# The Catholic Thing vs SPI Catholic

The clearest difference is rating: SPI Catholic at 5.0 against The Catholic Thing's 4.3. The Catholic Thing's advantage is ratings volume (23 vs 2) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 16.0). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

SPI Catholic holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: The Catholic Thing has 23 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two.

The Catholic Thing ships an update every 9 months, SPI Catholic every 6 months. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | The Catholic Thing | SPI Catholic |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.3 (23 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-catholic-thing/id6447444891/reviews) | **[5.0 (2 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/spi-catholic/id6505116333/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **23** | 2 |
| Positive reviews | 0.0% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 9 months | **Every 6 months** |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 25 MB | 41 MB |
| Requires iOS | **13.0** | 16.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | [Slynet Communications, Inc](https://appshunter.io/developer/1403137952) | [The Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield in Illinois Trustee Corporation](https://appshunter.io/developer/1755221222) |

## What reviewers say

### The Catholic Thing

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-catholic-thing/id6447444891)

This app provides a platform for thoughtful Catholic commentary and discussion. It serves as a forum for intelligent perspectives on faith and culture. Access insightful articles and engage with a community of Catholic thinkers.

**Highlights:** Intelligent Catholic commentary, Forum for discussion, Faith and culture perspectives, Insightful articles, Community engagement

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


### SPI Catholic

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/spi-catholic/id6505116333)

This app fosters a devoted community of missionary disciples and stewards of creation, guided by Catholic teachings. It focuses on hospitality, prayer, formation, and service to live out the discipleship and stewardship way of life.

**Highlights:** Missionary disciple community, Stewardship of creation, Four Pillars: Hospitality, Prayer, Formation, Service, Catholic teachings and scripture, Faith-based community building

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is The Catholic Thing free?

The Catholic Thing is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is SPI Catholic free?

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

### Which has better reviews, The Catholic Thing or SPI Catholic?

SPI Catholic is rated higher. The Catholic Thing averages 4.3 out of 5 from 23 ratings, while SPI Catholic averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.

### Do The Catholic Thing or SPI Catholic have ads?

Neither The Catholic Thing nor SPI Catholic shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, The Catholic Thing or SPI Catholic?

The Catholic Thing ships an update every 9 months, and SPI Catholic every 6 months. Most recently, The Catholic Thing was updated on November 3, 2026 and SPI Catholic on October 30, 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.*