Compendium free?

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

### Which has better reviews, D&D Beyond or Monster Compendium?

Monster Compendium is rated higher. D&D Beyond averages 4.7 out of 5 from 92K ratings, while Monster Compendium averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.

### Do D&D Beyond or Monster Compendium have ads?

Both D&D Beyond and Monster Compendium show ads.

### Which is updated more often, D&D Beyond or Monster Compendium?

D&D Beyond ships an update every 3 weeks, and Monster Compendium every 3 weeks. Most recently, D&D Beyond was updated on October 24, 2026 and Monster Compendium on October 18, 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.*