# Main vs building & automation

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: building & automation at none against Main's 12. Main's advantage is update cadence (every 5 months vs every 16 months). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Main sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $29.99 per month. building & automation asks for nothing beyond the download.

Main ships an update every 5 months, building & automation every 16 months. The most recent releases landed on September 21, 2026 and August 27, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Main | building & automation |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[5.0 (8 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/main-echo-e-paper/id415877971/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **8** | — |
| Positive reviews | 85.0% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 5 months** | Every 16 months |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Size | 24 MB | 160 MB |
| Requires iOS | **13.0** | 14.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Verlag und Druckerei Main-Echo GmbH & Co. KG](https://appshunter.io/developer/415877974) | [VDE VERLAG GMBH](https://appshunter.io/developer/443404609) |

## What reviewers say

### Main

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/main-echo-e-paper/id415877971)

Access regional news and content from your area on your smartphone or tablet. Enjoy features like text-to-speech, adjustable font sizes, and offline reading of past issues. A free 10-day trial is available.

**Highlights:** Regional news content, Adjustable font size, Text-to-speech functionality, Offline reading, Access to past issues, Free 10-day trial

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

**In-app purchases (10)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| DigitalPlus Monatsabo | $29.99 | per month |
| Spessart E-Paper Jahresabo | $39.99 | per year |
| Einzelausgabe Bote vom Unter-Main | $1.99 | one-time |
| Spessart Einzelausgabe: 1,99 € | $1.99 | one-time |
| Einzelausgabe Main-Echo Alzenau | $2.99 | one-time |
| Einzelausgabe Main-Echo Aschaffenburg | $2.99 | one-time |
| Einzelausgabe Main-Echo Obernburg | $2.99 | one-time |
| Einzelausgabe Fernsehmagazin TV7 | $2.99 | one-time |
| Einzelausgabe Main-Echo Archiv | $2.99 | one-time |
| Einzelausgabe Spessart E-Paper | $3.99 | one-time |


### building & automation

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/building-and-automation/id1536417849)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Main free?

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

### Is building & automation free?

building & automation is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Do Main or building & automation have ads?

Neither Main nor building & automation shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Main or building & automation?

Main ships an update every 5 months, and building & automation every 16 months. Most recently, Main was updated on September 21, 2026 and building & automation on August 27, 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.*