Paperback vs Tachimanga
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Paperback
This app provides an ad-free reading experience for comics and manga from a Komga server. It offers extensive customization through a scripting API, allowing users to extend its functionality with TypeScript or JavaScript.
- Ad-free reading
- Komga server support
- TypeScript/JavaScript scripting API
- Extensible functionality
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An Ad-Free Komga client for iOS. Supports an extensive scripting API using TypeScript/JavaScript to extend the app functionality.
Tachimanga
Explore a vast manga library with this reader app. It supports popular formats like ZIP/CBZ and EPUB, and can connect to self-hosted manga servers for a personalized reading experience.
- Supports ZIP/CBZ formats
- Supports EPUB format
- Reads from Komga server
- Self-hosted manga server integration
- Full-featured manga reader
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Discover a new world of manga with Tachimanga. - Supports manga in ZIP/CBZ and EPUB formats. - Supports reading manga from Komga, which is a self-hosted manga server. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Paperback at none against Tachimanga's 4. Paperback also leads on ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.0). Tachimanga's advantage is rating (4.8 vs 4.3) and review sentiment (76% vs 54%). On price, update cadence 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. Tachimanga sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Paperback asks for nothing beyond the download.
Tachimanga holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Tachimanga has 5.5K ratings behind it against 643, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 54% of Paperback's written reviews are positive against 76% of Tachimanga's.
Paperback ships an update every 2 weeks, Tachimanga every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Paperback | Tachimanga |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.3 (643 ratings) | 4.8 (5.5K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 53.5% of reviews | 75.9% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 643 | 5.5K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks — better | Every 3 weeks |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 — better | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 33 MB | 222 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 17+ |
| Developer | Faizan Durrani | Tekbrio LLC |
Customer experience
Paperback
Tachimanga
User reviews
Paperback
From 643 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Fantastic app with great features
- 👍 Clean and efficient UI
- 🔒 No ads or in-app purchases
- 🎨 Customizable themes and settings
- 📚 Wide range of manga/comics sources
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and stability issues
- 🔍 Confusing setup and onboarding process
- 🔄 Unreliable library sync and update features
- 🕰️ Slow download and loading speeds
- 📱 Compatibility problems on some devices
Tachimanga
From 5.5K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Smooth and intuitive user experience
- 🚀 Efficient manga/manhwa/manhua sourcing
- 🔒 Secure and private reading experience
- 💡 Customizable reading settings
- 👍 Seamless integration with tracking services
Room to improve
- 🐛 Occasional app crashes or freezes
- 🔋 High cache usage leading to storage issues
- 🔒 Premium features locked behind paywall
- 🐛 Inconsistent chapter update tracking
- 🐛 Duplicate chapter downloads from different sources
Bugs and requests
Paperback
Reported bugs
3 issues- JSON token errors when interacting with server
- Inability to add/remove manga from library
- Disappearing navigation UI elements
Requested features
4 requests- Bookmark/resume reading feature
- Panel-by-panel/smart panel reading mode
- Sync reading progress across devices
- Better documentation and support resources
Tachimanga
Reported bugs
3 issues- Issues with extensions not working after reinstall
- Chapters not showing up despite being available online
- Unexpected app behavior when switching between sources
Requested features
5 requests- Ability to backup/restore reading progress
- Option to compress downloaded files
- Improved chapter selection and navigation
- Manga/manhwa recommendation system
- Automatic cache management and cleanup
In-app purchases
Paperback
No in-app purchases
Tachimanga
- Premium Monthly$1.991 Month
- Premium Yearly$9.991 Year
- Premium Lifetime$24.99
- Premium Lifetime$29.99
