Comparison

FileBrowser vs ES file explorer

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

Head to head
About

FileBrowser

Access and manage files across your home computers, network drives, and cloud storage. Upload, download, copy, and edit documents directly from your device, with built-in viewers for various file types and streaming capabilities.

Highlights
  • Connect to computers, NAS, and cloud storage
  • Upload, download, copy, and move files
  • Multi-tabbed browsing and split-screen support
  • Edit documents in-place
  • Built-in viewers for documents, photos, and media
  • Stream movies and music with AirPlay/Chromecast
  • Annotate PDFs and images
Currently charting
Read full description

Use your iPad or iPhone to connect to your home computers, network drives and cloud storage. Easily upload/download/copy files and folders from one location to another, and browse your content using a variety of built-in viewers. *** FileBrowser remains the best option if you're looking for a file manager that supports a variety of external connections and also integrates deeply with iOS - Federico Viticci - MacStories *** *** FileBrowser's setup varies for every device, and the automatic wizards work super-well. Charlie Sorrel - Cult of Mac *** Ultra-fast browsing of your computers. Faster than Windows Explorer or Mac Finder and our users agree! GET ORGANIZED FileBrowser gives you everything you need to keep your files effortlessly organized: Move, edit, delete, rename, copy, zip and unzip. Download files from the web and paste them wherever you choose. MULTI-TABBED BROWSING Our FileBrowser suite of apps are the first file management apps to support multiple tabs. Connect to many of your locations at once and switch between them with ease. Use iPadOS split-screen mode to drag & drop between multiple windows. CONNECT TO Windows, Mac, Linux, Time Capsule, NAS drives, portable WiFi drives, SMB, Samba. Google Drive, Dropbox, Box, OneDrive, WebDAV, FTP and SFTP. Link to the same cloud storage with multiple accounts, if you have more than one Dropbox account, for example. EXTEND THE FILES APP FileBrowser allows you to access all your connections from the iOS Files app and other apps that use this as their document chooser, bringing network access to those apps. EDIT IN-PLACE No more copying of documents between apps. Launch an app to edit a network document in-place, such as Word or Pages or any of the Office and Mac suite. Changes are saved to the original document automatically. BLAZINGLY FAST Create bookmarks to your favorite locations & folders. Use a single tap to connect and browse to a favorite folder. PHOTO VIEWER Browse your photos wherever they are stored and display them on your TV or projector using AirPlay or Chromecast. Easily flick through holiday snaps or use the built-in slideshow feature. STREAM YOUR MOVIES / MUSIC Stream movie files or listen to music, both with AirPlay™ and Chromecast support. Use our built-in viewers or stream video to other apps. DOCUMENT VIEWER View Microsoft Office, Apple Pages, Numbers, KeyNote, PDF, text files, source code, HTML, and many more using the built-in viewers. ANNOTATE PDFS AND IMAGES Use the built-in annotation tools for PDFs and images, or use the iOS annotation tools to add notes, drawings or highlight text. SECURITY AND ENCRYPTION FileBrowser securely stores your passwords in the iOS keychain and uses iOS encryption features to protect your local content. Protect local files using a password, TouchID or FaceID. CONNECT ANYWHERE Connect to your Mac or PC when away from home. See our website for details: https://www.stratospherix.com/setupvpn TOO MANY FEATURES TO LIST FileBrowser has many features that we would like to tell you about. Check out our website. You'll be amazed! https://www.stratospherix.com/products/filebrowser FIRST CLASS SUPPORT User manuals and help are available at stratospherix.com/support with how-to articles and videos. You can also email us for fast, friendly support.

About

ES file explorer

This app helps you organize and manage all files on your device. It allows you to view images, videos, audio, and documents, and sorts them into categories for easy access. Quickly find recently opened files and analyze your storage usage.

Highlights
  • Built-in viewers and players for various file types
  • Quick browsing by file type, downloads, recent, and large files
  • Storage usage analysis dashboard
  • Search photos by date, size, and creation/open dates
  • Multiple selection and sorting support
Features
Read full description

