Comparison

Paperback vs CBZ Manga Reader

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

CBZ Manga Reader

Features
Read full description

CBZ Manga Reader is a local manga, comic, and EPUB reader for iPhone and iPad. Download it free and start reading. No account. No ads. Your books stay on your device. Open CBZ, ZIP, CBR, CB7, PDF, and EPUB without DRM. Password-protected PDFs are not supported. Turn pages by swipe or tap, read right to left or left to right, use two-page spreads on iPad, or scroll a vertical strip. Zoom, fit the page, and continue from the page you left. Keep books in more than one folder. Series sort themselves. Recents, continue, and the next volume are free. The reader gets out of the way. Bars hide after a few seconds. Tap the center of the page to bring them back. Choose Smooth, Balanced, or Sharp scaling. Sharp keeps line art crisp when you zoom. Premium is optional. It does not charge you to open a book or turn a page. On-device colorize includes 20 free pages. Premium removes the cap. Coloring runs on your device. Pages are not uploaded. Premium also includes: • Panel reading. Step through one panel at a time. Detection runs on your iPhone or iPad. • Volume buttons. Volume up is the next page, volume down the previous. In panel mode the buttons step from panel to panel. Swipe and tap stay free. • Favorites and piles. Group books you already have, and add every volume in a folder or series in one step. • Library search, unread / reading / finished filters, and a display name for a shelf. • Brightness, contrast, saturation, margin trim, and a magnifier. Pinch zoom stays free. • Bookmarks and a table of contents. • More accent colors. Coral stays free. • Discover. Sort, search, and more title suggestions. A short Featured sample, and a few Sequel and Similar titles, stay free. Titles and covers only. Never chapters. • Optional iCloud sync of reading progress for the same Apple ID. One Premium purchase works on iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Premium Monthly is an auto-renewable subscription for 1 month, billed monthly until you cancel. Premium Lifetime is a one-time purchase. The price you are charged is the price shown before you confirm, in your storefront’s currency. Payment will be charged to your Apple ID account at confirmation of purchase. The monthly subscription renews unless you cancel at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Your account will be charged for renewal within 24 hours prior to the end of the current period. You can manage and cancel subscriptions in your App Store account settings after purchase. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://vytas-industries-web.vercel.app/privacy

Screenshots

Paperback4 screens
CBZ Manga Reader4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Paperback at none against CBZ Manga Reader's 1. Paperback also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 17.0). On price, update cadence, 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. CBZ Manga Reader sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Paperback asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Paperback ships an update every 2 weeks, CBZ Manga Reader every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on November 12, 2026 and November 6, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Paperback versus CBZ Manga Reader: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPaperbackCBZ Manga Reader
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.3 (646 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews53.5% of reviews—
Number of ratings646 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksEvery 9 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Mac
Requires iOS13.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size33 MB98 MB
Age rating17+17+
DeveloperFaizan DurraniVYTAUTAS SAPRANAVICI

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

CBZ Manga Reader

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Paperback

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

CBZ Manga Reader

One-time1
  • Premium$9.99

Questions

Is Paperback free?
Paperback is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is CBZ Manga Reader free?
CBZ Manga Reader is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Paperback or CBZ Manga Reader have ads?
Neither Paperback nor CBZ Manga Reader shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Paperback or CBZ Manga Reader?
Paperback ships an update every 2 weeks, and CBZ Manga Reader every 9 days. Most recently, Paperback was updated on November 12, 2026 and CBZ Manga Reader on November 6, 2026.

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