Comparison

Bead Magazine vs Aesthetica

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

Head to head
About

Bead Magazine

Discover beautiful beadwork, wirework, and lampwork projects. This app offers stylish designs and tutorials for jewelry making enthusiasts. Explore new techniques and inspiration for your creative endeavors.

Highlights
  • Beadwork projects
  • Wirework tutorials
  • Lampwork designs
  • Stringing projects
  • Metal clay designs
  • Polymer clay designs
Features
Read full description

We love beading! If you love beading too then Bead is the magazine for you! Created by bead lovers, for bead lovers each issue of Bead is packed full of beautiful beadwork, wirework and stringing projects. Plus stylish and quality lampwork, metal clay, and polymer clay designs, and much more! ---------------------------------------------- This is a free app download. Within the app users can purchase the current issue and back issues. Subscriptions are also available within the application. A subscription will start from the latest regular issue at the time of purchase. -The subscription will renew automatically unless cancelled more than 24 hours before the end of the current period. You will be charged for renewal within 24 hours of the end of the current period, for the same duration and at the current subscription rate for the product. -You may turn off the auto-renewal of subscriptions through your Account Settings, however you are not able to cancel the current subscription during its active period. -Payment will be charged to your iTunes account at confirmation of purchase and any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when a subscription to that publication is purchased. -If a subscription offers a free trial, at the end of the trial period, you will be charged the full price of the subscription. You may cancel a subscription during its free trial period via the subscription settings on your iTunes account. This must be done 24 hours before the end of the subscription period to avoid being charged. Users can register for/ login to a pocketmags account in-app. This will protect their issues in the case of a lost device and allow browsing of purchases on multiple platforms. Existing pocketmags users can retrieve their purchases by logging into their account. We recommend loading the app for the first time in a wi-fi area so that all issue data is retrieved. If your app will not load past the splash page after a first install or an update, please delete and reinstall the app from the App Store Help and frequently asked questions can be accessed in-app and on pocketmags. If you have any problems at all please do not hesitate to contact us: help@pocketmags.com -------------------- You can find our privacy policy here: http://www.pocketmags.com/privacy.aspx You can find our terms and conditions here: http://www.pocketmags.com/terms.aspx

About

Aesthetica

This app delivers a visually stunning mix of contemporary art and visual culture through a bi-monthly digital magazine. It explores global art, film, music, and performance, offering critical debate and engaging content. Subscribers can sync back issues for offline reading and access content from registered IP ranges.

Highlights
  • Sync back issues for offline reading
  • Searchable archive
  • Interactive page navigation
  • Bookmark favorite pages
  • Share content via social media
  • Institutional IP access
Features
Read full description

Aesthetica is a visually stunning mix of photography, debate and stimulating features. It is an essential magazine for readers looking to keep up to date with contemporary art and visual culture. Published bi-monthly, Aesthetica engages with the arts both in the UK and internationally, combining dynamic content with compelling critical debate and exploring the best in visual art, film, music and performance. During your subscription you can sync back issues to your device. These will remain in place if your subscription expires, unless your device removes them (for example when running low on disk space). Re-downloading issues requires a current subscription. • Swipe or tap the page edges to flip to next/previous page. • Use the animated thumbnail view to flick through the pages. • Pinch or double-tap pages to zoom. • Switch between single or double-page view. • Search the current issue or the archive. • Tap any page links to web sites, email addresses, phone numbers or maps. • Tap contents-page links to jump to a particular article. • Sync back issues to your device for offline reading (requires wi-fi). • Network connection required otherwise. • Bookmark favourite pages or search results to read later. • Share links to pages via social media. • If your institution has a magazine subscription, you can access it directly from within your registered IP range. We recommend first running the app within a wi-fi area so it can sync the latest issue to your device - after that you can use it anywhere. Subscribers will receive new issues automatically. Subscriptions are available within the app at the following prices: Two months £4.49 Annual £21.99 In addition, please note the following standard features of auto-renewable subscriptions: • Your payment will be charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. • Subscriptions will renew automatically unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. • Your account will be charged for renewal within 24 hours prior to the end of the current period. • You can manage your subscriptions and turn off auto-renewal by going to your Apple Account Settings after purchase. • No cancellation of the current subscription is allowed during active subscription period. You can find our privacy policy here: https://exacteditions.com/about/privacy and our terms of service here: https://exacteditions.com/about/tos