My Files helps you manage and organise any file stored on your device. Using My Files, you can view your images, videos, audio files and documents,To find the My Files folder, search using the app search or in the default iPhone folder on your apps screen. My Files sorts your files into categories, such as Images, Videos, Audio and documents. If you have recently opened a file and are trying to locate it, tap “recents” to access or delete the file. My Files can perform an analysis of the storage usage of the files stored on your device. How to manage files on your iPhone? iPhone devices have a My Files app to access and manage files such as documents, pictures, videos, audio files, and documents.One of the strengths of My Files app is that the manager has a very simple interface. This simplicity turns out to be highly useful to help you find any element you're looking for in seconds. Another interesting aspect is that it displays the files you've modified recently to access them more quickly. features: • Built-in viewers and players for various file types: click to play music/videos, check image(s) and document(s) • Quick browsing through categories like: file type, downloads, recent files, and large files. • Check available storage with just a glance on a simple dashboard. • Search your photos by date, size, date created, date opened. • Multiple selection and various sorting support. My Files helps you manage and organise any file stored on your device. Using My Files, you can view your images, videos, audio files and documents,To find the My Files folder, search using the app search or in the default iPhone folder on your apps screen. My Files sorts your files into categories, such as Images, Videos, Audio and documents. If you have recently opened a file and are trying to locate it, tap “recents” to access or delete the file. My Files can perform an analysis of the storage usage of the files stored on your device. How to manage files on your iPhone? iPhone devices have a My Files app to access and manage files such as documents, pictures, videos, audio files, and documents.One of the strengths of My Files app is that the manager has a very simple interface. This simplicity turns out to be highly useful to help you find any element you're looking for in seconds. Another interesting aspect is that it displays the files you've modified recently to access them more quickly. festures: • Built-in viewers and players for various file types: click to play music/videos, check image(s) and document(s) • Quick browsing through categories like: file type, downloads, recent files, and large files. • Check available storage with just a glance on a simple dashboard. • Search your photos by date, size, date created, date opened. • Multiple selection and various sorting support. Subscription Details: Payment will be charged to iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period Account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period, and identify the cost of the renewal No cancellation of the current subscription is allowed during active subscription period Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when the user purchases a subscription to that publication, where applicable Note:- Privacy Policy: https://www.privacypolicycenter.com/alkesh_dudhat_ios/privacy.html Terms of use: https://www.privacypolicycenter.com/view_custom.php?v=TXlabGhTL1NMSU14Q0Z1Rk1oS2NVZz09&n=Terms-Of-Use

Screenshots

FileBrowser4 screens
ES file explorer4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: FileBrowser at 82% against ES file explorer's 0%. FileBrowser also leads on rating (4.7 vs 1.8) and in-app purchases (none vs 1). ES file explorer's advantage is price (Free vs $7.99) and update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 5 weeks). On device support and iOS requirement 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

ES file explorer is free to download; FileBrowser costs $7.99 up front. ES file explorer sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $9.99 per year. FileBrowser asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

FileBrowser holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 1.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: FileBrowser has 5.6K ratings behind it against 10, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 82% of FileBrowser's written reviews are positive against 0% of ES file explorer's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

FileBrowser ships an update every 5 weeks, ES file explorer every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and September 8, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard9 real differences · 2 level
FileBrowser versus ES file explorer: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFileBrowserES file explorer
Price$7.99Free — better
Rating4.7 (5.6K ratings) — better1.8 (10 ratings)
Positive reviews82.1% of reviews — better0.0% of reviews
Number of ratings5.6K — better10
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeksEvery 2 weeks — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
Best chart rank#56 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.615.6
Further details — not scored
Size70 MB44 MB
Age rating4+17+
DeveloperStratospherix Ltdalkesh dudhat

Customer experience

FileBrowser

All ratings5,642 ratings
Positive94.2%
Neutral2.4%
Negative3.4%
Written reviews1,157 reviews
Positive82.1%
Neutral6.1%
Negative11.8%

ES file explorer

All ratings10 ratings
Positive20.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative80.0%
Written reviews5 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%

Bugs and requests

FileBrowser

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Copy and paste functionality broken after update
  • Inability to access iCloud files
  • Crashes when accessing large files
  • Thumbnails not generating properly

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add support for AV1 video codec
  • Improve audio playback controls
  • Implement a recycle bin/trash feature
  • Add option to loop video playback
  • Improve video scrubbing and seeking

ES file explorer

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

FileBrowser

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

ES file explorer

Subscriptions1
  • Yearly Premium Access$9.991 Year

Questions

Is FileBrowser free?
FileBrowser costs $7.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is ES file explorer free?
ES file explorer is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, FileBrowser or ES file explorer?
FileBrowser is rated higher. FileBrowser averages 4.7 out of 5 from 5.6K ratings, while ES file explorer averages 1.8 from 10 ratings.
Do FileBrowser or ES file explorer have ads?
ES file explorer shows ads; FileBrowser does not.
Which is updated more often, FileBrowser or ES file explorer?
FileBrowser ships an update every 5 weeks, and ES file explorer every 2 weeks. Most recently, FileBrowser was updated on September 25, 2026 and ES file explorer on September 8, 2026.

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