DBRL Mobile vs Hoopla
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
DBRL Mobile
Access your library's collection from your phone. Browse, search, and discover books, music, and movies. Manage your account, place holds, and check item availability with ease.
- Search library catalog
- View title details and reviews
- Check availability and place holds
- Manage account and due dates
- Rate items and add to 'For Later'
- Browse bestsellers and new titles
- Find library hours and directions
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Keep a library in your pocket! DBRL Mobile makes it easy to find books, music and movies, see what’s available at your library, place holds and manage your account. Features: • Quickly search the library catalog and use filters to zero in on the title you’re looking for. • Get the details on any title including descriptions, ratings and reviews. • Check a title’s availability—even map the locations where the title is available now—and place holds. • Manage your account: check to see if your holds are ready, renew titles, suspend holds or instantly see when your books due. • Keep track of your interests: rate an item with one touch or add a title to your “For Later” list. • Browse bestsellers, new titles and recent reviews. • Check library hours and get directions to the nearest Daniel Boone Regional Library location.
Hoopla
Access a vast digital library of books, comics, movies, music, and more, all within a single application. Stream or download content for free with your library card, enjoying an ad-free experience and features like offline listening and dark mode.
- Stream and download content
- Ad-free experience
- Audiobooks and eBooks
- Comics, manga, and graphic novels
- Movies and TV shows
- Music albums
- Offline listening
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Thousands of free books, audio, comics, and more available right now with your library card. No subscription. No ads. Just borrow and read. Hoopla Digital connects your local public library to your phone, giving you instant access to thousands of free audiobooks, eBooks, comics, graphic novels, manga, and magazines with new titles added daily. Free Books and Audiobooks Available Right Now Borrow audiobooks and eBooks of all genres. From romance to psychological thrillers, discover chart-topping new releases, indie authors, and classics to stream or download anytime. Comics, Manga, and Graphic Novels Dive into an enormous library of comics and manga across every genre. Our ActionView feature brings panel-by-panel reading to life with stunning detail. Watch Free Movies and TV Stream movies, anime, documentaries, and TV shows at home or on the go. Use BingePass for seven-day unlimited access to premium channels like Hallmark+ and PBS or SeasonPass to borrow and binge watch the full season in one sitting. Listen to Music Albums Borrow full albums by artists like Taylor Swift, Sabrina Carpenter, Bruno Mars and Morgan Wallen. Shuffle between multiple albums to create a unique playlist of songs by your favorite musical artists. Built for How You Live • Apple CarPlay support for hands-free audiobooks and music on the road • Dark mode for comfortable late-night reading • Sleep timer so you never lose your place • Offline downloads — no data needed once borrowed All you need is a free library card from a participating library.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Hoopla at 4.8 against DBRL Mobile's 4.4. Hoopla also leads on ratings volume (1.4M vs 11) and update cadence (monthly vs every 3 months). DBRL Mobile's advantage is review sentiment (80% vs 71%). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Hoopla holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Hoopla has 1.4M ratings behind it against 11, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 80% of DBRL Mobile's written reviews are positive against 71% of Hoopla's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
DBRL Mobile ships an update every 3 months, Hoopla monthly. The most recent releases landed on September 19, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | DBRL Mobile | Hoopla |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.4 (11 ratings) | 4.8 (1.4M ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 80.0% of reviews — better | 71.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 11 | 1.4M — better |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Monthly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Best chart rank | — | #5 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, Apple TV — better |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | 16.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 22 MB | 104 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Daniel Boone Regional Library | Midwest Tape, LLC |
Customer experience
DBRL Mobile
Hoopla
Bugs and requests
DBRL Mobile
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
Hoopla
Reported bugs
4 issues- Frequent crashes and freezes
- Issues with downloading and playing content
- Inconsistent behavior when switching between apps
- Problems with returning borrowed items
Requested features
5 requests- Increase monthly borrow limit
- Add ability to preview audiobooks before borrowing
- Improve page navigation and bookmarking
- Enhance cross-device syncing
- Introduce dark mode and customization options
In-app purchases
DBRL Mobile
No in-app purchases
Hoopla
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is DBRL Mobile free?
Is Hoopla free?
Which has better reviews, DBRL Mobile or Hoopla?
Do DBRL Mobile or Hoopla have ads?
Which is updated more often, DBRL Mobile or Hoopla?
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