# Mango IRC vs Beluga

The clearest difference is price: Beluga at Free against Mango IRC's $9.99. Beluga also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.4) and in-app purchases (none vs 3). Mango IRC's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 6 months) and chart position (#45 vs unranked). On ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Beluga is free to download; Mango IRC costs $9.99 up front. Mango IRC sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Beluga asks for nothing beyond the download.

Beluga holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Mango IRC has 5 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

Mango IRC ships an update weekly, Beluga every 6 months. The most recent releases landed on November 10, 2026 and November 12, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Mango IRC | Beluga |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $9.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | [4.4 (5 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mango-irc/id431058916/reviews) | **[5.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/beluga-self-hosted-tweets/id1626349771/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **5** | 1 |
| Positive reviews | 26.7% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Weekly** | Every 6 months |
| Monetization | Paid | **Free** |
| Best chart rank | **#45** | — |
| Size | 108 MB | 11 MB |
| Requires iOS | **17.0** | 27.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Mac** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Pavel Kanzelsberger](https://appshunter.io/developer/399288546) | [Blimp](https://appshunter.io/developer/647925201) |

## What reviewers say

### Mango IRC

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mango-irc/id431058916)

**Currently charting:** #45 Top Paid · Social Networking (US App Store)

A native IRC client for iPhone and iPad that organizes conversations, offers rich media previews, and allows for customizable chat experiences. Connect to multiple networks, manage files, and sync settings across devices.

**Highlights:** Multiple IRC network connections, Rich link and image previews, File management and uploads, Customizable themes and layouts, iCloud sync across devices, Bouncer support (soju, ZNC)

**Features:** Vision Pro support, iPhone Duo support

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Small Tip | $1.99 | one-time |
| Medium Tip | $3.99 | one-time |
| Large Tip | $8.99 | one-time |


### Beluga

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/beluga-self-hosted-tweets/id1626349771)

Share your thoughts and updates with friends and followers through a "tweet-like" feed.  It generates a mini-website for easy sharing, even with non-users, and supports RSS feed readers for broader reach. This decentralized app ensures you own your data.

**Highlights:** Tweet-like content publishing, Personalized mini-website generation, JSON Feed compatibility, Decentralized data ownership, RSS feed reader integration, Multiple S3-compatible storage support

**Features:** iPhone Duo support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Mango IRC free?

Mango IRC costs $9.99, and also offers in-app purchases.

### Is Beluga free?

Beluga is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Mango IRC or Beluga?

Beluga is rated higher. Mango IRC averages 4.4 out of 5 from 5 ratings, while Beluga averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.

### Do Mango IRC or Beluga have ads?

Neither Mango IRC nor Beluga shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Mango IRC or Beluga?

Mango IRC ships an update weekly, and Beluga every 6 months. Most recently, Mango IRC was updated on November 10, 2026 and Beluga on November 12, 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.*