# Zen Wisdom vs Alan Watts

The clearest difference is monetization model: Zen Wisdom at free against Alan Watts's subscription. Zen Wisdom also leads on update cadence (monthly vs every 4 months). Alan Watts's advantage is rating (4.7 vs 4.3) and ratings volume (152 vs 23). On price, review sentiment, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Zen Wisdom sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days and Alan Watts sells 9 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Alan Watts holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Alan Watts has 152 ratings behind it against 23, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 93% of Zen Wisdom's written reviews are positive against 87% of Alan Watts's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Zen Wisdom ships an update monthly, Alan Watts every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on September 16, 2026 and August 26, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Zen Wisdom | Alan Watts |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.3 (23 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/zen-wisdom/id414329570/reviews) | **[4.7 (152 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/alan-watts/id6446987890/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 23 | **152** |
| Positive reviews | **93.1% of reviews** | 87.4% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Monthly** | Every 4 months |
| Monetization | **Free** | Subscription |
| Size | 51 MB | 60 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **15.6** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 17+ |
| Developer | [Tom Lewis](https://appshunter.io/developer/413388113) | [Electronic Educational Programs Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1679927720) |

## What reviewers say

### Zen Wisdom

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/zen-wisdom/id414329570)

Access a vast collection of Zen wisdom quotes on the go. Enjoy daily inspiration, browse randomly, or explore the entire library. Easily share your favorite quotes via email and social media, and save them for later.

**Highlights:** Daily quotes, Random quote browsing, Full quote collection, Favorite quote saving, Social media sharing, Email sharing

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

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Zen Wisdom Premium Weekly | $4.99 | per 7 days |
| Zen Wisdom Premium Annual | $29.99 | per year |
| Zen Wisdom Lifetime | $79.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Great app
- 👍 Excellent selection of quotes
- 👍 Thought-provoking and inspiring
- 👍 Helpful for daily reflection
- 👍 Simple and easy to use

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Quotes get stuck on the same daily quote
- 🐛 Occasional crashes or glitches
- 🐛 Some fake or misattributed quotes
- 🔍 Lack of ability to search or navigate through past quotes

**Reported bugs**

- Daily quote getting stuck on the same quote for weeks
- Crashes when trying to share quotes
- Incompatibility issues with newer iOS versions

**Requested features**

- More frequent quote updates
- Ability to remove duplicate quotes from favorites
- Search or browse through past quotes
- Sorting options for favorites
- More Confucius, Sun Tzu, and Tao quotes


### Alan Watts

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/alan-watts/id6446987890)

Explore the profound wisdom of a renowned philosopher and spiritual teacher. Access a vast, curated collection of remastered talks, lectures, and exclusive content for personal growth and self-discovery. Listen offline and track your progress through a comprehensive library.

**Highlights:** Remastered audio talks, Extensive streaming collection, Exclusive content access, Offline listening, Mark talks as completed

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (9)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Alan Watts Monthly | $4.99 | per month |
| Alan Watts Yearly | $49.99 | per year |
| Alan Watts - 199 | $1.99 | one-time |
| Alan Watts - 799 | $7.99 | one-time |
| Alan Watts - 1599 | $15.99 | one-time |
| Alan Watts - 2299 | $22.99 | one-time |
| Alan Watts - 3399 | $33.99 | one-time |
| Alan Watts - 5999 | $59.99 | one-time |
| Alan Watts - 6499 | $64.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🙌 Excellent collection of Alan Watts content
- 👍 User-friendly app design
- 🔍 Genuine, non-AI recordings
- 💾 Ability to download talks for offline listening
- 🗓️ Tracking of listened content

**What reviewers complain about**

- 💰 Subscription-based model, some users prefer one-time purchase
- 🔍 Confusing UI for favoriting/downloading talks
- 🔧 Lack of customer support responsiveness
- 🔀 Automatic playback of next talk not working
- 🔒 Locked access to previously purchased content

**Reported bugs**

- App stops working when phone is locked
- Issues with account access and renewal

**Requested features**

- Add search by summary/topic functionality
- Implement a queue system for playlisting
- Provide an annual subscription plan
- Improve UI cues for played/unplayed content


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Zen Wisdom free?

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

### Is Alan Watts free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Zen Wisdom or Alan Watts?

Alan Watts is rated higher. Zen Wisdom averages 4.3 out of 5 from 23 ratings, while Alan Watts averages 4.7 from 152 ratings.

### Do Zen Wisdom or Alan Watts have ads?

Neither Zen Wisdom nor Alan Watts shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Zen Wisdom or Alan Watts?

Zen Wisdom ships an update monthly, and Alan Watts every 4 months. Most recently, Zen Wisdom was updated on September 16, 2026 and Alan Watts on August 26, 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.*