Collections Database vs Clearly Reader
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Collections Database
Organize anything with a personal database app. It offers over 20 field types, customizable layouts, and pre-built templates for common uses like books or expenses. Advanced features and iCloud sync are available.
- 20+ field types (text, number, picture, barcode, etc.)
- Customizable fields and display styles
- Pre-built templates (books, contacts, expenses, etc.)
- Organize with collections and subcollections
- Password, Face ID, and Touch ID protection
- iCloud synchronization across devices
- Advanced fields and calculations (Pro version)
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Collections is a personal database app to organize anything. 1. A field for every use Collections supports over 20+ field types: • Text, Number • Boolean • Picture • Select • Email, URL, Phone • Password • Date, Time • Color • Barcode And with the Pro version you can use even more advanced fields. • Document reference - Link documents together • Group - Add multiple values for a field • Formula - Create a formula for calculated values. Powerful formula editor with full support to math functions like SUM, AVG • Sources - Import documents from external APIs with Javascript 2. Customizable • Add and reorder fields • Add a separator between fields to better visualize them • Fields have different display styles like primary, secondary, thumbnail • Filter and sort data 3. Templates Collections includes basic templates to get started: • Books • Contacts • Expenses • Subscriptions • Credentials • Inventory • School 5. Advanced management Collections has different tools to help you creating the data model. SUBCOLLECTIONS Organize data into collections and subcollections. Simply said, they are like folders. LISTS A list contains items used in documents and it's very flexible. It could represent a Genre for a book or a Status like 'Available', 'Out of stock' for an object in the inventory. 6. Security • Protect collections using a password, Face ID or Touch ID • Sensitive data such as passwords are encrypted by default 7. iCloud Sync Data is synced automatically between devices through iCloud. 8. Apple's Shortcuts support Expand the app capabilities with Apple's Shortcuts support. 9. Pro version features • Add unlimited documents (free version is limited to 100 documents) • Add files to documents • Add advanced fields • Views • Grid • Use Summary to perform calculations across documents
Clearly Reader
This app helps you manage and read your saved clippings with a customizable full-screen experience. Organize your collection with mobile tag management and filter historical data for easy review.
- Clipping management
- Full-screen reading
- Customizable fonts and themes
- Mobile tag management
- Filter historical clippings
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Clearly Reader App makes clipping available at your fingertips. We offer a range of features that optimize your reading experience: - Browse and filter multiple types of historical clippings to help review your collection - Full-screen reading experience, with customizable fonts, font sizes, line heights, and theme colors - Convenient mobile tag management.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Collections Database at 87% against Clearly Reader's 25%. Collections Database also leads on rating (4.6 vs 3.0) and ratings volume (187 vs 3). Clearly Reader's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 3) and iOS requirement (11.0 vs 15.0). 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
Both are free to download. Collections Database sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Clearly Reader asks for nothing beyond the download.
Collections Database holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 3.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Collections Database has 187 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 87% of Collections Database's written reviews are positive against 25% of Clearly Reader's.
| Parameter | Collections Database | Clearly Reader |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (187 ratings) — better | 3.0 (3 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 87.1% of reviews — better | 25.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 187 — better | 3 |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | — |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 11.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 25 MB | 65 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Matteo D'Ignazio | Lesslab |
Customer experience
Collections Database
Clearly Reader
Bugs and requests
Collections Database
Reported bugs
2 issues- Keyboard issues when using search
- Inconsistent behavior between iOS and macOS versions
Requested features
4 requests- Collaborative features for sharing databases
- More advanced reporting and visualization options
- Improved import/export functionality
- Ability to customize the appearance and layout
Clearly Reader
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Collections Database
- Collections Ultra (Upgrade)$1.99
- Collections Pro$7.99
- Collections Ultra$9.99
Clearly Reader
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Collections Database free?
Is Clearly Reader free?
Which has better reviews, Collections Database or Clearly Reader?
Do Collections Database or Clearly Reader have ads?
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