Comparison

iPieta vs Catholicpedia

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

Head to head
About

iPieta

Access a comprehensive collection of Catholic resources, including Bibles, catechisms, prayers, and spiritual works. Explore liturgical calendars, papal documents, and writings from Church Fathers. Features include search, history, bookmarks, and downloadable audio for select content.

Highlights
  • Catholic Bibles (Douay-Rheims, Clementine Vulgate)
  • Multiple Catechisms (Baltimore, Roman, St. Thomas Aquinas)
  • Ordinary & Extraordinary Liturgical Calendars
  • Extensive Devotions and Prayers
  • Spiritual Works from Church Fathers
  • Papal Encyclicals and Conciliar Documents
  • Search, History, Bookmarks, Highlights
Read full description

iPieta contains Catholic documents, teachings, writings, prayers, and liturgical calendars, including: • Bibles: Douay-Rheims, Clementine Vulgate (Catholic and public domain; note that Psalms are COMPLETE but numbered as in the Vulgate). • Baltimore Catechisms #1-3 (original); the Cat. of Christian Doctrine, the Roman Catechism, and the Cat. of St. Thomas Aquinas. • Both the Ordinary (Novus Ordo) and Extraordinary (Tridentine) Calendars with access to the day's Gospel and Reading(s) from the Douay-Rheims & Vulgate. • Numerous devotions and prayers, including 33-Day Total Consecration Preparation, Novena to the Holy Spirit, St. Alphonsus Stations of the Cross, and the St. Bridget 1-Year and 12-Year Prayers. • Spiritual works from authors including St. Louis Marie de Montfort, St. Teresa of Jesus, St. John of the Cross, St. Catherine of Siena, St. Thomas Aquinas (Summa and Catena), St. Francis deSales, and St. Jean-Marie Vianney. • Papal Encyclicals and Conciliar Documents • Fathers of the Church (Erdman's collection) • Search, History, Bookmarks, Highlights. • Multi-version display of some data like versions of the Bible and prayers in different languages. • Free downloadable audio for many prayers, New Testament, and some works.

About

Catholicpedia

Access the full 15 volumes of the original Catholic Encyclopedia (1917) on your mobile device. This app features a powerful search engine, article categorization, and the ability to save favorites and share content.

Highlights
  • 11,000+ categorized articles
  • Multi-keyword search engine
  • Save favorite articles
  • Share via email and Facebook
  • AirPrint support
  • Easy-to-use interface
Features
Read full description

The Catholicpedia App makes The Catholic Encyclopedia available on iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch through an easy-to-use interface. Over 11,000 articles have been categorized by letter and related by tags. Features highlights... * A powerful multi-keyword search engine, * favorites, * sharing via eMail, Facebook, * AirPrint support. The easy of use and these great features make Catholicpedia the most convenient way to access and carry in your pocket the full 15 Volumes of the Original Catholic Encyclopedia (1917). Note: the Catholic Encyclopedia is in English only. From the Divine Office Catholic Ministry, developers of the About.com “2011 Best iPhone, iPod and iPad Catholic Apps,” this beautifully crafted, simple to use Catholicpedia App is designed to present its users with the full body of Catholic teaching: the Encyclopedia contains not only precise statements of what the Church has defined, but also an impartial record of different views of acknowledged authority on all disputed questions. The Catholic Encyclopedia, proposes to give its readers full and authoritative information on the entire cycle of Catholic interests, action and doctrine. What the Church teaches and has taught; what she has done and is still doing for the highest welfare of mankind; her methods, past and present; her struggles, her triumphs, and the achievements of her members, not only for her own immediate benefit, but for the broadening and deepening of all true science, literature and art — all come within the scope of the Catholic Encyclopedia. The Encyclopedia bears the imprimatur of the Most Reverend Archbishop under whose jurisdiction it is published. In constituting the Editors the ecclesiastical censors, he has given them a singular proof of his confidence and of his desire to facilitate the publication of the work which he has promoted most effectively by his influence and kindly co-operation. The Encyclopedia was designed to serve the Roman Catholic Church, concentrating on information related to the Church and explaining matters from the Catholic point of view. It records the accomplishments of Catholics and others in nearly all intellectual and professional pursuits, including artists, educators, poets and scientists. While more limited in focus than other general encyclopedias, it was far broader in scope than previous efforts at comprehensive Catholic encyclopedias. It offers in-depth portrayals of historical and philosophical ideas, persons and events, from a Catholic perspective, including issues that divide Catholicism from Protestantism and other faith communities. The Divine Office Catholic Ministry, in partnership with Surgeworks, Inc., is the developer of several apps including Divine Office - Liturgy of the Hours, an iPhone, iPod and iPad app for the universal prayer of the Roman Catholic Church. Divine Office was selected as the recipient of The NY Times Company’s About.com Readers’ Choice Award 2011 for “The Best Catholic Website,” “The Best Catholic iPhone App,” “The Best Catholic iPad App” and “The Best Catholic Podcast.” Visit the Divine Office Website at http://divineoffice.org or view our award-winning app in the App Store and Mac App Store. Citations: The Catholic Encyclopedia Original Preface (1917) and Wikipedia.

Screenshots

iPieta4 screens
Catholicpedia3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: iPieta at 4.7 against Catholicpedia's 4.0. iPieta also leads on review sentiment (88% vs 52%) and in-app purchases (none vs 1). Catholicpedia's advantage is iOS requirement (11.0 vs 16.6). 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. Catholicpedia sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. iPieta asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

iPieta holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: iPieta has 510 ratings behind it against 7, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 88% of iPieta's written reviews are positive against 52% of Catholicpedia's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

iPieta ships an update fortnightly, Catholicpedia every 5 months. The most recent releases landed on October 18, 2026 and October 13, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
iPieta versus Catholicpedia: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameteriPietaCatholicpedia
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (510 ratings) — better4.0 (7 ratings)
Positive reviews88.2% of reviews — better52.3% of reviews
Number of ratings510 — better7
Update frequencyFortnightly — betterEvery 5 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, MaciPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS16.611.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size12 MB126 MB
Age rating17+9+
DeveloperiVerbumSurgeworks, Inc.

Customer experience

iPieta

All ratings510 ratings
Positive93.5%
Neutral2.2%
Negative4.3%
Written reviews390 reviews
Positive88.2%
Neutral4.9%
Negative6.9%

Catholicpedia

All ratings7 ratings
Positive71.4%
Neutral14.3%
Negative14.3%
Written reviews44 reviews
Positive52.3%
Neutral13.6%
Negative34.1%

Bugs and requests

iPieta

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Blank screen issues after recent updates
  • Disappearing bookmarks and notes
  • Stability problems and frequent crashes
  • Incorrect calendar and liturgical information

Requested features

5 requests
  • More Bible translations and liturgical versions
  • Improved search and browsing functionality
  • Better organization and categorization of content
  • Customizable audio playback controls
  • Offline access and download options

Catholicpedia

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

iPieta

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Catholicpedia

One-time1
  • Ad Removal$0.99

Questions

Is iPieta free?
iPieta is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Catholicpedia free?
Catholicpedia is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, iPieta or Catholicpedia?
iPieta is rated higher. iPieta averages 4.7 out of 5 from 510 ratings, while Catholicpedia averages 4.0 from 7 ratings.
Do iPieta or Catholicpedia have ads?
Neither iPieta nor Catholicpedia shows ads.
Which is updated more often, iPieta or Catholicpedia?
iPieta ships an update fortnightly, and Catholicpedia every 5 months. Most recently, iPieta was updated on October 18, 2026 and Catholicpedia on October 13, 2026.

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