# Mastodon vs Vibest

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Mastodon at none against Vibest's 2. Vibest's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs monthly) and iOS requirement (15.0.0 vs 18.6). On price, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Vibest sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $11.99 per month. Mastodon asks for nothing beyond the download.

Mastodon ships an update monthly, Vibest weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 22, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Mastodon | Vibest |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.5 (13K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mastodon/id1571998974/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **13K** | — |
| Positive reviews | 48.3% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Monthly | **Weekly** |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Size | 110 MB | 103 MB |
| Requires iOS | 18.6 | **15.0.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 17+ | 17+ |
| Developer | [Mastodon GmbH](https://appshunter.io/developer/1571998976) | [Vibest UG](https://appshunter.io/developer/1862255887) |

## What reviewers say

### Mastodon

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mastodon/id1571998974)

Connect with others on a decentralized social network. Share posts, images, and videos in chronological order without algorithms or ads. Discover new content and participate in conversations across the fediverse.

**Highlights:** Chronological feed, No algorithms or ads, Discover new users and topics, Post with images, videos, and polls, Create custom lists, Filter content, Cross-platform communication

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

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Friendly and welcoming community
- 🚀 Decentralized and free from corporate control
- 🔒 No data collection or ads
- 🤖 Good alternative to Twitter
- 💡 Ability to self-host servers

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Crashes and stability issues
- 🤔 Confusing onboarding and server selection
- 📱 Limited functionality compared to web version
- 🔍 Difficulty finding and following people
- 🕰️ Slow or delayed notifications

**Reported bugs**

- Can't log in or create account
- Keyboard freezes during editing
- Inconsistent behavior when switching accounts
- Notifications not working as expected

**Requested features**

- Add local and federated timelines
- Improve search and discovery features
- Implement edit and delete post functionality
- Add support for animated GIFs
- Provide better accessibility options


### Vibest

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/vibest/id6756680832)

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

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Vibest Plus | $11.99 | per month |
| Vibest Aura | $22.99 | per month |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Mastodon free?

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

### Is Vibest free?

Vibest is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Do Mastodon or Vibest have ads?

Neither Mastodon nor Vibest shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Mastodon or Vibest?

Mastodon ships an update monthly, and Vibest weekly. Most recently, Mastodon was updated on October 22, 2026 and Vibest on October 14, 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.*