Screenshots

Bead Magazine1 screens
Aesthetica4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Aesthetica at 100% against Bead Magazine's 43%. Aesthetica also leads on rating (4.7 vs 3.4) and update cadence (every 6 months vs every 14 months). Bead Magazine's advantage is monetization model (free with in-app purchases vs subscription) and ratings volume (16 vs 3). 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. Bead Magazine sells 23 in-app purchases, starting at $39.99 per year and Aesthetica sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $5.49 per 2 months. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Aesthetica holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 3.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Bead Magazine has 16 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 43% of Bead Magazine's written reviews are positive against 100% of Aesthetica's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Bead Magazine ships an update every 14 months, Aesthetica every 6 months. The most recent releases landed on October 21, 2026 and October 26, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Bead Magazine versus Aesthetica: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBead MagazineAesthetica
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.4 (16 ratings)4.7 (3 ratings) — better
Positive reviews42.9% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings16 — better3
Update frequencyEvery 14 monthsEvery 6 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterSubscription
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS13.0 — better16.6
Further details — not scored
Size19 MB3 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperAshdown BroadcastingAesthetica Magazine Ltd

Customer experience

Bead Magazine

All ratings16 ratings
Positive56.3%
Neutral6.3%
Negative37.5%
Written reviews7 reviews
Positive42.9%
Neutral14.3%
Negative42.9%

Aesthetica

All ratings3 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

23 purchases

Bead Magazine

Subscriptions1
  • Bead Magazine Auto-Renewable Subscription1 Month trial$39.991 Year
One-time22
  • Bead Issue 51$2.99
  • Bead Issue 53 (id:737062)$4.99
  • Bead Issue 50 (id:741773)$4.99
Show 19 more
  • Bead Issue 48 (id:739411)$4.99
  • Bead Issue 46 (id:741772)$4.99
  • Bead Issue 45 (id:738863)$4.99
  • Bead Issue 40 (id:740379)$4.99
  • Bead Issue 36 (id:740301)$4.99
  • Bead Issue 54 (id:738344)$4.99
  • Issue 126 (id:726372)$5.99
  • Issue 112 (id:782117)$5.99
  • Aug/Sep 20 (id:785123)$5.99
  • Issue 115 (id:780786)$5.99
  • Issue 117 (id:780782)$5.99
  • Issue 71 (id:798877)$6.99
  • Bead & Jewelle... (pp:1120060)$6.99
  • Issue 133 (pp:1083889)$6.99
  • Issue 129 (pp:1043386)$6.99
  • Issue 131 (pp:1043374)$6.99
  • Issue 132 (pp:1083898)$6.99
  • Bead Magazine 3 Back Issue Bundle$14.99
  • Bead & Jewellery CYC 50$89.99
2 purchases

Aesthetica

Subscriptions2
  • Aesthetica$5.492 Months
  • Aesthetica$25.491 Year

Questions

Is Bead Magazine free?
Bead Magazine is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Aesthetica free?
Aesthetica is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Bead Magazine or Aesthetica?
Aesthetica is rated higher. Bead Magazine averages 3.4 out of 5 from 16 ratings, while Aesthetica averages 4.7 from 3 ratings.
Do Bead Magazine or Aesthetica have ads?
Neither Bead Magazine nor Aesthetica shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Bead Magazine or Aesthetica?
Bead Magazine ships an update every 14 months, and Aesthetica every 6 months. Most recently, Bead Magazine was updated on October 21, 2026 and Aesthetica on October 26, 2026.

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