Comparison

MahaBuddhavan vs OpenTipitaka

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

Head to head
About

MahaBuddhavan

Explore the profound teachings and chronicles of Buddhas. This application offers a deep dive into Buddhist philosophy and history, providing access to sacred texts and narratives.

Highlights
  • Chronicles of Buddhas
  • Buddhist philosophy
  • Sacred texts
  • Historical narratives
Features
Read full description

The Great Chronicle Of Buddhas - Mingun Sayadaw

About

OpenTipitaka

Access and study the Pali Tipiṭaka with multilingual translations and offline capabilities. Features include paragraph-by-paragraph comparison, fast search, and study tools like bookmarks and dictionary lookup.

Highlights
  • Pali Tipiṭaka reading
  • Multilingual paragraph-by-paragraph translations
  • Offline access
  • Fast search
  • Study tools (bookmarks, dictionary)
  • Community correction suggestions
Read full description

OpenTipitaka is a focused reader for the Pali Tipiṭaka, built for study, reference, and daily reading on iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Read the Pali canon with multilingual, paragraph-by-paragraph translations, fast search, offline access, and study tools designed for close reading. Multilingual Translations OpenTipitaka supports AI-generated translations in multiple languages, including: Chinese, English, Vietnamese, Thai, Hindi, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, French, German, Myanmar, Sinhala, Spanish, Marathi, and Tibetan. The translations are generated with reference to Myanmar translations and Nissaya materials. While they are not a substitute for the Pali original or qualified human guidance, most translations have reached a level close to human translation quality and are continually improved through review and community correction suggestions. Key Features Pali Tipiṭaka reading Browse and read the Pali texts in a clean, study-focused interface. Multilingual paragraph-by-paragraph reading Display available translations together with the Pali original, aligned by paragraph for easier comparison and understanding. Offline access Keep texts available on your device and continue reading without an internet connection. Fast search Find passages, terms, and references quickly across the collection. Comfortable reading experience A quiet layout designed for long reading sessions on iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Study tools Use features such as bookmarks, dictionary lookup, multi-tab reading, split-screen reading, auto-scroll, and translation read-aloud where available. Community corrections Help improve the texts by submitting correction suggestions where supported.

Screenshots

MahaBuddhavan4 screens
OpenTipitaka4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: MahaBuddhavan at 4.7 against OpenTipitaka's 4.2. MahaBuddhavan also leads on update cadence (every 2 days vs every 3 weeks) and ratings volume (22 vs 5). 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

MahaBuddhavan holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.2. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 22 and 5 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

MahaBuddhavan ships an update every 2 days, OpenTipitaka every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
MahaBuddhavan versus OpenTipitaka: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMahaBuddhavanOpenTipitaka
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (22 ratings) — better4.2 (5 ratings)
Positive reviews—0.0% of reviews
Number of ratings22 — better5
Update frequencyEvery 2 days — betterEvery 3 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better
Requires iOS9.0 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size151 MB38 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperPinnyar DazaDhamma Sarana

Customer experience

MahaBuddhavan

All ratings21 ratings
Positive90.5%
Neutral4.8%
Negative4.8%

OpenTipitaka

All ratings5 ratings
Positive80.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative20.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%

In-app purchases

None

MahaBuddhavan

No in-app purchases

None

OpenTipitaka

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is MahaBuddhavan free?
MahaBuddhavan is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is OpenTipitaka free?
OpenTipitaka is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, MahaBuddhavan or OpenTipitaka?
MahaBuddhavan is rated higher. MahaBuddhavan averages 4.7 out of 5 from 22 ratings, while OpenTipitaka averages 4.2 from 5 ratings.
Do MahaBuddhavan or OpenTipitaka have ads?
Neither MahaBuddhavan nor OpenTipitaka shows ads.
Which is updated more often, MahaBuddhavan or OpenTipitaka?
MahaBuddhavan ships an update every 2 days, and OpenTipitaka every 3 weeks. Most recently, MahaBuddhavan was updated on November 3, 2026 and OpenTipitaka on October 31, 2026.

Other comparisons