Comparison

Fastcase vs Case Viewer

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

Head to head
About

Fastcase

Access a comprehensive, free mobile law library containing cases and statutes from all 50 states and the federal government. Search by citation, keyword, or browse statute collections with smart search technology for relevant results. Save favorites and research history for on-the-go legal research.

Highlights
  • Free searchable library of US cases and statutes
  • Keyword, natural language, and citation search
  • Browse or search statutes
  • Smart search technology for relevant results
  • Save favorite documents
  • Integrated research history
  • Updated daily
Features
Read full description

Fastcase for the iPhone/iPad is a free legal research application, putting the American law library in the palm of your hand. Fastcase contains cases and statutes from all 50 states and from the federal government. You can search by citation, keyword (in Boolean or natural language), or browse statute collections. FEATURES: - Free, searchable library of American cases and statutes - Keyword (Boolean), natural language, and citation search - Browse or search statutes - Most relevant results first - Customizable, sortable search results - Search results automatically display number of citing cases - Jump right to most relevant paragraph of any case or statute - Integrated research history - Save favorite documents for use later - Updated daily Fastcase for the iPhone has won the prestigious American Association of Law Libraries New Product of the Year Award, and the iPad app includes great new features that take advantage of the larger screen area. Now you can view search results in a side panel while reading a document, enjoy portrait or landscape views, and see multiple levels of statute outline views. Fastcase for the iPhone/iPad also uses smart search technology from Fastcase’s fully-featured Web-based legal research application, which allows you to sort the most relevant results to the top of the list, customize and re-sort search results, and integrate citation analysis tools right into the results list. This application is free, but you’ll need to register an account so that you can save favorites and your own customized search history. There are tons of customizable features, so the more you use the Fastcase app, the better it fits you! Fastcase’s desktop application (www.fastcase.com) is widely considered the smartest alternative for legal research – allowing visual mapping of search results, dual-column printing, and more complete citation analysis and sorting tools. Fastcase was founded in 1999 and has hundreds of thousands of subscribers from around the world. Fastcase for the iPhone/iPad is the world’s largest free mobile law library. Happy searching! WHAT CRITICS ARE SAYING: "The short version of my review is this: I was impressed. The app is easy to use and produces lightning-fast results. . . . For legal research on the go, at any time, and for zero cost, this is a must-have for any lawyer with an iPhone." - Bob Ambrogi, Law.com "The Fastcase iPhone app is an extremely solid app which probably won't be dethroned as the king of mobile legal research anytime soon." - Joshua Auriemma, LegalGeekery.com "The largest free law library available on the iPhone. . . . This is a surprisingly robust legal research tool that will allow its users to find cases and statutes wherever they are, whenever they want, all for free." - Bob Ambrogi "Will it be long before students are required to purchase iPhones for law school in addition to, or instead of, laptops?" - James B. Levy, Legal Writing Professor Blog "The Legal Universe At Your Fingertips, For Free!" - Brad Bogan, Fifth Circuit Blog 2010 Winner, New Product of the Year Award, American Association of Law Libraries

About

Case Viewer

Access and read judicial opinions quickly on iOS and macOS. This app enhances legal content with AI-powered tools like tables of contents and annotations, offering a streamlined experience for case navigation.

Highlights
  • Fast case retrieval
  • Enhanced opinion formatting
  • AI-powered tables of contents
  • In-text annotations
  • AI chatbot for case answers
  • Self-contained legal content browser
Features
Read full description

Case Viewer is a fast, focused reader for judicial opinions—on Mac, iPad, and iPhone. Pull up any case in seconds and read it in clean, well-formatted type, with citations as live links. Optional AI tools can answer questions and outline arguments, always grounded in the text. Built by a law professor who wanted a better way to pull up cases, Case Viewer has grown into a robust application used by practitioners, students, and academics around the country. It's a self-contained browser tailored for finding, reading, and navigating legal content—and the fastest, most rewarding way to read cases. FREE TO DOWNLOAD The app is free to download, and no subscription is required to search for and read cases. An affordable subscription unlocks the more powerful features: AI chat, opinion comparison, and AI-generated tables of contents; navigating between cases; multiple tabs or windows; exporting formatted documents; history and bookmarks; and customized formatting and appearance, including dark mode. A NOTE ON THE DATA The cases presented by Case Viewer come from public sources that may contain errors—most commonly in text-based versions of state cases, which rely on uncorrected OCR. Use your judgment and check the reporter PDFs (generally available within the app) as needed. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Fastcase4 screens
Case Viewer4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Case Viewer at 100% against Fastcase's 38%. Case Viewer also leads on rating (4.9 vs 2.4) and update cadence (weekly vs every 4 months). Fastcase's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and iOS requirement (7.1 vs 18.0). On price, ratings volume, 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. Case Viewer sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Fastcase asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Case Viewer holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 2.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 74 and 27 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 38% of Fastcase's written reviews are positive against 100% of Case Viewer's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Fastcase ships an update every 4 months, Case Viewer weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 27, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Fastcase versus Case Viewer: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFastcaseCase Viewer
PriceFreeFree
Rating2.4 (74 ratings)4.9 (27 ratings) — better
Positive reviews37.5% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings74 — better27
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Mac
Requires iOS7.1 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size7 MB53 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperFastcaseCase Viewer LLC

Customer experience

Fastcase

All ratings72 ratings
Positive26.4%
Neutral6.9%
Negative66.7%
Written reviews64 reviews
Positive37.5%
Neutral3.1%
Negative59.4%

Case Viewer

All ratings27 ratings
Positive96.3%
Neutral0.0%
Negative3.7%
Written reviews4 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Fastcase

Reported bugs

19 issues
  • App crashes without warning
  • App won't load search results (pinwheel)
  • XML parsing errors
  • App crashes randomly after a few minutes
  • Frequent logouts requiring re-login
Show 14 more
  • App hasn't been updated in years
  • Search functionality is broken
  • Inability to save preferences
  • Random crashes leading to lost work
  • Certificate errors preventing login
  • App freezes at login screen
  • Incompatibility with older iOS versions
  • App crashes immediately after login on older iPads
  • App freezes unexpectedly during research
  • App hangs indefinitely on iOS 8
  • App shuts down completely on login
  • Login issues: "GO" key workaround needed
  • Password recovery not available
  • App crashes after 30 seconds of being open

Requested features

15 requests
  • Fix the app to stop crashing
  • Update the app regularly
  • Fix XML parsing errors
  • Improve user-friendliness
  • Allow saving preferences
Show 10 more
  • Fix login issues
  • Add a Shepardize feature
  • Update outdated statutes and case law
  • Fix search functionality
  • Improve mobile website experience
  • Add password recovery option
  • Fix certificate errors
  • Allow saving search files
  • Add voice input options
  • Add a dark mode option

Case Viewer

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Fastcase

No in-app purchases

2 purchases

Case Viewer

Subscriptions2
  • Full Version (Monthly)1 Month trial$4.991 Month
  • Full Version (Yearly)1 Month trial$29.991 Year

Questions

Is Fastcase free?
Fastcase is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Case Viewer free?
Case Viewer is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Fastcase or Case Viewer?
Case Viewer is rated higher. Fastcase averages 2.4 out of 5 from 74 ratings, while Case Viewer averages 4.9 from 27 ratings.
Do Fastcase or Case Viewer have ads?
Neither Fastcase nor Case Viewer shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Fastcase or Case Viewer?
Fastcase ships an update every 4 months, and Case Viewer weekly. Most recently, Fastcase was updated on October 23, 2026 and Case Viewer on October 27, 2026.

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