Comparison

Paperback vs Manatan

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

Head to head
About

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.

Highlights
  • Ad-free reading
  • Komga server support
  • TypeScript/JavaScript scripting API
  • Extensible functionality
Features
Read full description

An Ad-Free Komga client for iOS. Supports an extensive scripting API using TypeScript/JavaScript to extend the app functionality.

About

Manatan

Read full description

Turn what you watch and read into active language immersion. Manatan is an all-in-one video player, manga and comic reader, EPUB reader, dictionary, OCR tool, and study companion for iPhone and iPad. Look up a word the moment you encounter it, capture the sentence that made it memorable, and keep moving through the story. ONE LIBRARY FOR THE MEDIA YOU LOVE • Import videos, subtitles, manga, comics, and EPUB books from Files • Connect Kavita and Komga reading libraries, plus Jellyfin, Emby, and Plex video libraries, using Manatan's native on-device integrations • Browse, search, filter, and organize the sources you configure from one interface • Build personal libraries, follow your progress, and download supported media for offline use WATCH AND LEARN • Play your own video files with advanced subtitle support • Tap subtitle words for instant dictionary results without leaving the player • Adjust subtitle timing and move between lines with precise playback controls • Find Japanese subtitles through Jimaku when you connect your own account • Create study cards from a sentence with its audio and visual context READ MANGA AND COMICS • Turn text inside a page into selectable words with private, on-device OCR • Look up dialogue directly over the page and return to reading without breaking focus • Choose continuous, paged, webtoon, single-page, or double-page layouts • Organize titles into categories and keep chapter progress together READ EPUB NOVELS • Import EPUB books directly from the Files app • Read in horizontal or vertical Japanese layouts where supported • Customize themes, fonts, spacing, margins, and navigation • Select text for immediate dictionary lookup and study-card creation • Resume exactly where you left off POWERFUL LANGUAGE TOOLS • Install dictionaries for the language you are learning • Use deinflection, frequency information, pitch-accent data, and dictionary audio when available • Create and review cards with Manatan's study system • Connect AnkiMobile or AnkiConnect and customize your card fields • Track manga and video progress with supported tracking services BUILT FOR IMMERSION Manatan keeps the player, readers, dictionary, OCR, and study workflow together. There is less app switching, less setup, and more time spent understanding real language in context. MANATAN MEMBERSHIP Manatan is free to download and includes core reading and playback features. Optional monthly memberships are offered in six tiers: Stone (5,000 service credits), Crystal (9,000), Emerald (20,000), Sapphire (32,500), Ruby (70,000), and Diamond (150,000). All tiers use the same StoreKit 2 purchase, restore, verification, account-linking, and subscription-change flow. Membership unlocks paid service features and supporter/profile benefits; higher tiers provide more monthly service credits and benefits. The app itself is always ad-free, including for free users. Sign in before subscribing so your verified Apple membership can be linked to your Manatan account and recognized across supported Manatan platforms. Payment is charged to your Apple ID when the purchase is confirmed. Membership renews automatically each month unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. You can manage or cancel it in your Apple subscription settings. Manatan does not provide or sell a catalog of commercial media. Connect only services you are permitted to access, and import or download only media you own or are authorized to use. Privacy Policy: https://manatan.com/privacy Terms of Use: https://manatan.com/terms

Screenshots

Paperback4 screens
Manatan3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Paperback at none against Manatan's 6. Paperback also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 16.1). Manatan's advantage is update cadence (daily vs every 2 weeks). 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. Manatan sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Paperback asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Paperback ships an update every 2 weeks, Manatan daily. The most recent releases landed on October 16, 2026 and October 8, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Paperback versus Manatan: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPaperbackManatan
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.3 (569 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews53.5% of reviews—
Number of ratings569 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksDaily — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS13.0 — better16.1
Further details — not scored
Size33 MB395 MB
Age rating17+17+
DeveloperFaizan DurraniKOLBY MOROZ LIEBL

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

Manatan

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Paperback

No in-app purchases

6 purchases

Manatan

Subscriptions6
  • Stone Membership$3.991 Month
  • Crystal Membership$6.491 Month
  • Emerald Membership$12.991 Month
Show 3 more
  • Sapphire Membership$19.991 Month
  • Ruby Membership$39.991 Month
  • Diamond Membership$79.991 Month

Questions

Is Paperback free?
Paperback is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Manatan free?
Manatan is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Paperback or Manatan have ads?
Neither Paperback nor Manatan shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Paperback or Manatan?
Paperback ships an update every 2 weeks, and Manatan daily. Most recently, Paperback was updated on October 16, 2026 and Manatan on October 8, 2026.

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