Comparison

Kickstarter vs OwlCrate

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

Head to head
About

Kickstarter

Explore and support innovative projects across various creative fields. Discover groundbreaking ideas in games, technology, art, and more. Pledge to projects that inspire you and stay updated on their progress.

Highlights
  • Discover creative projects globally
  • Pledge to projects
  • Receive project updates
  • Track backings
  • Join a global creative community
Features
Read full description

Discover, back, and bring bold ideas to life. The Kickstarter app connects you with groundbreaking projects across games, publishing, technology, comics, and film. Whether you’re passionate about design, gadgets, stories, or innovation, there’s something for everyone. Use the app to: • Browse creative projects from around the world • Pledge to projects that align with your passions • Stay in the loop with updates and reminders • Follow your backings in one place • Join a global movement that fuels ideas worth sharing Start discovering today and help the next big idea take off.

About

OwlCrate

A free community platform for book lovers to connect, share recommendations, and participate in reading challenges and live events. Discover new reads, join book clubs, and engage with fellow readers and authors in a welcoming, inclusive space.

Highlights
  • Connect with bookish friends
  • Discover new favorite reads
  • Participate in monthly book clubs
  • Join reading challenges
  • Win giveaways
  • Watch live author events
  • Play games and features
Features
Read full description

Have you ever read a book so good you wanted to share your excitement with others? As book lovers, we’ve been there… And that’s why we created The Nest—a place where readers belong. The Nest is a completely free, community-powered platform built by the award-winning book subscription box, OwlCrate. Our app welcomes every bookworm, author, and writer —no OwlCrate subscription required. No paywall. No catch. Just a love of books and the people who read them. Whether you’re yet to read your first book this year or plan to read five hundred by the end of the year, The Nest is your space to connect, explore, and celebrate the magic of storytelling. We built this virtual bookish community on the same values that have shaped OwlCrate since the beginning: Community, Creativity, Curiosity, Inclusivity, and Joy. That means everything we offer—from live chats to virtual cons—is free, accessible, and built for readers by readers. With more than 25,000 members and growing, The Nest is where book lovers gather to share what they’re reading and give book recommendations, post book reviews, meet new friends, and take part in unforgettable experiences. But that’s not all…. Here's what’s inside: CONNECT WITH BOOKISH FRIENDS Build your profile, join group chats, comment on posts, and connect with readers around the world—or right in your neighborhood. GET EARLY ACCESS Members of The Nest get access to new OwlCrate releases before they go on general sale. DISCOVER YOUR NEXT FAVORITE READ Scroll your personalized feed to see what books others are reading and recommending in real time to expand your reading list. PARTICIPATE IN A MONTHLY BOOK CLUB Read together by joining chapter-by-chapter readalongs with games, trivia, and giveaways included! JOIN A READING CHALLENGE New challenges drop every month. Join a team, earn points, and complete creative prompts together! WIN GIVEAWAYS Win bookish goodies, gift cards, store credit, and more just by participating in the community. WATCH LIVE EVENTS Throughout the year, we host free live events with bestselling authors. You can expect monthly live chats alongside our annual convention. Plus, you can rewatch all past event recordings whenever you like—no ticket, no cost, ever. PLAY GAMES & FEATURES Weekly games like question of the day, reading sprints, and more keep the fun going every day! TAKE PART IN SUBSCRIBER CHALLENGES The Nest hosts our Young Adult Fantasy Crate Challenge for subscribers. Show off your box, or show us how you use it, and be entered to win OwlCrate store credit! ENJOY YOUR SPACES Whether you're into writing, crafts, cozy fantasy, or TV fan theories, there’s a space for you. EXPERIENCE REAL OPPORTUNITIES Our Nesties have front-row opportunities to get creative! You could be published in OwlCrate Press anthologies, become an OwlCrate artist, or become a featured community contributor on our blog! The Nest is built differently. No gatekeeping. No barriers. Just a joyful space for readers who want more from their reading life—and from each other. We didn’t add a community to OwlCrate. We built a home where both we and our readers can celebrate books together in a safe and supportive space. Join The Nest. Find your people. Share your love for books. Be part of something real. Have questions or feedback? Reach us at support@owlcrate.com Follow @owlcrate on Instagram and TikTok for updates.

Screenshots

Kickstarter4 screens
OwlCrate4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: OwlCrate at none against Kickstarter's shown. OwlCrate also leads on monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases) and update cadence (weekly vs every 4 weeks). Kickstarter's advantage is ratings volume (59K vs 32) and rating (4.8 vs 4.5). On price, in-app purchases, device support and iOS requirement 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Kickstarter holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Kickstarter has 59K ratings behind it against 32, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 32% of Kickstarter's written reviews are positive against 43% of OwlCrate's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Kickstarter ships an update every 4 weeks, OwlCrate weekly. The most recent releases landed on November 7, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
Kickstarter versus OwlCrate: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterKickstarterOwlCrate
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (59K ratings) — better4.5 (32 ratings)
Positive reviews32.4% of reviews42.9% of reviews — better
Number of ratings59K — better32
Update frequencyEvery 4 weeksWeekly — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
Best chart rank#201 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS18.017.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size129 MB130 MB
Age rating12+17+
DeveloperKickstarter, PBCOwlCrate Enterprises Inc.

Customer experience

Kickstarter

All ratings59,049 ratings
Positive95.4%
Neutral1.6%
Negative3.0%
Written reviews1,706 reviews
Positive32.4%
Neutral8.1%
Negative59.6%

OwlCrate

All ratings32 ratings
Positive87.5%
Neutral3.1%
Negative9.4%
Written reviews7 reviews
Positive42.9%
Neutral14.3%
Negative42.9%

Bugs and requests

Kickstarter

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Explore tab broken in latest update
  • Notifications not working correctly
  • Activity feed not updating
  • Issues with submitting surveys through the app
  • Clunky UI, especially when updating pledges

Requested features

6 requests
  • Allow filtering backed projects by status (received, active, closed)
  • Ability to follow creators directly in the app
  • Improve comments section (threading, search, etc.)
  • Add an archive/delete function for completed/cancelled projects
  • Introduce a read/unread project status
Show 1 more
  • Allow users to block problematic creators

OwlCrate

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Kickstarter

No in-app purchases

None

OwlCrate

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Kickstarter free?
Kickstarter is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is OwlCrate free?
OwlCrate is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Kickstarter or OwlCrate?
Kickstarter is rated higher. Kickstarter averages 4.8 out of 5 from 59K ratings, while OwlCrate averages 4.5 from 32 ratings.
Do Kickstarter or OwlCrate have ads?
Kickstarter shows ads; OwlCrate does not.
Which is updated more often, Kickstarter or OwlCrate?
Kickstarter ships an update every 4 weeks, and OwlCrate weekly. Most recently, Kickstarter was updated on November 7, 2026 and OwlCrate on November 5, 2026.

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