# Monal vs Sphere Chat

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Monal at none against Sphere Chat's 2. Monal also leads on ads (none vs shown). On price, update cadence, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

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

Monal ships an update monthly, Sphere Chat every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 5, 2026 and September 8, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Monal | Sphere Chat |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[3.7 (133 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/monal-xmpp-chat/id317711500/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **133** | — |
| Positive reviews | 56.9% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | Monthly | **Every 3 weeks** |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Size | 69 MB | 99 MB |
| Requires iOS | 14.0 | **13.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Thilo Molitor](https://appshunter.io/developer/1508738269) | [LiVrA Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1706776291) |

## What reviewers say

### Monal

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/monal-xmpp-chat/id317711500)

This open-source messenger provides a fast and user-friendly way to connect to the XMPP public chat network. Enjoy private, ad-free communication with end-to-end encryption and features like group chats and file sharing.

**Highlights:** Open Source, No Ads, OMEMO encrypted chat, Multi user chat (MUC), Audio/Video calls, File sharing

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Works well
- 🔒 Secure XMPP client
- 👍 Best XMPP client on iOS
- 🚀 Robust and dependable
- 👍 Actively developed

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Crashes and stability issues
- 🔒 Encryption problems
- 👎 Buggy UI and UX
- 🔍 Missing basic features (copy/paste, etc.)
- 🔋 High battery consumption

**Reported bugs**

- Disconnects frequently
- Incompatible with some XMPP servers
- Crashes when sending messages
- Issues with loading contact lists

**Requested features**

- Add OTR/PGP encryption support
- Improve group chat functionality
- Allow customization of sounds and notifications
- Optimize for older iOS versions


### Sphere Chat

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/sphere-chat/id6745248000)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Personal Standard Plan | $11.99 | per month |
| Sphere Personal Plus Plan | $24.99 | per month |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Monal free?

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

### Is Sphere Chat free?

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

### Do Monal or Sphere Chat have ads?

Sphere Chat shows ads; Monal does not.

### Which is updated more often, Monal or Sphere Chat?

Monal ships an update monthly, and Sphere Chat every 3 weeks. Most recently, Monal was updated on September 5, 2026 and Sphere Chat on September 8, 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.*