# CHMate vs Bluefire Reader

The clearest difference is price: CHMate at Free against Bluefire Reader's $4.99. CHMate also leads on update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 2 months). Bluefire Reader's advantage is rating (4.6 vs 3.9) and in-app purchases (none vs 1). On review sentiment, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

CHMate is free to download; Bluefire Reader costs $4.99 up front. CHMate sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Bluefire Reader asks for nothing beyond the download.

Bluefire Reader holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 3.9. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Bluefire Reader has 4.1K ratings behind it against 20, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 55% and 55% positive.

CHMate ships an update every 2 weeks, Bluefire Reader every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 9, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | CHMate | Bluefire Reader |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | **Free** | $4.99 |
| Rating | [3.9 (20 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/chmate-epub-and-chm-reader/id335157929/reviews) | **[4.6 (4.1K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bluefire-reader/id394275498/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 20 | **4.1K** |
| Positive reviews | 55.3% of reviews | 55.3% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 2 weeks** | Every 2 months |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Free** |
| Best chart rank | — | **#72** |
| Size | 51 MB | 21 MB |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | **13.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [贤安 陈](https://appshunter.io/developer/318015371) | [Bluefire Productions](https://appshunter.io/developer/394275501) |

## What reviewers say

### CHMate

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/chmate-epub-and-chm-reader/id335157929)

This app offers a robust reading experience for EPUB and CHM eBooks. Organize your library, add bookmarks and notes, and customize your reading environment. Share passages and easily search within your books.

**Highlights:** Organize eBooks into collections, Add bookmarks and notes, Customizable fonts and line height, Fast scrolling and pagination, Highlight favorite passages, Built-in search functionality, Share quotes with friends

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| CHMate+ | $9.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Excellent UI/UX design and interface
- 📖 Best CHM file reader available
- ⚡ Fast and smooth performance
- 🎨 Customizable text formatting and fonts
- 🔍 Powerful search functionality

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent crashes and stability issues
- ⚠️ iCloud sync deletes files irreversibly
- 💰 Expensive pricing for functionality
- 🔄 Highlighting and annotations don't persist
- 📱 Compatibility issues with iOS updates

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes when searching CHM files
- Crashes when using tap-hold for bookmarking
- Highlighting functionality broken after iOS updates
- Notes and bookmarks not saving properly
- Highlights disappear or move between chapters

**Requested features**

- Dark mode and additional color themes (Sepia)
- Book cover display instead of text-only library view
- PDF support
- Text-to-speech functionality
- Better pagination options


### Bluefire Reader

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bluefire-reader/id394275498)

**Currently charting:** #72 Top Paid · Book (US App Store)

This application allows users to read EPUB and PDF ebooks on their iPhone or iPad. It supports Adobe® Content Server protected content from various retailers, publishers, and libraries, offering features like bookmarking, notes, and search for a customized reading experience.

**Highlights:** Read EPUB and PDF ebooks, Supports Adobe Content Server protected content, Bookmarking and notes, Search functionality, Customizable reading experience, Collections management

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 💻 Excellent ePub reader
- 🌙 Useful night mode
- 📚 Organizes library well
- 🎨 Customizable font and layout
- 🔍 Convenient search and navigation

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent crashes and freezes
- 📍 Loses page position when reopening
- 🔍 Inconsistent search and bookmark behavior
- 🔧 Outdated and lacking updates
- 🔒 Adobe DRM integration issues

**Reported bugs**

- Incompatible with latest iOS versions
- Blank pages when opening some books
- Incorrect page numbering and navigation
- Unreliable bookmarking and note-taking

**Requested features**

- Sync reading progress across devices
- Improved highlighting and annotation tools
- Vertical scrolling option
- Customizable highlight colors
- Integrated dictionary/reference lookup


## Frequently asked questions

### Is CHMate free?

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

### Is Bluefire Reader free?

Bluefire Reader costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, CHMate or Bluefire Reader?

Bluefire Reader is rated higher. CHMate averages 3.9 out of 5 from 20 ratings, while Bluefire Reader averages 4.6 from 4.1K ratings.

### Do CHMate or Bluefire Reader have ads?

Neither CHMate nor Bluefire Reader shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, CHMate or Bluefire Reader?

CHMate ships an update every 2 weeks, and Bluefire Reader every 2 months. Most recently, CHMate was updated on October 9, 2026 and Bluefire Reader on October 14, 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.*