Tools For MTG vs MTG Mate
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Tools For MTG
This app provides essential tools for Magic: The Gathering players, including life and poison counters, match timers, a terminology glossary, and direct links to official news and video content.
- Life and poison counter tracking
- Match timer
- MTG terminology glossary
- Wizards of the Coast news feed
- Wizards of the Coast YouTube videos
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A suit of tools to assist the MTG player of any skill level. • Encounters allows you to keep track of the necessities of doing battle. Track life with conveniently incremented life modifiers as well as a poison counter. There is also a timer to track how long matches have played out. • A glossary allows for quick look-up for obscure terminology or for a quick reference. • A direct link to Wizards of the Coast’s news feed ensures you're always up to date with the latest from their news department and tournament results. • A listing of the latest videos from Wizards of the Coast YouTube channel
MTG Mate
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MTG Mate is a life tracker and card library for Magic: The Gathering on iPhone and iPad. Use it at the table for Commander, Standard, Two-Headed Giant, or a custom game. Keep decks, collections, and trades on the same device, even if you never create an account. Life tracking Track 1 to 6 players with layouts that fit the table. Commander damage covers partners and companions, with a dedicated view and D-pad navigation. Poison and infect share a combined total. Energy and other counters sit on each player card. Hold +/- to move life quickly, and turn on unlimited life when a combo goes off. You can also stop the app from marking a player dead if they can keep playing at 0. Game night tools Start a game with Commander, Standard, Two-Headed Giant, or your own starting life. Player panels can show commander art. A dice roller and coin flip sit in the game so you are not hunting for a D20. Life history on a player card helps when someone asks what happened two turns ago. Card library Save cards, build collections, and move cards in bulk. Import lists from Manabox, Archidekt, or Moxfield, or paste a text list. Export when you need to share a list elsewhere. Collection value and match history live in the stats hub so you can see how a collection and a play group change over time. Decks Build decks with commander, partner, companion, mainboard, and sideboard. Check format legality, mana curve, and type split. See an estimated deck value. Look up synergies and combos on a card when you are brewing. Card search Search Scryfall for prices, rulings, and legalities. Results collapse reprints so the same card does not appear ten times. Download the card database to search on the device with no signal. Online results keep loading in the background when you have a connection. Friends, trades, and sharing Add friends and set private aliases only you can see. Keep a trade ledger of cards and cash with a person or a friend. Sign in with email if you want Cloud Sync across iPhone, iPad, and the web library at mtgmate.app. Local first Cards, decks, and games stay on the device unless you turn on Cloud Sync. No ads. Free. MTG Mate is not affiliated with, endorsed, or sponsored by Wizards of the Coast. Magic: The Gathering is a trademark of Wizards of the Coast LLC.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: MTG Mate at every 2 weeks against Tools For MTG's every 3 months. Tools For MTG's advantage is iOS requirement (9.1 vs 18.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support 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.
Tools For MTG ships an update every 3 months, MTG Mate every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and October 2, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Tools For MTG | MTG Mate |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (16 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 53.8% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 16 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Every 2 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 9.1 — better | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 12 MB | 18 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Michael Dresser | Jacob Suchorabski |
In-app purchases
Tools For MTG
No in-app purchases
MTG Mate
No in-app purchases









