Comparison

Dial a Poem vs LibriVox!

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

Head to head
About

Dial a Poem

Features
Read full description

Listen to and read original poems on the theme of calling by poets from around the world and discover new work by award-winning writers exploring communication in the digital age. Developed by Nottingham Trent University and supported by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, Dial-a-Poem is a free app that invites you to reflect on the poetry of the telephone. Inspired by the poet, artist and activist John Giorno who launched his telephone poetry service in New York 50 years ago, this app gives you free access to over sixty new poems by contemporary award-winning writers from Africa, America, Asia and Europe. Reflecting on the relationship between poetry and calling, and read aloud by the authors and translators, these poems invite you to think about how we talk, text and listen across borders. The app features newly-commissioned work from Claudia Berrueto, Vahni Capildeo, Rachael Boast, Amy Sara Carroll, Rishi Dastidar, Bruno Galluccio, Lisa Kelly, Raquel Lanseros, Janet McAdams, Andrew McMillan, Abi Palmer, Anita Pati, Vidyan Ravinthiran, Denise Saul, Nick Sturm, Chrissy Williams, Lyuba Yakimchuk, and Ather Zia, as well as the winning entries of a national poetry competition. From the Home screen, dial ‘0’ to read and hear a poem at random, or use our online directory – available at http://www.crossedlines.co.uk – to search the direct number of a poet or poem of your choice. Dial-a-Poem is part of the Crossed Wires project, supported by the Arts and Humanities Research Council and Nottingham Trent University. For more information, please visit http://www.crossedlines.co.uk

About

LibriVox!

Access thousands of free audiobooks from the public domain, all narrated by real volunteers. Enjoy classic literature, poetry, and more with a simple interface and no ads or subscriptions.

Highlights
  • Human-narrated audiobooks
  • Extensive library of public domain works
  • Completely free, no subscriptions or ads
  • Simple and intuitive interface
  • Background playback
  • Variable playback speed
Features
Read full description

# CLASSIC LITERATURE, HUMAN VOICES Libris.fm brings the world's literary treasures to your ears through the warmth of human narration. Discover thousands of free audiobooks from the public domain ( Librivox and internet archive), read by volunteer narrators from around the world. ## THE HUMAN TOUCH In an age of AI, we celebrate authentic human voices. Every recording in our collection is narrated by a real person who donated their time and talent. Experience the subtle emotion, unique pacing, and authentic connection that only human narration can provide. ## COMPLETELY FREE • No subscriptions • No ads • No tracking ## FEATURES • Simple, intuitive interface • Background playback • Variable playback speed • Skip forward/backward controls • Curated collections ## EXTENSIVE LIBRARY Explore a collection spanning centuries of human thought and creativity: • Fiction classics • Poetry • Drama • Philosophy • History • Science • Children's literature • Religious texts • And much more From timeless classics to forgotten gems, Libris.fm exists to make great literature accessible to everyone through the spoken word. Made with love for book lovers everywhere. Join us in preserving and sharing our literary heritage through the power of human voices.

Screenshots

Dial a Poem2 screens
LibriVox!4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Dial a Poem at none against LibriVox!'s 4. Dial a Poem also leads on update cadence (every 6 days vs every 6 weeks) and iOS requirement (10.0 vs 16.0). On price, ads and device support 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. LibriVox! sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. Dial a Poem asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Dial a Poem ships an update every 6 days, LibriVox! every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 25, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Dial a Poem versus LibriVox!: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDial a PoemLibriVox!
PriceFreeFree
Rating—4.6 (19 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—19 — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 days — betterEvery 6 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
Monetization—Free
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS10.0 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size906 MB106 MB
Age rating12+9+
DeveloperNottingham Trent UniversityKrishna Sangeeth KS

In-app purchases

None

Dial a Poem

No in-app purchases

4 purchases

LibriVox!

One-time4
  • Small Tip$0.99
  • Medium Tip$1.99
  • Large Tip$4.99
Show 1 more
  • Extra large Tip$9.99

Questions

Is Dial a Poem free?
Dial a Poem is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is LibriVox! free?
LibriVox! is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Dial a Poem or LibriVox! have ads?
Neither Dial a Poem nor LibriVox! shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Dial a Poem or LibriVox!?
Dial a Poem ships an update every 6 days, and LibriVox! every 6 weeks. Most recently, Dial a Poem was updated on October 25, 2026 and LibriVox! on October 24, 2026.

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