Comparison

Lectionary vs Parish Churches

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Lectionary

Access daily Bible readings and liturgical resources from the Church of England. Features include full lectionary texts with Bible links, collects, and saint biographies. Plan services with annotation tools and view weekly readings at a glance.

Highlights
  • Daily Bible readings with dynamic links
  • Full Common Worship lectionary texts
  • Collects and Post-Communions
  • Service planning with annotations
  • Weekly lectionary view
  • Saint biographies
Features
Read full description

Integrate the Church of England's pattern of daily Bible readings seamlessly into your life with the official Common Worship Lectionary app for iPad. For each day of the church year, it presents the Common Worship lectionary readings in full, complete with dynamic links to the Bible passages themselves (NRSV translation). All approved variations are clearly presented, including the Additional Weekday Lectionary. The app also allows you to: - Access the Collect and Post-Communions for the day at the touch of a button. - Mark and annotate records – ideal for service planning. - View the week's lectionary in a single page. - Start your annual lectionary whenever you like: no need to wait for the new church year. - Read biographies from 'Saints on Earth' of individuals commemorated in the Common Worship calendar on that day. The app is free to download and includes a free 14-day subscription with access to offline Bible readings. After this has expired you can take out a subscription to access either online only or offline. • In-app subscriptions are purchased using your iTunes account and automatically renew. 12 month or 3 month subscription options are available • If you already have a web subscription you can use these account details in the app to view available content. • Payment will be charged to iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase • Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period • Account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period, and identify the cost of the renewal • Subscriptions may be managed by the user and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user's Account Settings after purchase Privacy Policy - https://www.chpublishing.co.uk/privacy-policy The Common Worship Lectionary app includes the official Calendar, Bible Readings (NRSV) and Collects from the Church of England.

About

Parish Churches

Features
Read full description

Parish Churches gives you the ability to search and browse the archive of the Parish Church Photographic Survey, a long-running photographic project documenting in detail the rural parish churches of England. Using Parish Churches you can search for churches and their contents using over 500 keywords, covering dates and periods, the names of benefactors and people commemorated, and the artists and architects responsible for the churches and their contents. The app includes an interactive map allowing you to explore churches geographically. The app currently provides access to over 52,000 pictures covering over 1,000 churches. Work is continually underway to make further material available from the source archive of approximately 600,000 pictures covering around 10,000 churches. A free tier gives access to the complete set of churches and images for the county of Rutland. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Lectionary4 screens
Parish Churches4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Parish Churches at every 9 days against Lectionary's every 2 months. 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Lectionary sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per 3 months and Parish Churches sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $5.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Lectionary ships an update every 2 months, Parish Churches every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 6, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard1 real difference · 9 level
Lectionary versus Parish Churches: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterLectionaryParish Churches
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.9 (18 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews31.3% of reviews—
Number of ratings18 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 9 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS16.4 — better17.4
Further details — not scored
Size205 MB104 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperHymns Ancient and Modern LtdC B Newham

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Lectionary

Subscriptions4
  • Basic: on-line 3 months$2.993 Months
  • Full: off-line$5.993 Months
  • Basic: on-line$6.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • Full: off-line$10.991 Year
1 purchases

Parish Churches

Subscriptions1
  • Monthly$5.991 Month

Questions

Is Lectionary free?
Lectionary is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Parish Churches free?
Parish Churches is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Lectionary or Parish Churches have ads?
Neither Lectionary nor Parish Churches shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Lectionary or Parish Churches?
Lectionary ships an update every 2 months, and Parish Churches every 9 days. Most recently, Lectionary was updated on October 26, 2026 and Parish Churches on October 6, 2026.

Other comparisons